The Hindu : KCCI seeks passport office in Mangalore

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Jan 19, 2004

Karnataka

Karnataka - Mangalore

KCCI seeks passport office in Mangalore

By Our Staff Correspondent

MANGALORE, JAN. 18. The Kanara Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI) has urged the Union Minister for External Affairs, Yashwant Sinha, to take steps to set up a full-fledged passport office in Mangalore.

In a letter to Mr. Sinha, copies of which were released to the press, the President of the chamber, R.D. Kini, said the chamber had been petitioning the Ministry for such a facility since 2000.

Mr. Kini said that while most States in the country had two or more passport offices, Karnataka had only one office in Bangalore. More than 60 per cent of the applicants processed in the Bangalore office were from Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts, he said.

Women were finding it difficult to travel to Bangalore to obtain passports, he said and added that the problem compounded in situations of emergency or when officials sought clarifications.

Mr. Kini added that many corporate enterprises including Infosys Technologies Ltd., Mangalore Refineries and Petrochemicals Ltd., Mangalore Chemicals Factory, Larsen and Toubro, and Kudremukh Iron Ore Corporation Ltd. had their offices in Mangalore and Udupi. They required the services of the passport office for their personnel.

KCCI had identified a few places in Mangalore where the passport office could be set up, he said. The chamber had nominated its member, William D'Souza, to liaise with the External Affairs Ministry in this regard.

Mr. Kini said the Ministry, in its letter of February 15, 2001 to KCCI, said the guidelines for opening a passport office stipulated that at least 50,000 applications for passports per year over a three-year period should originate from a particular area to open an office there. However, in 2000, only 34,258 applications were received from Mangalore and adjoining districts, he said.

The Ministry had set up a passport application collection centre in Gulbarga to cater to the needs of 10 districts. It was also negotiating with the Department of Posts to have more collection centres in Karnataka.

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