Passport Seva Project completes 3 years in Bangalore

Passport Seva Project (PSP), the mission mode program of the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), has successfully completed three years of operations in Bangalore. With the establishment of Passport Seva Kendras (PSKs) in the city, the MEA has taken assertive steps to deliver passport services to citizens of Bangalore and adjoining areas in a timely, transparent, more accessible and reliable manner.
 
Bangalore was the first city in which the pilot phase of PSP was first launched in 2010. During this period several operational improvements were made and significant innovative steps were taken to enhance the passport services and to roll out the PSP across India. Since then the Bangalore RPO has been providing exemplary passport services to the fellow citizens through four PSKs (two in Bangalore and one each in Hubli and Mangalore) working under its jurisdiction.
 
L. Madan Kumar Reddy, acting regional passport officer, Bangalore, said, "Through the implementation of Passport Seva Project in Bangalore, in the last three years we have successfully processed 11.75 lakh passport applications and issued 10.9 lakh Passports/PCC to the citizens. To make the whole experience citizen friendly, we have also organized several Passport Mela(s) to enhance the accessibility of passports for people and ease the rush of applicants."
 
In the last three years number of passport applications processed by Bangalore RPO has increased by over 43%, while from April 2012 to April 2013 the increase is 20% i.e. from 30,500 to 36,500 on a monthly basis. With the pendency of Police Verification (PV) reports at an all-time low (41,500), there has been a tremendous increase in the percentage of PV's completed within 21 days i.e. from 31% (in 2010) to 43% (in quarter ending March 2013).
 
As part of MEA's e-Governance initiatives, the Passport Seva Project (PSP) has transformed the passport issuance system across India through an increased network of 77 PSKs. The Ministry is improving governance in Passport Offices by focusing on citizen-centricity, service orientation and transparency.