PUNE: Department students and staff of Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) will no longer have to go to the Regional Passport Office (RPO) for a passport. The RPO is conducting a 10-day camp on the campus for the department students, staff (teaching and non-teaching) and their family members.

This is for the first time that the RPO has organised such a camp. The camp will be held from July 17 to 27. According to the RPO officials, by providing passport to everyone on the campus, after following due process, the RPO is planning to make SPPU into a ‘100 per cent passport-enabled’ educational campus.

“A passport is an enabler and of all people youngsters and academicians need it the most, as they might get the opportunity to travel abroad for various reasons. This 10-day camp is aimed at achieving that goal,” said Anantkumar Takwale, Passport Officer, Pune.

The camp will be held at SPPU with teams from RPO setting up temporary office in a space provided by the university.

Takwale said, “The officials at SPPU have been planning for this camp for several weeks now. Communications have been sent to heads of each of several departments in the university to make staffers, faculty and students aware about the opportunity to get a passport hassle-free.”

Arvind Shaligram, Registrar, SPPU said there are about 2,000 individuals staying on the campus who would benefit from the move.

“A facility will be set up in the university where students, faculty members, staffers and family members can go and fill up the forms and complete the formalities involved in the process of application. They might need to visit the passport seva kendra for rest of the procedures,” said Shaligram.

Takwale said his office plans to conduct such campus in other educational institutes in the city and adjoining districts as well.

“We had organised passport camps in educational institutes in the past as well. However, they were scattered efforts. This time we are undertaking concerted efforts to achieve 100 per cent issuance in the target campus. Once SPPU gets it, other institutes will be inspired to do the same,” said Takwale.

WHO WILL BENEFIT?
- This is for the first time that the RPO has organised such a camp The camp will be held from July 17 to 27.   
- Arvind Shaligram, Registrar, SPPU said there are about 2,000 individuals staying on the campus who would benefit from the move.