Newz Desk, Asansol 11th February: In a move aimed at reducing the backlog of passport applications, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) will organise a special Passport Mela on Saturday, February 14, at the Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) in Asansol.
The initiative is part of a wider drive being conducted across West Bengal to expedite the disposal of pending applications and provide relief to applicants awaiting appointments. Along with Asansol, similar melas will be held at Passport Seva Kendras in Kolkata and Siliguri, as well as at select Post Office Passport Seva Kendras in Howrah, Srirampur (Hooghly), Beadon Street in Kolkata, and Barrackpore in North 24 Parganas.
According to Regional Passport Officer Ashish Midda, the Asansol centre will process around 80 applications during the special drive. He informed that 1,800 applications will be handled at the Kolkata Passport Seva Kendra, 250 in Siliguri, while the remaining centres will process 50 applications each on the day of the mela.
Officials said the Passport Mela is intended to speed up the processing system and ease the waiting period for applicants, especially those seeking urgent appointments.
