Pune: The Regional Passport Office (
RPO), Pune, will train Common Services Centre (
CSC) operators in filling up passport applications online from April 25 to increase transparency and end corruption by touts.
The training sessions will be held on alternate Wednesdays.
The CSC scheme was launched by the Union information technology ministry as part of the ‘Digital India’ mission to enhance the delivery of public utility services to citizens.
“Agents charge exorbitant fees for their services. Passport services have gone digital and we are trying to bypass agents with this initiative,” regional passport officer Anant Takwale told TOI, adding that the CSCs will charge a nominal fee of Rs100 for this service.
Takwale said a CSC locator link will be available on ‘www.passportindia.gov.in’.
“Anyone who cannot fill up his/her passport application can click on this link to find the nearest CSC and get their application filled out of them there. An appointment will then be generated. The operators will provide a challan for Rs100 to ensure transparency,”.he explained.
The RPO will install banners outside the passport office, passport seva kendras and post office passport centres to create awareness on this initiative.
“CSC services are already available for citizens, we are merely suggesting linking them to passport services,” Takwale said.
At the moment, the CSC locator displays only the CSC’s registration number, name and address. “We think it will help if contact details are also added, for which we need no-objection certificates from the operators,” he further said.
