Passport first, verification later

According to Regional Passport Officer K Balamurugan, the form has everything the police department asks and is self-attested. “We request all the notaries issuing the Annexure I to explain the form in detail in vernacular language. If someone with a criminal background fills in false information, he or she has to realise that the applicant has to come to the Passport Seva Kendra for other formalities, where the photos and fingerprints will be taken. They’ll eventually be caught and it will be their second offence.” 

Under the new arrangement, Aadhar card is one of the three documents one must have to receive the passport in three days. However, the passport officials clarified that an Aadhar card is not mandatory to get a passport. If someone who doesn’t have an Aadhar card needs a passport immediately, he or she can apply for the regular Tatkal passport, for which the applicant will have to pay an extra Rs 2,000. “There are around 96 crore people with Aadhar card. It is a huge number and the new scheme will be beneficial to many,” he said. 

Talking about the security issues concerning the issue of passports prior to verification, he said, “We had the security aspects sorted out before launching the scheme. We already have a category called ‘Prior Approval category’. It consists of database by the police department of people who have already commited an offence. We know when an offender comes to apply for a passport. Now everybody has to come to the Passport Seva Kendra, where the photographs and fingerprints are taken. Identifying an offender becomes easier if he is carrying Annexure- I. Also, today we can impound a passport at a click of the mouse. If we are informed that someone has committed an offence, we can impound the passport.” 

Under the special scheme, to help out those who had lost their visa during the flood, under the special scheme of issue of replacement passport for free, around 3970 applicants were benefitted. This scheme is valid till February 7.