NEW DELHI: In a first-of-its-kind initiative in India to facilitate more amenties for Indian nationals and OCI passengers coming from other countries, Union Home Minister Amit Shah inaugurated the ‘Fast Track Immigration – Trusted Traveller Programme (FTI-TTP) at Terminal-3 of Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday.
The objective of the programme is to make international travel easy and secure by developing world-class immigration facilities through an accelerated immigration pathway for international travellers screened through automated gates (e-Gates).
In the event, the Home Minister said, “this facility will be available free of cost for all passengers”.
On the occasion, Shah said the FTI-TTP is a visionary initiative of the Central government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi which has been thoughtfully designed for the benefit of Indian citizens and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cardholders. He said that this initiative will provide more facility for Indian Nationals and OCI passengers coming from other countries.
The programme is designed for faster, smoother and safer immigration clearance for international travellers. It will run on e-gates or automated border gates, which will minimise human intervention in the immigration clearance process.
The programme will be implemented in two phases. In the first phase, Indian citizens and OCI cardholders will be covered and in the second phase, foreign travellers will be covered.
FTI-TTP will be launched at 21 major airports in the country. In the first phase, along with Delhi airport, it will be launched at seven major airports: Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Kochi and Ahmedabad.
The launch of this programme is one of the key agendas set for ‘Viksit Bharat @2047’ and reflects the Modi government’s commitment to enhance travel convenience and efficiency for all.
The FTI-TTP will be implemented through an online portal and the Bureau of Immigration will be the nodal agency for fast track immigration for various categories of travellers under this programme.
Launched the Fast Track Immigration-Trusted Traveller Program today. It is a groundbreaking initiative meticulously designed for Indian nationals and Overseas Citizen of India cardholders to make their travels more seamless, faster, and secure. Our government is committed to… pic.twitter.com/eqkCUDBfbP
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) June 22, 2024
To enrol in the scheme, the applicant has to register online on the portal with her or his details and required documents. After necessary verification, a White List of ‘Trusted Travellers’ will be generated and fed for implementation through e-Gates. Biometrics of the ‘Trusted Traveller’ passing through e-Gates will be captured at the FRRO office or at the time of passage of the registered traveller through the airport. The TTP registration will be valid till the validity of the passport or five years, whichever is earlier and will be renewed thereafter.
Under the process, as soon as the ‘registered passenger’ reaches the e-gates, he or she will scan his or her boarding pass issued by the airlines at the e-gates to get the details of his/her flight.
The passport will also be scanned and the biometrics of the passenger will be authenticated at the e-gates. Once the genuine identity of the passenger is established and biometric authentication is done, the e-gate will open automatically and immigration clearance will be deemed to have been granted. (ANI)
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