New Delhi: The Narendra Modi government, which usually prefers homogenisation, has decided to move to a two-colour format for personal passports: orange and the existing dark navy blue.

The orange passport will be issued to those who belong to the Emigration Check Required (ECR) category, while the blue one to the rest.

Since this will take time to implement, new passports will continue to be issued in the old format and the existing booklets will remain valid till their scheduled expiry date, the external affairs ministry said.

The rationale behind switching to a separate colour for ECR passports is the decision to do away with the last page of the document in which details of the holder - address, parents' and spouse's names, and date of expiry of the previous passport along with its number and place of issue - are provided. In the case of ECR passport-holders, this status is provided on the same page.

There was, however, no word from the ministry on whether the passport would cease to be a valid document for proof of address for official purposes as a result of the move to do away with the personal details page.

Officials did not respond to queries on the need to differently colour-code ECR and non-ECR passports when either status can easily be stamped on one of the two front pages of the booklet, as used to be the case earlier.

The choice of colour for the ECR passports has raised eyebrows as it comes close on the heels of the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh painting public buildings saffron or orange.#

According to the ministry, the decision to do away with this page was taken in view of concerns expressed by single parents and those with adopted children about the requirement of details of parents in the passport.

The Indian Security Press, Nashik, will have to design the new passport booklets to the altered specifications finalised by the ministry.