Latest news with #PassportSevaDivas
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
Regular passports valid, touts spreading fake info: RPO chief
Pune: Passport agents and touts are exploiting the launch of e-passports to spread false information that regular passports are no longer valid, said Arjun Deore, regional passport officer at Pune RPO, on vested interests trying to drum up unnecessary business, there have been instances where citizens were misled into believing they need to replace their existing valid passports immediately with e-passports."There is misinformation circulating among people. Citizens with passports valid for several years are being told that their documents are no longer valid because 'passport' offices are now issuing e-passports. There are vested interests — certain agents who want to generate new applicants — who are spreading this kind of misinformation," said warning comes as Pune RPO (regional passport office) has now transitioned to issuing only e-passports since the first week of May 2025, making it one of the major passport offices in India to implement the new technology under the Passport Seva Programme 2.0. "All passports that we have been issuing since the first week of May are e-passports," Deore Pune RPO chief emphasised that citizens should not fall for these misleading claims. "Unless your passport is damaged or invalid, it remains perfectly acceptable for use. Only those who genuinely need new passports — those with expired passports, exhausted pages or damaged documents — should apply. Citizens should not apply merely for the novelty of having an e-passport," he per the ministry of external affairs, all regular passports issued under the previous Passport Seva Programme 1.0 remain completely valid and can continue to be used for travel purposes, subject to normal validity periods and other provisions under the Passports Act, e-passport rollout at Pune RPO is part of a nationwide expansion of the technology, which was initially piloted in smaller offices in Nagpur and Bhubaneswar last year before being extended to major regional the digital nomenclature, e-passports are still physical booklets identical to regular passports, with one crucial addition — an embedded RFID (radio frequency identification) chip that stores passport data securely."The term e-passport does not mean it can be downloaded to a mobile phone or any digital device. It remains a physical booklet. The only difference is that it contains an embedded chip," explained Deore. The booklet features a distinctive chip logo on the front cover though the actual chip is located on a different page chip technology, similar to that used in debit cards, enables automated identity verification at immigration counters and significantly enhances security by making tampering extremely RPO wins national awardRegional Passport Office, Pune, received the first prize for "innovative steps and citizen-centric initiatives" during the recent Passport Seva Divas celebration. Minister of state for external affairs Pabitra Margherita presented the award to Arjun Deore, regional passport its notable achievements, Pune RPO became the first passport office to install an 80kW rooftop solar plant in Jan 2025 under the Pradhan Mantri Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, generating 25% of its monthly electricity needs and saving Rs1 lakh per month.
The Hindu
01-07-2025
- The Hindu
Tiruchi RPO gets certificate of excellence
The Regional Passport Office has been awarded the certificate of excellence in passport service delivery to citizens during 2024-25. The certificate was presented by Union Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita to Sharanappa Talwar, Regional Passport Officer, during the Annual Passport Officers' Conference and Passport Seva Divas held in New Delhi recently. The recognition highlights the Tiruchi Regional Passport Office's commitment to service, quality and efficiency in passport delivery. The office has two Passport Seva Kendras at Tiruchi and Thanjavur and and five Post Office Passport Seva Kendras at Karur, Perambalur, Sirkali, Thiruthuraipoondi and Karaikal, Mr. Talwar said in a press release. A mobile Passport Seva Van has also been introduced. The mobile van travels to different parts of the districts under the jurisdiction of the Regional Passport office and processes the applications online on a real-time basis. In line with Government of India's commitment to deliver the next level of citizen centric service, PSP V2.O and the e-Passports have been rolled out this year, the release further said.
