Passport applicants at the Regional Passport Office in Patna on Friday. Picture by Nagendra Kumar Singh

Patna, Oct. 28: Click, click, click! That’s the new mantra for applying for passports online.

Applicants can now sit in the comfort of their homes and offices and fill up passport application forms with the click of a mouse. The forms can be downloaded from the website http://passport.gov.in/patna.html. Once filled up, the form can be submitted through Internet.

Anand Kumar, the regional passport officer, told The Telegraph: “After the introduction of the online application system, applicants would have to come to the passport office only once to submit their documents. The old system will be completely scrapped from November 15.”

Earlier, people had to stand in long queues for obtaining passport application forms and to submit them. At present, the online passport application facility is limited to applicants from Patna district. Similar facilities will be introduced for passport seekers of other districts too.

With the introduction of the online application for passports, no manual application would be entertained. People can submit essential documents related with the application at counter number 4.

The regional passport officer said the online application system would save manpower, which can be utilised in other works.

“At present, five persons are required for distribution and submission of passport application forms. The new system will require only one person to handle the entire work,” said the officer.

Moreover, the system would bring transparency in the entire passport application process. The Regional Passport Office Patna has been chosen as Passport Seva Kendra on the lines of Passport Seva Project — the Centre’s much-acclaimed initiative based on a public-private partnership model that aims to provide passport-related services to people in a speedy, convenient and transparent manner.

The project aims at quick delivery of passports to people through a streamlined process.

In the past year, various initiatives introduced by Regional Passport Office Patna has dragged down the minimum number of days required for issue of passports from 200 days to 75.

The regional passport officer said: “There is scope for bringing down the minimum number of days for issue of passport from 75 to 30.”

Pending cases

As many as 260 pending cases were addressed today at the passport adalat. Cases of those who applied for passports between January 2010 and July this year were settled. The next passport adalat would be organised on November 25.

Rafiq Khan, who had applied for a passport in September last year, said: “My passport was stuck because of police verification but after assurance from passport officers, I am confident that I will get my passport soon.”