How To Get Online e-Pass Across India During The Lockdown

Yes, it is possible to know the status of an e-Pass application, however, you will still need details like submission date, name, ID proof, etc.

Yes, the Government of Goa is looking to restore tourism and you can travel to this state. However, bear in mind that the threat of COVID-19 is still looming upon us. Take precautions and follow social distancing rules to avoid an infection.

– August 19, 2020

A few days ago, the process to acquire an e-pass for Tamil Nadu was strict. It was available only after scrutiny. Such inspection for granting the e-pass was performed by the district administration. It was also performed by the Chennai Corporation officials. As per the data in Chennai, not everyone received the pass. The passes were granted for only three reasons. They were granted either for a funeral, wedding, or medical emergencies. However, as per Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister’s announcement on 14 August 2020, things have changed concerning this e-pass process. As per the new process, from 17 August 2020, e-passes related to inter-district travel and inter-state travel are auto-generated. The authorities have requested the citizens to use this feature for genuine purposes considering the ongoing pandemic. Those who wish to avail the e-pass can do so by visiting the Tamil Nadu e-pass application portal and following the process.

– August 17, 2020

From today, the people of Tamil Nadu can get instant E-passes with the help of their Aadhaar number. This facility helps ease the process of approval required to travel across the state. However, the authorities are urging people to use this facility only when absolutely required and to not misuse it. Edappadi K. Palaniswami, Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu requested the public to take care against the spread of COVID-19 and co-operate with the government. He added that the process is eased for the benefit of people. The movements will be tracked in case a person gets in touch with another person with an infection. M.K. Stalin, DMK president also urged people to use the service responsibly. The applicants need to fill details like Aadhaar number, name permanent address, number of people travelling, etc. and click submit to receive the e-pass instantly. The number of COVID-19 cases seems to be decreasing day by day. Currently, there are 54019 active cases in Tamil Nadu. 278270 have been cured/discharged and unfortunately, 5766 people have lost their lives.

– August 17, 2020

A recent statement from the Indian Ministry of Railways highlights the release of an e-pass module. Railway employees can use this module for pass generation and booking tickets. The e-pass module was released by the Chairman of the Railway Board on 13 August 2020 via a video conference. As per the statement, the employees will no longer be required to visit the office for the pass or wait for it. They can generate the e-pass from anywhere thanks to the online facility. The entire process is mobile friendly. Centre for Railway Information Systems, which goes by the short-form CRIS, has developed the e-pass module. They have developed it under the Human Resource Management System (HRMS) project. This HRMS project will be implemented in phases. The project is about digitizing the Indian Railway’s human resource process. Its plan includes 21 modules.

– August 17, 2020

Earlier, travellers entering Andhra Pradesh by flight were required to get an e-pass. However, as per a recent decision by the state government, the e-pass for air passengers will be generated automatically. Earlier, this feature was only available for those travelling by road but now it has been extended to those travelling by air as well. This comes after the Central Government announced that e-passes were not needed for inter-state movement in the Unlock 3 phase. However, the Andhra Pradesh authorities are maintaining a database of people coming in the state. The record-keeping of passengers entering the state will help ground-level staff to monitor people during the ongoing pandemic. The facility concerning the automatic generation of an e-pass can be availed via Andhra Pradesh’s online service portal Spandana. It can be accessed under the ‘domestic passenger enrolment’ section.

– August 13, 2020

To the relief of many Railway Employees, the government has announced the availability of e-passes. Earlier this method was manual and railway employees did not have the option to get an e-pass. This will increase the convenience of 13 Lakh employees. This system will slowly get automated and the employees can expect a full migration by October 2020. The facility of providing e-passes is a step towards integrating technology-enabled services in the operations of Indian Railways. This module is available under the Human Relations Management System (HRMS) of the organization. The automation has been implemented by Centre for Railway Information System (CRIS) and was inaugurated by the Chairman of Railway Board, Vinod Kumar Yadav, via remote conferencing. This move will increase the convenience of the people working in Railways. They do not have to take additional efforts to get the pass via manual methods.

– August 10, 2020

The inter-state transport and movement in India has been restricted from the time the COVID-19 pandemic began. This is proving to be a major inconvenience for people who wish to travel to and fro in search of jobs or business engagements. A virtual recession has hit the Indian economy because people are losing jobs and in this situation restricting movement has made the matters worse. However, now the situation is likely to improve in Chennai because two new categories are being added to the e-pass application. Through these categories, people looking for jobs can visit Chennai with an e-pass and increase their chances for employment. Similarly, business-related engagements can also be carried out. This was announced by Chennai Corporation Commissioner G Prakash on August 08, 2020. Earlier, people were allowed to enter and exit the Chennai borders only for the purpose of attending weddings, funerals, or in case of medical emergencies.

