V.K. SANTOSH KUMAR
India’s passport and visa services in Singapore will continue without disruption despite an Indian court setting aside a government tender for outsourcing consular services in four countries, the High Commission of India (HCI) in Singapore has confirmed.
The clarification follows a Delhi High Court ruling that quashed the Indian government’s tender process for outsourcing passport, visa and consular services at diplomatic missions in Australia, Singapore, Abu Dhabi and Kuwait. The court directed the authorities to invite fresh bids after finding shortcomings in how the procurement exercise was evaluated.
Responding to queries from tabla!, an HCI spokesman stressed that applicants in Singapore will not experience any changes.
“Passport and visa services in Singapore are not affected by this decision at present,” the spokesman said.
The HCI added that there are currently two Indian Consular Application Centres in Singapore that continue to accept applications for passport renewals, visas and other consular services on behalf of the mission.
“There is no change in this set-up,” the spokesman said, adding that there has been no suspension of applications and no change in procedures for those seeking a new passport or an Indian visa.
In Singapore, BLS International remains the authorised service provider for the High Commission, handling administrative functions for passport and consular services through its centres at Sim Lim Tower and International Plaza. The HCI noted that BLS operates under a long-term agreement in Singapore and as such, local services remain unaffected by the court ruling.
The mission also reminded Singapore citizens that they can continue using India’s e-Visa facility, which allows eligible travellers to complete the entire application process online without visiting a visa application centre.
The court decision has had a greater impact in Australia, where VFS Global suspended accepting new passport and visa applications from July 1 following instructions from the High Commission of India in Canberra.
According to Bloomberg, the legal challenge was filed by unsuccessful bidders E Trav Tech and Verasys, which argued they had been unfairly excluded during the technical evaluation process.
While the government maintained that courts should not interfere with decisions made by an expert committee, the Delhi High Court ruled that the authorities had failed to adequately explain how bids were assessed and why some applicants were disqualified.
The court said the lack of transparency rendered the procurement process “opaque” and “arbitrary”, and ordered the tender to be reissued.
VFS Global has been allowed to continue operating in the affected jurisdictions until new contracts are awarded.
santosh@sph.com.sg
