The Regional Passport Office (RPO) Pune held a special ‘Open House’ on 7 October, the results of which were publicised on 15 October, to resolve more than 300 applications pending since 2025. Applicants were invited to meet senior officers directly, submit missing documents and receive on-the-spot guidance on complex cases such as single-parent passports, adoption or adverse police reports. Within a week, officials say, over 60 % of the legacy cases were cleared, and many applicants walked away with printing dates for their booklets. The initiative forms part of MEA’s drive to de-clog the Passport Seva system ahead of the peak Diwali travel season, when daily appointment demand can jump 30 %. Business-traveller groups welcomed the model, suggesting that similar open days in metropolitan PSKs could halve processing times for frequent-flyer passports that often stall over address or name mismatches. The RPO also used the session to educate citizens on upcoming chip-enabled e-passport features and the importance of police-verification e-forms to avoid last-minute rejections. Consular experts say the event showcases how offline counselling can complement India’s largely digital passport workflow, especially for complex mobility cases. The MEA is evaluating a quarterly open-house schedule for high-volume regions, which could free capacity for Tatkaal and diplomatic applications. Companies arranging large group deployments abroad—IT, construction and cruise-line staffing firms—are advised to track such drives and batch-submit employee files to minimise rescheduling costs.
Source: Press Information Bureau – MEA
