International passengers flying out of India will no longer need to have their boarding passes stamped at immigration counters from September 1, as the Bureau of Immigration moves to accept e-boarding passes on smartphones at all international airports.
According to a Hindustan Times report, the decision was communicated through an internal directive issued by Deepak Yadav, an official at the Delhi Foreigners Regional Registration Office. The communication has been sent to key stakeholders, including international airport operators and the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF).
Officials speaking to the Press Trust of India separately confirmed that passengers travelling abroad will be able to present an e-boarding pass on their smartphones for immigration clearance.
Why India is ending boarding pass stamping
The Bureau of Immigration (BOI), under the Ministry of Home Affairs, decided to end the practice after finding that physical stamping was causing inconvenience to passengers.
Officials also cited instances where improper or incorrect stamping made boarding passes difficult to read.
Physical boarding passes will continue to be accepted after September 1, but immigration officials will no longer stamp them.
The requirement for stamped physical boarding passes at immigration counters across all international airports has now been withdrawn, officials said.
Airport operators and aviation stakeholders have been asked to brief their staff about the new procedure before its implementation.
CISF stopped stamping boarding passes years ago
The CISF has not been stamping boarding passes during passenger frisking for several years, security officials said.
The practice was discontinued for both domestic and international passengers, with boarding passes used only for clearance during security checks.
The immigration stamping procedure was separate and is now being discontinued.
India plans wider move to end immigration stamping
The BOI is also planning to end immigration entry and exit stamping for Indian passport holders.
Officials said a pilot project is underway, after which the measure is expected to be rolled out across Indian airports.
Source: Gulf News
--Agencies
