Post offices to take passport application, regional passport office, Madurai region.

BS Post : 89 Date : 01.12.2013,  Place : Mumbai, By : Mohammed Chand Shaikh.

TNN | Nov 30, 2013, MADURAI: For those who find it difficult to pay exorbitant charges demanded by internet centres for applying passport, here comes good news. The Tamil Nadu postal circle, southern region, and regional passport office, Madurai region, have initiated a facility to help senior citizens and children below 15 years to apply for passports at post offices.

The two departments, which launched the venture, claimed that the initiative is first of its kind in the nation. To apply, minors and elderly people can simply walk into selected post offices in Madurai city. All they need to do is to fill the available application and hand it over to the officials concerned. Once the details are uploaded in the website, the customer would be given the Application Reference Number (ARN) generated after the procedures. People who want to apply for police clearance certificate can also utilise the service and it would costs only Rs 50, said passport officials. "The service has been launched in Madurai as a pilot programme. It would be available at the head post offices in Talakulam, Arasarasi and Madurai. We have plans to expand the service in other southern districts along with postal department," said S Maniswara Raja, regional passport officer, Madurai. J Charukesi, post master general, southern region, Madurai also took part in the inaugural function on Thursday.

Last year, as many as two lakh passport applications were received by Madurai regional passport office and most of the applications were from districts like Ramanathapuram and Sivagangai. Most of the applicants, who wish to work in gulf countries and who do not have internet facility, fall prey to the internet centres which charge high, passport officials said.