I visited the New Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) in thane area today. These have been open for the past few months now.

These are the front end processing being managed by TCS and government employees. The old Regional Passport Offices (RPO’s) will do the back office work and dispatch etc. 

Obviously, my expectation was quite low in terms of services. I remember when I used to sit on plastic chairs out in the open terrace waiting for my turn to get passport services.

However, this time, contrary to expectations, it turned to quite a wonderful experience. The place was absolutely spic and span, completely air-conditioned. Hygiene factors were top class. The Employees were friendly & helpful. Restroom facilities were clean. There was a cafeteria in place and also a photocopier, for people who may have missed out on some copies. Extremely efficient token system and quite effective too. 

The only issue was that I was unable to book my appointment online. However, walk-in’s were allowed. 

All in all it was a wonderful experience. Great going & Kudos to the passport service department.