Remember to be courteous to visitors to the passport office at all times, said Inspector General of Police (south zone) Abhai Kumar Singh here on Saturday.
Inaugurating a day-long event, ‘Citizen service, quality management and IT security,’ organised at Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) for employees of passport office and Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), he said that it may be a mere document for identity proof for a few, but for a large majority, passport was the only means to go abroad for employment.
Narrating his experience on difficulty he faced while opening a bank account nine years ago over lack of identity proof, Mr. Singh said that every applicant may not be aware of rules and regulations and documents to be produced for getting passports.
Many may not have ration card or driving licence. The passport staff should treat them politely and educate them on the procedures. He assured that the police department would help expedite the verification process to avoid delay in issuance of new passports.
Regional Passport Officer A. Muneeswara Raja said that 2.28 lakh passports were issued in the Madurai region last year alone, thanks to swift police verification and efficiency of passport staff and TCS employees at PSKs in Madurai and Tirunelveli.
The two PSKs served 1,350 visitors in a day, on an average, last year. The passport staff worked for seven hours a day and took approximately two minutes to scrutinise each application, which showed their efficiency. While the staff strength remained static, the number of passports issued had risen from one lakh in 2008 to 2.28 lakh last year.
The Madurai Regional Passport Office bagged ‘Puraskar 2014’ for best e-governance standards among passport offices in the country. A majority of the passport applications were received from Kanyakumari, Rameswaram and Madurai last year, Mr. Raja said. Earlier, Assistant Passport Officer V. Chellapandian spoke.
