'Seva' turned into a nightmare

Kamal Baruah

(The writer can be reached at kamalbaruah@yahoo.com)

The cool Sanskrit word 'Seva' literally implies selfless service. Wow! What a catchy synonym. If it happens to be with 'Passport Seva', that surely raises our anticipation. But reality has not lived up to expectations for every applicant. Today's people want no dilly-dally and delay as time is precious. There has been a surge in the overwhelming demand for passport services due to India's rapidly expanding middle class and its rising economy. I felt apprehensive about the issuance process backed by inaccessibility.There were mass grievances as well against Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) but implementation of e-government initiative could overcome stringent service to transparency.

Recently, PSK Guwahati provided us with a stellar experience, while applying for daughters' Tatkaal Passport to skip the time-consuming application process. Perhaps surprisingly, the Blue Passport arrived in just three days, not months. Tatkaal made it all worthwhile. I could imagine transparency on its streamlining process provided by a scalable technology platform from TCS that timeliness tempted me to apply for myself and my wife after a week. Our reporting time was quarter to four in the evening; probably Artificial Intelligence was shaping our scheduling from the same time of previous visit. However, it was no Tatkaal, since we got No Objection Certificate (NOC) for being PSU employee and we were also not in any hurry to own a passport.

We had queued outside the PSK as the token runs under every 15 minutes in a sequence from the entrance itself. Should there be a seating arrangement that could have enhanced its (Seva) beauty? Anyway, verification of documents completed smoothly at the reception area, albeit rather slowly as there was a rush for the next token. The applications were processed at hall 'A' after a long wait for automated system of pre-filling data. The counters helped every applicant cordially and interacted well with senior citizens. The experience was hassle-free until the hall 'B'. We were glued to the display for another token on call seamlessly one after another. Now the counters seemed not as friendly as officials gestures spoke for it. We overcame that barrier for the final token 'C'.

Alas! It sounded braggadocious. Our applications had finally been turned down for technical fault of NOC. The officer had refused to accept despite having valid identity card and advised us to take another appointment. We thought we had been treated too harshly. Well, I agreed to all those objections as per rules but I was unhappy over their aggressive communication style. Maybe it put a strain on PSK due to surge of more applicants every day. It was surely not a good experience to comply with international travel standards, but can't switch to a competitor as there is none and had to go for another online appointment.

My expectation for 'Seva' was not met on that day while TCS is serving selflessly to transform passport services for Indians across the globe. There is a strong argument for providing flag priority 'Seva' to NOC holders as they belong to various officials of Government, statutory bodies or PSUs as they are already verified by their departments. Launched under the Public-Private-Partnership (PPP) model, TCS executed the 'Passport Seva Project' under the Build-Operate-Own-Transfer (BOOT) framework to citizens across the length and breadth of the country. The project administered by Ministry of External Affairs must look to simplify the availability of passport services that put a massive strain on infrastructure, obsolete and legacy systems and inadequate human resources.

Following rules and doing the right thing are necessary because a passport is the most valuable identity document and people often seek to change identities and conceal illegal activities and movements. But I can't afford to ignore the annoyance in today's digitally connected world. It was another unhappy coincidence despite NOC and certain facts. The major disappointment was that I found most forms of online appointment so tedious. We finally re-submitted applications in the next week at quarter to four on another reporting as rescheduled. The digital practice on familiar 'Passport Seva' turned into a month-long nightmare but ever wondered, what do different colours from Blue to White, Orange and Maroon to signify with ours. We are waiting eagerly for that.