India has joined a new phase in international document safety and security by launching biometric e-passports in selected cities.
The initiative was launched as part of the Passport Seva Programme 2.0.
What is e-passport?
An ePassport is a combined paper and electronic passport with a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) Chip and an antenna embedded as an inlay of passport that contains the personal particulars and biometric information of the passport holder.
“The ePassport will be visually identifiable as small additional gold colour symbol printed below the front cover of the passport,” reads the Passport Seva website.
Benefits of e-passport
As per the Passport Seva website, the major benefit of the ePassport comes with an enhanced ability to maintain the integrity of the passport holder’s data.
“The ePassport will have the data in printed form on the booklet, as well as digitally signed in the electronic chip, which can be securely authenticated by immigration officials globally; thus, safeguarding the passport from forgery, and potential fraudulent activities like fake passports, while confirming the genuineness at border controls,”‘ the website said.
The facility is now open in selected cities
The e-passport facility is currently available in selected India cities like Chennai, Hyderabad, Bhubaneswar, Surat, Nagpur, Goa, Jammu, Shimla, Raipur, Amritsar, Jaipur, and Ranchi, media report said.
What will existing passport holders do?
There is no need to hurry since the Passport Seva website said all Passports issued by the Indian government will continue to remain valid till their validity expiry date.
“As and when a respective Passport Office is technically enabled for issuance of ePassport, the citizens applying under that passport office will get the ePassport. The phase-wise roll out of ePassport covering all Passport Offices across India may take few months,” the website said.
