TCS, the largest software exporter, on Friday secured the second phase of the Passport Seva Program (PSP).
The second phase of PSP, which is already the largest mission-critical e-governance program in India, will last nine-and-a-half years and will deploy the latest technologies to further ease the company’s services. A senior company official said that TCS will also introduce the much-awaited e-passport.
“We will bring technology (for e-passports), but you know sovereign functions like giving or printing passport booklets will continue with the government,” said Tej Bhatla, business unit head, public sector at TCS. PTI.
He said that this will not be a completely paper-free document as the work like visa stamping will continue, but wherever possible the need for paper will definitely be reduced through automation.
He said the passport jacket would have an electronic chip on which important security-related data would be encoded. System.
When asked by when the e-passport would be brought in, Mr. Bhatla said the wait would not be more than a few months.
TCS did not disclose the contract amount for the deal, but said it is the largest work in the country.
When asked about IT companies’ aversion to government contracts such as payment terms and flow of receipts, Mr. Bhatla said all commercial aspects have been taken into account.
To a query on criticism received by IT vendors with respect to government programs like Income Tax Portal, Mr. Bhatla said that all mission critical programs come with a responsibility.
Over the past decade, more than 86 million passports have been facilitated by TCS as part of the first phase of the PSP, and Mr. Bhatla said the number will only increase during the new contract period as people travel more .
The company is planning to set up a third data center to store critical data after setting up primary and secondary data centers as part of the first phase, he said, adding that all work except for printing and issuance of passports, he said. Controlled by TCS.
The company will deploy a few hundred technology workers on the project in addition to front-office staff at Passport Seva Kendras.
It plans to use technologies like biometrics, artificial intelligence, advanced data analytics, chatbots, auto-response, natural language processing and cloud to enhance the citizen experience and will also try to reduce the turnaround time further.
On biometrics, Mr. Bhatla elaborated that fingerprints are already used for the purposes of establishing identity, and new biometric devices such as iris as well as algorithms will be deployed.
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