Wednesday, May 22, 2013
Abu Dhabi: Indian expatriates holding passports with new security features have not faced any problems for visa processing or related officials formalities in the UAE, a top Indian diplomat told Gulf News yesterday.
The Indian Embassy in the UAE had given the details of the changes in new passports to the UAE authorities in advance, M.K Lokesh, the Indian Ambassador to the UAE, said.
He said the embassy never received any complaints from any Indians about authorities refusing to accept the new passports as happened in Saudi Arabia.
As Gulf News reported earlier, the passports offices in India started issuing the new version passports in March and Indian diplomatic missions in the UAE in second week of April. The new security features were introduced to prevent tampering and counterfeiting of passports. The missions are now issuing the Indian passports and visa with new security features such as a phantom picture of the holder, apart from original photograph and personal details in tiny fonts that can be read only by a electronic reader with emigration authorities.
Media reports quoting the Indian Embassy in Riyadh yesterday said the problem of Saudi Arabian immigration authorities not accepting newly designed Indian passports was resolved. Indian Ambassador to Saudi Arabia Hamid Ali Rao raised the issue during a meeting with Saudi Deputy Minister of Interior Ahmed Bin Mohammed Al-Salem Tuesday and the matter was clarified. “Some cases were reported in Jeddah where perhaps immigration authorities were not aware of the new format of the passport but it was resolved,” the Arab News quoted Sibi George, India’s deputy chief of mission in Riyadh, as saying. “The issue has been clarified and the matter has been resolved.”
There are several changes in the new Indian passports. The personal details like name, address, date of birth and passport number are embedded in the phantom image. The existing passports will be replaced by the new version upon their expiry only.
Double laminations have enhanced its security. The signature and seal of the passport issuing authority, which were on page one, now have moved to the overleaf of the front cover. The personal details which were earlier on inner cover have shifted to page two and other particulars of the passport holder from the first page to page 35.
By Binsal Abdul Kader Staff Reporter
Gulf News 2013. All rights reserved.
