Passports may no longer be a valid address proof

Amidst all the confusion regarding Aadhaar card as identity proof, there comes another news for citizens, & lsquo passports will soon stop functioning as a valid address proof'. Passports are and have been for a while now, considered to be the ultimate proof of address and residency. However, the Ministry of External Affairs has now decided to remove the last page of passports. The last page of passports carry the address details of the holders and hence you will now not be able to use it as a valid address proof The officials have also said that there will be an introduction of orange colour passports. These orange colour passports will be issued to only those who require immigration checks. This will in a way make the process faster. The last page of the passport, which is proposed to be removed also carries immigration status of the holder. But as the government has decided to keep it blank, hence, orange passports will be issued to such citizens. The decision was followed by a report by a joint panel of foreign ministry and Women and Child Development ministry officials who examined the aspects of removing the father's name in the passport and also the steps for protecting the personal details of the citizen. As of now, passports are issued in three colours - white for government officials or people who visit other countries for official work of the government, red coloured passports are issued for diplomats, and blue for everyone else. Even under the blue passports, there are two sections - first, for those who require an emigration check (ECR) and secondly, for those who do not (ECNR). The new passports will be designed by the Indian Security Press, Nasik, and will be handed after the expiry of the existing ones.