Apply for passports at select post offices from next month

February 19, 2017

New Delhi, Feb 19: From next month, people in select cities will be able to apply for passports in post offices under an ambitious initiative of the External Affairs Ministry. This is aimed at making the passport issuance process hassle-free and ease burden on passport offices across the country which are grappling with large volume of applications.

In the first phase of the project, passport services will be made available in select post offices in Rajasthan, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Jharkhand and some other states. The External Affairs Ministry, which issues passports, is making all required arrangements for roll-out of the scheme in some of the select cities in first half of March. Currently, 89 Passport Seva Kendras (PSK) are operating across the country as extended arms of the 38 Passport Offices.

According to the MEA, the government rendered 1.15 crore passport and other related services during 2016. In Rajasthan, passport services will be available in Kota, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, Jhunjhunu and Jhalawar while in West Bengal it will be in Asansol, Nadia, North Dinajpur North Kolkata. In Jharkhand, services will be offered in Deoghar, Jamshedpur and Dhandbad.

"It is our effort that Post Office Passport Sewa Kendras announced in the first phase should start functioning before 31.3.2017," External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj tweeted. In Tamil Nadu, passport services in post office will be rolled out in Salem and Vellore while in Karnataka, it will be in Belgaum, Davangere, Hassan, Gulbarga and Mysuru.

According to MEA, the objective of the government has been to cater to the demand for passports and to reach out to the people located far away from the passport offices. The MEA had recently liberalised norms for certain categories of citizens as part of efforts to streamline the passport issuance process.

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Dubai-India flight: Emirates aircraft damaged after it flies into flock flamingos before landing

News Network

May 22,2024

An Emirates plane was damaged after colliding with a flock of flamingos shortly before touchdown, damaging the plane and leaving several birds dead, the airline said on Wednesday. The flight, however, landed safely in Mumbai late on Monday night, the airlines added.

The Boeing 777 aircraft, flying from Dubai to Mumbai, hit the flock around 300 metres (1,000 ft) from the ground, leaving 39 of the birds dead, sources said.

"Emirates can confirm that EK508 from Dubai to Mumbai on May 20 was involved in a bird strike incident upon landing," an Emirates spokesperson told Reuters.

"The aircraft landed safely and all passengers and crew disembarked without injury, however sadly a number of flamingos were lost and Emirates is cooperating with the authorities on the matter," the spokesperson said.

The Emirates aircraft was damaged in the incident and the return flight, scheduled to depart for Dubai on May 20, was cancelled, the spokesperson said.

Images in local media showed officials carrying bloodied flamingos, which migrate to the city every winter from the neighbouring state of Gujarat.

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