Passport to continue its old avatar: Will carry on printing last page

New Delhi, January 31: The last page of the passport which includes father's name or guardian's name, mother, spouse, and address will continue to be there on it. Ministry of External Affairs has decided to continue with the current practice of printing of the last page of the passport and not to issue a separate passport with an orange color jacket to Emigration Check Required (ECR) passport holders.

The decision was taken by the External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj at a meeting after a discussion with the various stakeholders in the matter. "A decision was taken by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on the recommendations of a three-member committee comprising officials of MEA and the Ministry of Women and Child Development, to print the last page of passport booklet," the External Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

The committee had examined questions related to “various issues pertaining to passport applications where mother/child had insisted that the name of the father should not be mentioned in the passport and also be relating to passport issues to children with a single parent and to adopted children.”

The Ministry had received various representations requesting to reconsider its earlier decisions in which it had decided not to print the last page of Passport Booklet.

It had also decided to issue a passport with an orange color jacket to passport holders with ECR status.