Passport Seva Project (PSP)

National e-Governance Plan

ABSTRACT
INITIATION: - Government of India has taken many initiatives to
usher in an era of e-Governance to improve the delivery of
public services. Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) launched the
Passport Seva Project (PSP) in May 2010
STARTING: - It was launched at Passport Bhavan Patto-Panji by
Mr. Muktesh Pardeshi joint secretary and chief passport officer
at the ministry of external affairs (MEA) India.

CREATOR AND ORGANIZER: - The Indian Government made a
deal with Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) to start the largest
E-Governance project in October 2008.

CONCLUSIONS: - The web-based Passport Seva Project (PSP)
has transformed the entire passport application process in the
country by making it convenient, efficient and transparent.

BACKGROUND
! Despite constant improvements in the Passport Issuance
System and liberalized measures to make the system more
transparent over the years and due to the rapid increase in
the number of passport seekers besides increasing
expectations from citizens vis--vis delivery of services to the
citizens by the Govt, it was realized that it would not be
possible to meet the demand without revamping the system.
!Keeping this in mind, the Ministry embarked on an ambitious
e-governance initiative as part of National e-Governance
Plan - the Passport Seva Project (PSP) - a Mission Mode
Project which aims to deliver all Passport-related services to
the citizens in a timely, transparent, more accessible, reliable
manner & in a comfortable environment through streamlined
processes and committed, trained & motivated workforce.

Avinash Kumar (2012PH10835) And Vyanktesh Chandely (2012PH10859)
Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India
OBJECTIVE
!The new system will eliminate delays, and there will be no rush
or queues.
! It will bring transparency and accountability in the
application process and empower citizens.
!Service provisioning within defined service levels, closer and
larger number of access points for services.
!Availability of a portfolio of on-line services with real-time
status tracking.
!An effective system of grievance redressal and strict adherence
to First -In-First Out principle in rendering of services.
!To discourage mediators involvement and provide timely
services in a transparent manner.
METHOD / PROCESS
! The entire process is online and streamlined including
interface with the Indian police for verification of
personal particulars of applicants and with India Post for
tracking delivery of passports. The entire process is
expected to be completed in less than 30 minutes after which
applications are sent for police clearance.
! Applicants presence in person at the PSK enables the
Passport Issuing Authority to capture their photograph and
fingerprints to prevent the incidence of impersonation. The
applicants also get full opportunity to see and affirm
their personal particulars to be entered in the passport to
avoid unnecessary correspondence later.
! An e-mail based helpdesk facility.
! A 24x7 call centre have been set up to provide requisite
information to citizens in 17 vernacular languages.
! An SMS message is sent to the citizen as soon as the
passport is dispatched.
! Status of applications can be tracked through the Passport
Portal www.passportindia.gov.in .
! For assistance one can call toll-free helpline 1800-258-1800..
.
RESPONSIBILITIES
! The sovereign and fiduciary functions such as verification of
documents, police verification, decision on grant of
passports, revocation, impounding of passports, printing
and dispatch of passports, are performed by the Govt
personnel.
!
! Only front-end activities, such as token issuance, initial
scrutiny of the application forms, acceptance of fee,
scanning of the documents, taking photos and biometrics
are performed by the Service Providers staff.
RESULTS







! The new system of Passport Seva Kendra had drastically
change the scenario of passport system in India.
! Now, the whole process of passport application is
completed within few days which is far better than the
earlier system- thanks to the MEA.
! Passport Seva Kendra provides a fast-track solution for
passport application process and problems that come
during the whole process.
! Most importantly it bring transparency and
accountability in the application process and empower
citizens.
! Also, TCS has revealed that a large number of PSKs
were installed across the country for easy accessibility
for peoples.
! The whole passport services are being revolutionized. Many
measures are being taken to combat the network of touts
and agents who dupe applicants on the name of getting
their passports made.

CONCLUSIONS
! According to the stats clearly the Time factor is decreased
effectively by a significant number.
! The ease of access in brings Transparency, Accountability in
the System.
! This whole idea of Passport Seva Project (PSP) enhances
the use of Technology in government programs and
initiatives, Hence lead to implementation of e-governance.
PROGRESS
! Riding on the new wave of information
dissemination, Ministry of External Affairs has
brought the passport related information on the
mobile for smartphone users. Users can now
access this information on their smartphones
using mobile app mPassport Seva.

!
REFERENCES
Passport Seva Kendra commences operation, Times of India, March 20, 2014, Thursday;
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/goa/Passport-Seva-Kendra-commences-operation/articleshow/
12336172.cms#

G. Ravikiran, Passport Seva Kendra online services from Nov. 28, The Hindu, Vijayawada, November
24, 2011, Thursday;
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-andhrapradesh/passport-seva-kendra-online-
services-from-nov-28/article2655426.ece

Passport Seva Consular, Passport and Visa division: Ministry of External Affairs, Govt. of India
http://passportindia.gov.in/AppOnlineProject/ccgm/informationAction (accessed Wednesday, October
01, 2014. 02:48:58 PM).

The Government of India awards Passport Automation Project to Tata Consultancy Services
http://www.tcs.com/news_events/press_releases/Pages/GOI-awards-Passport-Automation-to-TCS.aspx