Maidan Wardak passport office short of personnel, equipment

MAIDAN SHAHAR (Pajhwok): Due to a shortage of personnel and technical equipment, passport distribution has been suspended in central Maidan Wardak province since February, an official said on Wednesday.

The Passport Department announced last Saturday that applicants could apply online nationwide for passports.

But Maidan Wardak Passport Director Mohammad Qasim Qane told Pajhwok Afghan News that online registration was applicable only in the Central Passport Office in Kabul.

“A total of six employees are working in the Maidan Wardak Passport Office. Right from the word go, we have been facing a shortage of personnel and equipment,” he said.

In addition, Qane said the existing building was also not suitable for normal operations. “There are two and half active rooms. Electricity and internet also leave a lot to be desired.”

He said the problems had been shared with the Central Passport Office frequently but no remedial action had been taken yet.

“The reason behind the halt to passport distribution is that at the end of last solar year, nearly 8,000 applications were received. But biometric and other processes were not completed,” he recalled.

He added the Central Passport Office had its own policy, under which up to 150 passports were printed for first-grade provinces and 80 to 100 for second-grade provinces.

The official estimated since the reopening of the provincial Passport Office, over 19,000 passports had been distributed.

nh/mud