Union Minister of State for External Affairs V Muraleedharan on Thursday said that the government is planning to issue e-passports to its citizens, starting in 2022-23. Muraleedharan’s remarks came in Rajya Sabha in reply to a question on the government’s plans for the issuance of e-passports in the calendar year 2022 and its details.
Muraleedharan made the statement while responding to a question on the government’s plans for issuing e-passports in the calendar year 2022 and its details.
“The passport’s critical information will be printed on its data page as well as stored in the chip. The characteristics of the document and the chip are specified in International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) document 9303,” Muraleedharan told news agency ANI.
Muraleedharan further said the new e-passports will be manufactured at the India Security Press (ISP), Nashik, and Letters of Intent (LoIs) have been issued for 4.5 crore chips.
The minister informed the upper house that sample e-passports are currently being tested and the full-scale manufacture and issue will commence with the completion of the technical eco-system and infrastructure.
On February 2, during the Budget session, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said that the government will issue e-passports, which will use Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) and biometrics to verify the identity of the person, in the financial year 2022-23.
The e-passports will ensure smooth passage at immigration posts globally. As part of the advanced security features, the personal data of applicants would be digitally signed and encoded in the chip to be embedded in the passport.
