Bettiah: In a major boost to citizen services in West Champaran district, the ministry of external affairs (MEA) on Monday inaugurated a Post Office Passport Seva Kendra (POPSK) in Ramnagar. The facility, which will function under the Regional Passport Office, Patna, is expected to benefit residents of Valmiki Nagar Lok Sabha constituency and other remote areas. The centre was jointly inaugurated by Valmiki Nagar MP Sunil Kumar and MEA secretary (CPV & OIA) Sripriya Ranganathan.Addressing the gathering, Sripriya said the Ramnagar facility is the 454th POPSK in the country and the 38th in Bihar, set up within the sub-post office premises. She said the centre will provide services such as fresh passport applications, renewals, and police clearance certificates (PCC) with ease.The facility will offer 45 passport appointment slots and five PCC slots daily, which can be booked online through the official MEA portal. She added that the nationwide network now includes 547 passport service centres, comprising 454 POPSKs and 93 Passport Seva Kendras (PSKs).Valmiki Nagar MP Sunil Kumar said the POPSK initiative is a joint effort of the MEA and the department of posts to bring passport services closer to citizens. With the launch of the Ramnagar centre, the target of establishing passport service centres in all 40 parliamentary constituencies of Bihar has now been achieved. The state now has a total of 40 such centres, benefiting people living in rural and remote areas.
