Mangalore Becomes Second Highest in The State to Issue Passports During March

The Regional Passport Office (RPO), Bangalore has issued 79,027 passports which is the highest – in March. The passports included those printed and despatched to fresh applicants and those seeking renewals followed by those in Mangalore, Hubballi, Kalaburagi, and Mysuru.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, the number of passport applicants had dipped drastically because of the international travel ban. Post pandemic, fresh applications and those for renewal of passports increased. The situation has eased and appointments for new passports and police-clearance certificates are now available in a week or more.

In March 2022, Karnataka saw close to 55,000 passports being processed after the Covid crisis. The number increased through the year with October-December period clocking issuance of 1,97,018 blue books. January-March saw a record 2,14,788 passports issued, sources said. The surge in passport applications is expected to continue in 2023.