Call attention motion on Passport Office moved
Gaikhangam assures to press Ministry for setting up Passport office in state
Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, July 02 2012:
Home Minister Gaikha-ngam today assured the state Assembly that he would be pressing the Union Ministry of External Affairs for opening a passport office in Manipur.
He was responding to a calling attention motion raised by MLA Dr I Ibohalbi on the absence of a passport office in the state.
Gaikhangam admitted that people of Manipur have been facing a lot of problems while trying to acquire passport in the absence of a passport office of the state.
Passport offices in different states of the North East including Nagaland and Mizoram have been set up.
Likewise, the Union Ministry of External Affairs will be urged to open one in the state of Manipur, he assured.
Gaikhangam informed the House that the Ministry had earlier instructed the state government to open a Passport Seva Kendra and all the required documents in this regard were furnished by the Ministry to the State government.
The Ministry has also conveyed the state government to appoint six officers for the purpose of setting up the Passport Seva Kendra.
The state government would be paying attention to selection of the six officers for imparting necessary training, after which the process for opening up of a passport office in the state would be started, the Home Minister said, adding that if the Union Ministry gives necessary approval, then there would be no problem in opening Passport Office in the state.
While raising the motion, MLA Dr Ibohalbi drew the attention of the House to a relevant news report published in Hueiyen Lanpao on its June 28 edition and pointed out the problems faced by people of the state in trying to acquire passport in the absence of a passport office.
Stressing on the need for opening a passport office in Manipur, the MLA observed that for making passport, the people of Manipur have been wasting their time as well as money in going to Guwahati where the Regional Passport office is located.
Around 50 percent of the people coming to Guwahati to acquire passport are from Manipur as a number of students, sportspersons, cultural troupes and state government officials have to go abroad.
While other states of North East have already opened their respective passport offices, Manipur remains one of the few states where there is no passport office of its own.
It is high time for the Home Department to take up the matter seriously in the interest of the people, Dr Ibohalbi said.
He went on to point out that the Speed Post Passport Cell at Head Post office, Imphal which used to issue application forms for applying passport and send the filled in forms to the Regional Passport Office at Guwahati has stopped giving the service to the people.
Moreover, even if an applicant can submit passport application form via internet, the applicant has to be physically present at the Regional Passport office, Guwahati for verification.