Quick passport with just four documents - a Republic Day gift from the external affairs ministry
Posted on: 29/Jan/2016 11:06:53 AM
External affairs minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted that a passport would be issued if an application is submitted with copies of the Aadhaar card, voter ID and PAN card, and an affidavit of no criminal case which includes family details and citizenship.
The process of getting a fresh Indian passport has become easier with the government introducing two significant changes to further liberalize the procedure.
The new provision will allow applicants to choose any of the latest five available working days while scheduling or rescheduling an appointment for passport-related services.
Under the earlier system, the appointment was assigned by the Passport Seva system based on its availability and on first-in-first-out (FIFO) basis.
Now an applicant can fill up his or her particulars online and pay the requisite fees. He or she will then be redirected to a pay and book appointment screen allowing him or her to choose a date from the displayed calendar. The calendar would display the latest five available dates at the Passport Seva Kendra selected.
The second and more significant set of changes are in the police verification process.
Under this system, normal passport applications of all first time applicants who furnish three documents - Aadhar, electoral photo identity card and permanent account number or PAN card - and an affidavit stating their address, citizenship and swearing that there are no criminal cases pending against them will be processed on a post-police verification basis without payment of any additional fees subject to successful online validation of the Aadhar number
Basically a citizen who has these three relevant documents would be issued the passport virtually immediately and the police verification would follow later.
The changes have come into effect as of Wednesday which was a Republic Day gift from the external affairs ministry.
