As of August 2016, news broke that no police verification would be required for reissue of Indian passports!
What does this seemingly minuscule decision change?
The announcement holds a great deal of weight, as travel security, and economic stability is inextricably linked to passports and their perceived value.
With this alteration to the law books, for the reissue of passports, police verification is no longer required (only if the first passport had been issued on the basis of positive police report).
Additionally, the decision will have a tangible and significant impact on some applicants who face a delay due to the mandatory police verification for re-issuance of their passport.
In accordance with existing regulations, minors, government workers, and senior citizens (65 years and above) are exempt from police verification subject to certain conditions. As of this month, there have been reports confirming a proposal (under consideration) to discontinue �Tatkaal’ system for issuing passports for urgent travel needs.
In India, this system is used to expedite the passport process, much like the American services offered by government-approved agencies.
As improvements are made in the standard passport delivery process, the use of Tatkaal passport has been steadily decreasing from 11 per cent in 2012-13 to six per cent in 2014-15.
Of course, the method is required under dire circumstances!
In the meantime, the indian Home Ministry is working on a country-wide police verification project for passports, to be launched online. This feature is expected to cut down the time required for issuing the travel document from a month, to just one week! Said project is expected to be launched from Bengaluru in this coming November.
Finally, be sure to message us at ePassportPhoto to get quick guidance from our representatives!