| There is plenty of handwringing and teeth gnashing at the Passport Seva Kendras |
INTERMINABLE WAIT:Passport applicants now have to wait for months on end to secure an online appointment either in the regular or tatkal quota.
Not only do they now have to wait for months on end to secure an online appointment either in the regular or tatkal quota, the perceived inconsistencies in the requirement of documents, as mentioned on the Passport Seva website and the enquiry counter have aggravated matters.
When Lakshman Dayal, a Bangalore resident, filled his application online in February, the earliest date for appointment he managed to get at the Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) on Lalbagh Road was April 25.
Incomplete information
After carefully perusing the website for the documents he had to bring, he took with him his Election Commission photo ID card for address authentication. However, to his chagrin, he was told by the person at the enquiry counter that the ID card should be at least a year old. His argument that the website did not specify this fact did not cut ice and he had no choice but to leave.
Ms. Neelu, a Chamarajpet resident accompanying her aged in-laws who had applied for passport renewal, said the website did not state the need for any documents except copies of the expired passport if the address and other particulars had not changed. “But after coming here, we are being told that an address proof is necessary,” she said.
No help
Though most of the disappointed applicants had crosschecked the documents required with the toll-free number, it made little difference as the customer service personnel reveal little information other than what is available on the website.
No wonder frustration, chaos and heated altercations between applicants and the staff at the PSKs are routine. Mahesh V., the manager at the Lalbagh Road Kendra, when confronted by the aggrieved applicants, contended the website had “all the information”. However, he offered to communicate the hostile “feedback” to the Union Ministry of External Affairs under which the Kendras operate.
Outstation applicants
The fate of those from other parts of the State is far worse. While resourceful Bangaloreans can procure the necessary documents the same day, outstation applicants have no option but to endure the bureaucratic nightmare of another two or three months' wait for a fresh appointment. Ever since the PSKs came into being, BangaloreOne and post offices have stopped accepting passport applications.
As for the tatkal quota, applicants have to book a slot online at 9 a.m., a day prior to the scheduled appointment. “I tried for a tatkal quota for a whole week by logging on to the website at the appointed time, but failed,” fumed Tausif, who eventually turned to a travel agent who was earlier helping process passports applications as well.
Though agents have no role to play at the PSKs, they surprisingly manage to secure tatkal appointments for a fee. “Probably, they are more Net savvy than us,” said Tausif sardonically.
The PSK website says the number of passports issued in the country rose from 33,216 in 1958 to 44,41,768 in 2006. From 2006 to 2010, it had almost doubled to 84,39,584.
The website, however, states that the Passport Seva Project is in the process of improving the appointment scheduling system. “Towards this objective, the cycle time for appointment availability is being drastically reduced and additional appointments are also being released on a daily basis at 9 a.m. every day.”