Ludhiana to get bigger and better passport office: Dr S Jaishankar to MP Arora 

Ludhiana, March 16, 2023: AAP MP (Rajya Sabha) from Ludhiana Sanjeev Arora has taken a series of initiatives in the larger public interest so far. Now, he has added another one into this list by taking the issue of shifting of existing Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) at Ludhiana to a suitable and spacious building from the existing congested complex.   

In a written communication, Minister for External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar has informed Arora that “I am happy to inform you that we are already in the process of shifting the Passport Seva Kendra (PSK) to a suitable location.” This was communicated as reply to a letter addressed to him by Arora requesting for a better location and bigger office for PSK.

In his letter, Arora had apprised the Minister that Passport Seva Kendra at Ludhiana was opened in Year 2011 and now it is short of space. There is almost no parking space available and waiting area is also short of required capacity. In Monsoon water logging is also a major concern. Waiting period for appointment of Passport application is also too long mainly on account of not enough infrastructure. Therefore, Arora had requested the Minister for External Affairs to get the PSK moved to a bigger place with ample parking at the earliest possible as people of Ludhiana and adjoining areas are facing inconvenience.

Arora, in an earlier letter, had also taken up this matter with Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture, Meenakshi Lekhi on 12th December, 2022. Finally, his efforts have yielded results.

Giving this information here on Thursday, Arora said he is highly thankful to Minister for External Affairs Dr S Jaishankar for giving a “positive response” to him. He said it was a long-pending demand of people to shift PSK to a new spacious building as people visiting the office concerned have to wait in long queues for long- hours in the open sky even during rain and scorching heat as there is not enough space. Even no seating arrangements are there for people visiting PSK for getting their passports prepared. 

Arora hoped that PSK would be shifted to a new suitable and spacious building in the near future keeping in view the hardships being faced by visitors. He said there is a heavy turnout of visitors in the office concerned because Ludhiana is the state’s biggest and largest district, both in terms of area and population. “People will ultimately feel a sigh of relief once the promises made by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is fulfilled”, he remarked.