India Gazette
24-06-2025
- Politics
- India Gazette
MEA MoS Pabitra Margherita attends 13th Passport Seva Divas, lauds passport authorities' citizen-centric service
New Delhi [India], June 24 (ANI): Union Minister of State for External Affairs, Pabitra Margherita, on Tuesday attended the 13th Passport Seva Divas and extended his greetings to all passport authorities in India and abroad. In a social media post on X, Pabitra wrote, 'Delighted to be at the 13th Passport Seva Divas, extended my heartiest compliments to all passport authorities in India and abroad. Commended their efforts in furthering our mission of a citizen-centric policy. Reaffirmed MEA's commitment to make passport services more timely, accessible, transparent, and citizen-friendly, in line with vision of Hon'ble PM Shri @narendramodi ji and guidance of Hon'ble EAM @DrSJaishankar @MEAIndia.' Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) celebrated Passport Seva Divas today to mark the enactment of the Passports Act on 24 June 1967. A three-day Regional Passport Officers (RPO) Conference is being organized from 23-25 June 2025 coinciding with this event. In his message on the Passport Seva Divas, External Affairs Minister (EAM) S Jaishankar, felicitated the Ministry for implementing PSP Version 2.0 along with the e-Passport project. EAM also mentioned that the journey of passport service from 91 lakh passports in the year 2014 to 1.46 crore passports in the year 2024 has been marked by innovations including the m-Police app, Post Office Passport Seva Kendras (POPSK), GPSP etc. which has made passport delivery relatively quicker and hassle free even in the remotest parts of the country. MoS MEA Pabitra Margherita presided over the Passport Seva Divas celebration. In his address, he stated that the most striking feature of the passport delivery service today is its inclusive nature and affordability. He also appreciated the innovative efforts of the Passport Offices such as Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED) outlets in the passport office which promotes tribal welfare, solar plants and rainwater harvesting plants. The Union MoS appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of External Affairs, Department of Posts and other stakeholders for making the passport services more transparent and efficient. He expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar for their inspiration and guidance towards reforms for delivery of the passport services in the country. On this occasion, MoS also presented awards to officers, officials and organizations for their contribution in increasing the outreach as well as efficiency of passport delivery services. The RPO Conference saw the participation of the Passport Officers from 37 Passport Offices across India and officers of the Central Passport Organization led by Joint Secretary (PSP) & Chief Passport Officer KJ Srinivasa. Fruitful deliberations were held on several issues including Passport Seva Project Version 2.0, roll out of e-Passports, human resource development, capacity building, public grievance handling mechanism, security related issues, etc. with an aim of imparting faster, secure and hassle free passport services to citizens. (ANI)
United News of India
24-06-2025
- Business
- United News of India
MEA celebrates Passport Seva Divas; service increased from 91 lakh passports to 1.46 crore in last decade
New Delhi, June 24 (UNI) External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, in his message on Passport Seva Divas, today said that the journey of passport service from 91 lakh passports in 2014 to 1.46 crore passports in the year 2024 has been marked by tech innovations which has made passport delivery relatively quicker and hassle free. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) celebrated Passport Seva Divas today to mark the enactment of the Passports Act on this day in 1967. A three-day Regional Passport Officers (RPO) Conference is being organised from June 23-25 coinciding with this event, a statement said. In his message on the Passport Seva Divas, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar felicitated the Ministry for implementing PSP Version 2.0 along with the e-Passport project. EAM also mentioned that the journey of passport service from 91 lakh passports in the year 2014 to 1.46 crore passports in the year 2024 has been marked by innovations including the m-Police app, Post Office Passport Seva Kendras (POPSK), GPSP etc. which has made passport delivery relatively quicker and hassle free even in the remotest parts of the country. Pabitra Margherita, Minister of State for External Affairs presided over the Passport Seva Divas celebration today. In his address, he stated that the most striking feature of the passport delivery service today is its inclusive nature and affordability. He also appreciated the innovative efforts of the Passport Offices such as Tribal Cooperative Marketing Development Federation of India Limited (TRIFED) outlets in the passport office which promotes tribal welfare, solar plants and rainwater harvesting plants. He appreciated the efforts of the Ministry of External Affairs, Department of Posts and other stakeholders for making the passport services more transparent and efficient. On this occasion, MoS also presented awards to officers, officials and organisations for their contribution in increasing the outreach as well as efficiency of passport delivery services. The RPO Conference saw the participation of the Passport Officers from 37 Passport Offices across India and officers of the Central Passport Organization led by Joint Secretary (PSP) & Chief Passport Officer Dr. K.J. Srinivasa. Fruitful deliberations were held on several issues including Passport Seva Project Version 2.0, roll out of e-Passports, human resource development, capacity building, public grievance handling mechanism, security related issues, etc. with an aim of imparting faster, secure and hassle free passport services to citizens. UNI RN
United News of India
23-06-2025
- Business
- United News of India
Telangana Police's VeriFast' app tops in Passport Verification Efficiency
Hyderabad, June 23 (UNI) The Telangana State Police has emerged as the top performer among all state police forces in India in the domain of passport verification, thanks to Telangana's 'VeriFast application'. Telangana Director General of Intelligence B Shivadhar Reddy will be receiving the Certificate of Excellence from the Minister of External Affairs at New Delhi on Tuesday, June 24, which is observed every year as Passport Seva Divas, a release said here on Monday. This innovative digital solution has dramatically streamlined the passport verification process, ensuring speed, accuracy, transparency, and citizen-centric service delivery. As per the latest national statistics, Telangana Police has once again achieved the fastest average turnaround time (TAT) in passport verification, consistently completing verifications well within the mandated time, and often in less than three working days—a benchmark that sets Telangana apart from most other states. Key Success Metrics includes daily average of 2,000+ passport verifications processed across the state with real-time monitoring, with annual volumes exceeding eight lakhs; detection and prevention of fraudulent passport applications through integration with Intelligence systems and data analytics besides significant cost savings for Telangana Police as VeriFast operates on existing devices without requiring expensive hardware replacement. The VeriFast application is a testament to Telangana Police's commitment to harnessing technology for efficient governance and citizen service. It reflects the state's larger digital transformation agenda and showcases how police modernization can directly improve service delivery and national security outcomes. Telangana Police is proud to set the gold standard in passport verification and looks forward to continuous innovation in this space, a release said. UNI KNR RN
