Congress Labour Cell Demands Regional Passport Office in Mangaluru

The Dakshina Kannada district Congress labour cell has urged the Union Ministry of External Affairs to establish a Regional Passport Office in Mangaluru to reduce heavy workloads at the city's Passport Seva Kendra and alleviate hardships faced by passport applicants across coastal and neighbouring districts.

Speaking on behalf of the cell, Labour Cell president Lawrence D’Souza highlighted that Karnataka currently depends on a single Regional Passport Office to handle applications from across the entire state. In contrast, neighbouring states such as Kerala and Tamil Nadu operate more than three regional passport offices each to process applicant demands.

According to figures cited by D’Souza, Karnataka receives 10.01 lakh passport applications annually and issued around 9.85 lakh passports in 2025. By comparison, Tamil Nadu disposed of 7.20 lakh applications while Kerala processed approximately 13 lakh applications. Despite these high volumes in Karnataka, the state continues to operate with only one regional office.

The existing Passport Seva Kendra in Mangaluru currently caters to applicants from six districts: Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Uttara Kannada, Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru, and Kodagu. D’Souza noted that the facility processes an average of around 600 applications every day but operates out of a relatively small premises measuring between 2,500 and 2,800 square feet.

D’Souza alleged severe infrastructural shortcomings at the Mangaluru facility. While more than 250 people often wait at the centre simultaneously, seating is available for only 30 to 60 people. Furthermore, although A, B, and C counters exist, the deployment of officials and staff remains inadequate to handle the daily volume.

Additional concerns were raised regarding accessibility and basic amenities. The facility's rest area is situated on an upper floor requiring visitors to climb 25 to 30 steps, posing difficulties for senior citizens, children, and pregnant women. The rest area contains only a single toilet for hundreds of daily visitors. D’Souza also stated that document photocopies are charged at Rs 10 per page with no digital payment options available, and a lack of parking forces visitors to park along roadsides, risking police fines.

To resolve these issues, the labour cell urged the Ministry of External Affairs to sanction a Regional Passport Office in Dakshina Kannada alongside new Passport Seva Kendras in Udupi, Uttara Kannada, Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru, Kodagu, and Hassan. D’Souza also requested that the ministry conduct a detailed feasibility study examining application data over the past five years for new passports, renewals, Tatkal services, and Police Clearance Certificates.