KERALAMONITOR SPECIAL REPORT
Gulf Embassies to Computerise passport issue to counter Fake passport racket
Security Press Nasik makes Lakhs of Waste passports
New Delhi: The India Security Press, Nashik has been diverting several lakhs of blank passports printed in the press as waste. According to latest report of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India, more than 18 lakh passports printed in the security press are mere 'waste'. However it is not known whether these passports find their way into the multimillion fake passport racket. About 20 lakh blank passports printed in the security press are treated as "waste' every year. Indian currency, passport and other high security items are printed in the ISP.
The CAG report indicated that the India Security Press, Nashik (ISP) produced 63.90 lakh passport booklets during 1997-99. Out of these passports, ISP despatched 45.86 lakh blank passports worth Rs 55.95 crore, to Ministry of External Affairs, and declared the balance 18.04 lakh passports costing Rs 15.80 crore as defective. The cost of wastage was ultimately passed on to the public. Defective passports produced by ISP worked out to 28.23 per cent.
It may be noticed that getting a fake passport is very easy in India and the Gulf countries. It is possible that part of the passports printed in the security press are shown as 'waste' and diverted to the black market for use. Due to the seriousness of the problem various Indian missions abroad are trying to install similar systems in their embassies. The Indian mission in the UAE is likely to install an automated passport printing system soon.
The security press has caused an abnormally high wastage of Rs 15.80 crore in production of blank passports during 1997-99. In addition, it poses serious challenge to the law enforcement authorities who are trying to control the fake passport racket in different parts of India and overseas missions. In July 1999, the Ministry of Finance attributed the reasons for wastage, mainly to over utilisation of the machines and manpower capacity to meet the increased demand operations in night shifts and diversion of unskilled labour to this serious work.
In order to meet the increased requirement of about 30 to 35 lakh passports, to reduce the wastage and to phase out manual system, the ISP had installed a new "Automated Passport Manufacturing System (APMS)" in April 1999. The ISP, Nashik decided in January 1990 to procure a fully APMS and invited global tenders in June 1990 and again in September 1993. These tenders were scrapped as they were not as per World Bank guidelines. ISP therefore, invited tenders (through Security Printing Press (SPP), Hyderabad) again in May 1995.
Two firms were qualified tenderers --M/s. Uno Seikakushu Ltd. quoted for Rs 9.22 crore at wastage rate of 2 per cent and M/s. Kulger Automation for Rs 8.39 crore at wastage rate of 0.8 per cent. The ISP placed the order on M/s. Kulger Automation in September 1997. The terms and condition of the order inter alia included that (i) the inspection of machine would be carried on 20,000 booklets by using raw material supplied by ISP at the factory in Germany and (ii) overall waste percentage would not exceed 0.8. In case waste percentage exceeded the limit or passport booklets were not as per the specifications, the machine was liable to be rejected. The machine was brought to ISP and installed in April 1999 and tried for 20,000 passport booklets when the waste percentage turned out to be 5.10. However, the machine was finally accepted, for unknown reasons.
The CAG audit scrutiny revealed that from June 1999 to April 2000, the machine produced an average of 1.89 lakh booklets per month with an average waste percentage at 9.5 ranging between 12.42 and 6.68. This worked out to 20.53 lakh booklets per year as against the requirement of 30 to 35 lakh.
Ministry stated in July 2000 that Audit had considered the overall wastage and not the effective wastage at each stage. The reply of Ministry was not tenable as the fact remained that the overall wastage continued to be as high as 9.5 per cent as compared to 0.8 per cent specified. Besides, abnormal delay in the process of procurement of APMS, the expected results in regard to increase in production and reduction of wastage were not fully achieved.
Gulf Embassies to Computerise passport issue to counter Fake passport racket
keralamonitor.com Dubai/Muscat -In order to face the growing problem of fake passport and visas issued by an international gang which operates from India and various Gulf countries, the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of External Affairs, New Delhi are implementing a pilot project o computerise consular services in eight Indian embassies in the Gulf. Soon the Consular General of India, Dubai will start issuing computerised passports and visas on a trial basis. Consular General of India, Dubai issues the largest number of passports outside India and provide largest number of consular services per day from the Gulf region
According to sources an international gang active in Kerala Bombay, Dubai, Muscat and other gulf countries and some of the senior officials is said to be running parallel embassies in collaboration with criminal gangs. Getting a fake passport or other documents like marriage certificate for a fees, is not a big problem in the Gulf. Full Report