47L APPLICATIONS REJECTED SO FAR

All applicants will get e-passes in TN from August 17: CM

Julie.Mariappan@timesgroup.com

Chennai:15.08.2020

Chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Friday announced that from August 17 e-passes will be issued immediately to all applicants for interdistrict travel in the state.

The announcement comes amid strident criticisms from a wide cross-section about delays, irregularities and corruption in the e-pass system. The existing system, which saw rejections of 47 lakh applications so far, will be replaced by an updated automated system for speedy clearance.

“I have ordered issuance of epasses without any delay to all applicants to travel across the state from August 17 based on submission of Aadhaar/ration card details along with telephone/mobile numbers,” chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami said in a statement, adding that people should use e-passes responsibly and avoid unnecessary travel. The move to speed up the process comes in the wake of long queues for e-passes and allegations by political parties of “rejections on unreasonable grounds and nepotism”.

The status quo for e-passes would, however, be maintained for people arriving from other states and foreign countries. These returnees will have to apply well in advance and get the necessary clearance. The state government commenced issuing of e-passes to individuals and establishments for inter-district movement since May to facilitate contact tracing when a traveller tests positive for Covid-19.

e-passes to stay due to inter-district travel curbs, says CS

The e-pass is issued for marriages, medical emergencies, death of close relatives, for undertaking important work and for people who are stranded. “We want a record of people travelling to other districts, so that if someone tests positive, we can trace their movement and contacts. As long as there is inter-district restriction of movement, we will continue to make e-passes mandatory,” said chief secretary K Shanmugam. The proposed changes are aimed at tackling the nuisance of touts as well.

Only 25 lakh of the 71.2 lakh applications were approved by the state in the past three months. There were allegations that even genuine applications were rejected arbitrarily as the district administrators sought to restrict the entry of visitors. Now, the Tamil Nadu e-governance agency is modifying its software to give effect to the proposed changes of automated approvals and auto scanning the data entered by the applicants. The system algorithms will detect wrong entries and reject them.

In a statement, DMK chief M K Stalin said he had been demanding that the state abolish the e-pass system. “It is difficult for the illiterate and economically poor to apply every time they need to travel. I urge the government to abolish the system altogether. At the same time, I request the people to avail the relaxation only for the most essential trips and stay cautious,” the DMK leader said.

We want a record of people travelling to other districts, so that if someone tests positive, we can trace their movement and contacts. As long as there is interdistrict restriction of movement, we will continue to make e-passes mandatory

K SHANMUGAM | chief secy