I applied for reissue of my passport for address change . applied on 14.09 but got appointment only for 30th.(Normal). It was for 3.30 pm at tambaram, Chennai.
I had forgotten to carry ARN printout(you can easily print it from the website itself) it contains a barcode and mandatory for entering the office. Then got it printed quickly in the next door browsing center for thirty rupees. They thrive in such business.
After quick check that I have brought what is needed, I was given token to go thru the three-step process:
A: Processing zone. Manned by TCS staff. They scan the documents, take your photo and fingerprints. Took 30 min here incl the waiting.
B: verification zone. Manned by dept staff. Less counters, long wait, but they finish quickly.
C: granting zone: manned by dept officers. Very long wait. This is where they find all sorts of issues with the documents and possibly reject 1-2% of the applications.
I was finished by 8pm.
The office is well maintained with good a/c, toilet, and coffee and snacks(priced like in chennai’s best malls) I was told passport will be sent in 15 days. I started getting SMS updates from same evening.
Surprisingly, my passport had been delivered an hour ago! Hardly 3 days since the appointment, of which two were holidays!
I give five stars but feel that the B and C officers can be a bit more polite(with me they were OK. But not so if you are not the English speaking babu type.