Thousands Stranded as Passport Seekers Encounter Disruptions in Online Applications and Appointment Bookings
A nationwide uproar ensued as the Passport Seva portal encountered technical glitches, disrupting passport application processes and appointment bookings at Passport Seva Kendras across India, leaving thousands of hopeful applicants in limbo.
For the past three days, individuals seeking passports have been grappling with inconvenience caused by the persistent technical issues plaguing the Passport Seva portal. Despite numerous attempts to seek clarification, officials from the Passport Seva division of the Ministry of External Affairs have remained unresponsive to inquiries.
Acknowledging the problem, a spokesperson from the portal’s toll-free helpline disclosed that the disruptions were attributed to technical difficulties within the system, which led to the suspension of appointment bookings.
“In light of a technical issue, the website has been inaccessible for the past three days. Our technical team is actively working to address the problem. However, we have yet to receive a definitive timeframe for service restoration. Consequently, appointment bookings have been temporarily suspended,” stated the helpline representative.
Presently, the website displays a notice indicating, “Website is under maintenance. We will be back on 30 Mar 2024 by 19:55 hrs.”
The impacted portal, passportindia.gov.in, serves a critical function in facilitating appointments across 523 Passport Seva Kendras, Post Office Passport Seva Kendras, and regional passport offices nationwide.
These appointments are imperative for various passport-related services, including fresh issuance, reissue, and miscellaneous requests. With the persistent technical issues, applicants are left uncertain about the timeline for the resumption of normalcy in the passport application process.
