There are complaints galore from applicants on the Passport Seva Kendra here. The applicants complain that they are meted out ill- treatment and get no proper response either from the security staff or staff working inside the passport office.
That apart they say that they have to wait a long time for their turn in the queues to file applications and very often the applications are rejected by the staff on some pretext. “We come from distant places spending huge amounts to this centre as it is the only centre for districts of Nizamabad, Adilabad and Karimnagar. Once the application is rejected we have to get back with a great despair,” said the applicants putting up a sad face.
Youth, both educated and uneducated constitute a large chunk of passport-seekers coming to this Passport Seva Kendra which was set up in 2011 only to process the applications with the assistance of Tata Consultancy Services (TCS). In fact, the centre processed over one lakh applications within a short span of its establishment.
Applicants initially felt happy over its functioning as it had reduced their expenses and also hardships as they earlier had to travel from far off places in north Telangana to the State Capital to apply for the passport. Higher officials who visited the centre a few months ago also expressed satisfaction over its functioning.
The passport-seekers, particularly uneducated ones who wish to go to the Middle East in search of employment, are unhappy as their applications get rejected when they lack proper documents. Voora Srinivas of Rudravaram in Vemulawada mandal of Karimnagar district expressed ire on the staff at the centre saying that his cousin, who also carries the same name and an unlettered person, was subjected to suffering as his application was rejected twice.
“Who are they to decide the age of my cousin? When he says he is 35 they did not agree and asked him to show so many documents. Is it proper on their part,” he thundered. Another applicant Karipe Jagan from Bheemgal bemoans saying that when he has shown his SSC memo of marks as proof of age, where is the need for submitting SSC transfer certificate. He complains that the staff were “deliberately doing all this”.
When asked, TCS Manager D. Ram Mohan said that applications generally were to be rejected when they lacked the proper documents and passport-seekers should understand the problem. “As the office remained closed due to Sivaratri festival on Tuesday, the gathering was more than what we can handle,” he said.
