Indian Passport

A passport is one of the most important documents for an Indian citizen. Indian passport is primarily used for the purpose of international travel. Indian passport is issued by Consular Passport & Visa (CPV) Division of the Ministry of External Affairs (Government of India). Passport is an important document to have because of its being a major proof of Indian nationality.

The system of Indian passport came into existence during the time of First World War. Before that, it was never required as a travel document. Under the Defense of India Act, 1914, enacted by Government of India, passport became a mandatory document for any person for entry and exit into India. The Act was further strengthened by Indian Passports Act, formulated in 1920. Present Passports Act was promulgated in 1967 by Government of India.

In the initial phase, five regional passport offices were opened at Mumbai, Kolkata, Delhi, Chennai and Nagpur respectively in the year 1954. It was function of Consular, Passport and Visa division to look after implementation of passport act, rules and other passport related policy matters.

As per the provisions, an Indian citizen has got right to possess a passport. Indian passport contains several identity information about the passport holder. Few of them are; photo and signature of passport holder, country code (IND), date of birth, place of birth, passport number, surname, sex, date of issue, place of issue, given names, date of expiry, name of father, mother and spouse etc. All these information are printed on both front and back cover of the passport.

Passports are issued from 37 locations across the country and almost 160 Indian missions abroad. It takes near about three weeks to issue a new passport provided applicant has provided sufficient documentary proof of address, age and citizenship and his or her police report is clear. However, a ‘Tatkaal’ scheme is also available for applicant who needs it on urgent basis.