RAJYA SABHA
STARRED QUESTION NO. 292
ANSWERED ON 19/03/2026
OPENING PASSPORT FACILITIES IN ODISHA
292. SMT. SULATA DEO
Will the Minister of EXTERNAL AFFAIRS be pleased to state:
(a) whether Government proposes to open new Passport Seva Kendras / Post Office Passport Seva Kendras in tribal and remote districts of Odisha;
(b) If so, the district-wise details of existing and proposed centres; and
(c) the timeline proposed for making passport services more accessible to the people of the State?
ANSWER
THE EXTERNAL AFFAIRS MINISTER
(DR. SUBRAHMANYAM JAISHANKAR)
to (c) A statement is laid in the table of the House.
STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (c) IN RESPECT OF RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO.*292 REGARDING "OPENING PASSPORT FACILITIES IN ODISHA” FOR ANSWERING ON 19.03.2026.
(a) Opening of new Passport Seva Kendras (PSKs) / Post Office Passport Seva Kendras (POPSKs) depends on several factors including the demand and volume of applications in the region. Government of India has taken several steps to expand the network of PSKs and POPSKs in the country, including in the State of Odisha. In 2017, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in association with Department of Posts (DoP) had announced opening of PSKs at the Head Post Offices/Post Offices called Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) in each Lok Sabha Constituency (LSC) where there is no PSK or POPSK. Under this initiative, every LSC in the State of Odisha is covered with either a PSK or a POPSK. Currently, 1 Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) and 20 POPSKs are operational under the Regional Passport Office (RPO) Bhubaneswar to cater the needs of Passport services in the State of Odisha.
(b) Details and Location of the PSK/POPSK in the State of Odisha is as under :
| Name of RPO |
Name of PSK |
Name of POPSK |
|
RPO Bhubaneswar |
PSK Bhubaneswar |
1. POPSK Aska |
|
2. POPSK Balasore |
|
3. POPSK Bargarh |
|
4. POPSK Baripada |
|
5. POPSK Berhampur |
|
6. POPSK Bhadrak |
|
7. POPSK Bhawanipatna |
|
8. POPSK Bolangir |
|
9. POPSK Cuttack |
|
10. POPSK Dhenkanal |
|
11. POPSK Jagatsinghpur |
|
12. POPSK Jajpur |
|
13. POPSK Kendrapara |
|
14. POPSK Keonjhar |
|
15. POPSK Koraput |
|
16. POPSK Nabarangpur |
|
17. POPSK Phulbani |
|
18. POPSK Puri |
|
19. POPSK Rourkela |
|
20. POPSK Sambalpur |
(c) MEA has been working continuously for making passport services more accessible to the citizens in the country, including citizens of the State of Odisha. In order to speed up passport issuance and meet high or seasonal demand for passports, MEA has taken various steps including increasing the number of daily appointments and organising special drives on weekends. Staff from Ministry and other passport offices are also being deployed to clear the pendency as part of the special drive. Also, walk-in appointments are given for RPO back office for expeditiously clearing pending files.
Moreover, in June 2018, Ministry had launched the ‘Apply anywhere in India’ scheme under which a passport can be applied at any PSK/POPSK in India. Also, MEA has been regularly deploying Mobile Passport Van under respective RPOs, including the RPO Bhubaneswar in the State of Odisha, for on-site passport processing in rural, remote and under-served areas.
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