The government has decided to start issuing machine readable passports from 33 more district passport offices from January next year.
A meeting of the cabinet committee on public purchase presided over by Finance Minister AMA Muhith on Sunday approved a home ministry proposal in this regard.
Two foreign firms would provide necessary machineries and materials to set up the regional passport offices to this end at a cost of Tk1.36bn, Additional Secretary Nurul Karim on Sunday told reporters after the meeting.
SM Nazrul Islam, deputy director of the Department of Immigration and Passport, told the Dhaka Tribune that additional 264 officers and employees would be recruited for the new passport offices, which would start working on January 1.
With these new passport offices, 64 districts would have the facility, he pointed out, adding that an assistant director would head a district passport office.
The 33 districts to have machine-readable passport offices are Gazipur, Narayanganj, Sunamganj, Jamalpur, Sherpur, Netrakona, Shariatpur, Madaripur, Rajbari, Khagrachhari, Bandarban, Lakshmipur, Natore, Naogaon, Chapainawabganj, Joypurhat, Panchagarh, Thakurgaon, Kurigram, Gaibandha, Nilphamari, Lalmonirhat, Satkhira, Bagerhat, Jhenaidah, Narail, Magura, Chuadanga, Meherpur, Pirojpur, Jhalakathi, Bhola and Barguna.
The Awami League in its previous term in the government had set up six regional passport offices at Jessore, Faridpur, Noakhali, Habiganj, Gopalganj and Sirajganj and opened a visa centre at the Shahjalal International Airport. The following BNP-led four-party alliance government, however, did not follow up on the project.
The present government has already set up 19 passport offices and made preparations for installing 33 more in the fiscal year 2011-2012.
At present, there are three passport offices in Dhaka and two in Chittagong.