MEA initiative: Now, a mobile app for cops to speed up passport verification in Pune

Atul Gotsurve, Regional Passport Officer, says the introduction of the method will further shrink the duration of the verification process

“Presently, it takes about 20 to 24 days for verification. Once implemented, the verification cycle will shrink by at least a week as has happened in other cities. The policemen working for the verification department will be given a tablet with mPassport app installed. They will have to go to the residence of the concerned applicant and carry out the checks and feed the data in real time. The app will also facilitate field verification and submission of reports online. Since the facility comes with the Global Positioning System (GPS), the police can confirm and capture the applicant’s address digitally and create record of their visits,” said Gotsurve.

Gotsurve said that that several meetings with officers of Police Police have taken place to streamline the pilot project. “The four police stations that will be selected for implementation of the pilot will come from across the city so that we get a good feel of the situation across the city. City police and my office are working closely on this,” said Gotsurve.

A senior officer with Pune Police said that two constables in each of these police stations would be trained to to use a tablet with an app designed by MEA exclusively for this purpose.

“In the new system, the constable needs to visit the residence of the applicant and once that is done, he has to simply fill the details into an online form. A GPS tracker records the visit and sends a message to the police commissioner’s office, thus bringing more authenticity to the data,” said the officer involved in the process.

The Passport Office and Pune Police officials believe that the pilot can be rolled out within a fortnight.