– August 5, 2020

People who wish to visit Konkan do not need to carry an e-pass if travelling by state transport. Transport Minister Anil Parab stated that people who are willing to travel to Konkan should end their journey before August 12 as they will be asked to remain in home-quarantine for 10 days. After this date, the travellers will have to submit a medical report by testing themselves for COVID-19 at least 48 hours before commencing their journey. Many people visit their native place in Konkan for spending time with their loved one. However, this year it has not been possible due to the widespread COVID-19 pandemic. Ganesh Festival is also an upcoming event that many people like to celebrate in their native places. This year, the festivities will begin on August 22. The corporation as arranged for more number of busses for people to book and travel. Maharashtra ranks number one on the most number of COVID-19 cases in the country.

– August 3, 2020

The state governments are trying to contain the spread of the novel Coronavirus that has created a stronghold on the country’s health care system. The previous lockdown has lifted and the authorities are trying to streamline the entry and exit of people in the state of Andhra Pradesh. For this purpose, people travelling to Andhra Pradesh are supposed to first obtain an entry pass from the spandana.ap.gov.in website. Once a person registers on the website for a pass, he/she will receive an auto-generated pass on their mobile number as well as on their email addresses. This was said by Krishna Babu a Nodal officer looking into e-passes for Andhra Pradesh. The state has 74404 active COVID-19 cases. 82886 people have been either been cured or discharged and unfortunately, 1474 people have lost their lives. Out of these, 67 deaths have occurred in the last 24 hours.

– August 3, 2020

The lockdown in Delhi has been lifted and both borders – Noida and Ghaziabad have been opened for travellers. These borders remain closed during the lockdown as the authorities did not allow any kind of interstate movement. These borders are now open for all travellers including the ones who do not carry special permission in the form of an e-pass. The movement was restricted to contain the spread of COVID-19 that was getting out of control in the capital state. Delhi ranks on number two in the most number of COVID-19 cases in the country. The state of Maharashtra ranks on number one. The closing of borders during the lockdown had created a great amount of inconvenience for the daily commuters. A large number of people need to cross these borders on a daily basis because of work or work-related activities. Such people can resume their jobs now that the lockdown has lifted.

– July 31, 2020

Beginning 1 August 2020, people who want to enter Andhra Pradesh will have to obtain e-pass. This can be done automatically. The Union government has said that people may enter states without permission, but the state government of Andhra Pradesh has requested travellers to register on the e-pass web portal so that ground-level staffs can monitor those who enter the state. Also, once applied for the e-pass, they need not wait to get a pass, once they submit the details, they can enter the state. Each person entering the state will be provided with a QR code which can be used while crossing border checkposts and the details of the travellers will be updated in the database. As for the quarantine measures for those entering the state, travellers from abroad will have to undergo institutional quarantine for 7 days and the remaining persons will have to undergo home quarantine for 14 days.

– July 31, 2020

The Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary said that there is no revision to the mandate for e-pass for inter- and intra-district movement during the lockdown period. The Centre has announced the relaxation of several restrictions across the country, including movement between districts and states. The Chief Secretary said that while the Unlock 3.0 guidelines allow movement of vehicles without the need for an e-permit/permission/approval, the Centre has allowed states to formulate guidelines based on their requirements. This means that people in Tamil Nadu will require e-pass to travel between districts and within districts. The Tamil Nadu government has further extended the lockdown period until 31 August 2020 to contain the spread of the novel coronavirus in the state. The virus is known as Covid-19 and was declared a pandemic by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in early March this year after it was first detected in China.

– July 20, 2020

The State Government of Maharashtra has issued a new order concerning travelling in local trains for staff engaged with essential services. The State Government has come up with a QR-code based e-pass for such travellers amidst the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This e-pass will be compulsory for the staff members engaged in essential services who travel by the Mumbai locals. The mandatory -e-pass rule will be applicable from 30 July 2020. The State Government has issued a circular regarding this new rule. It stresses the importance of the e-pass and the railway ticket for train travel. Such an order will ensure that only those engaged with essential services are travelling via the local trains in Mumbai. The Human Resource teams of the respective organisations will send a list of employees to the Mumbai Police Commissioner’s office. The employees will receive the link for the QR-codes via SMS after proper authorization from the Nodal Officer.

– July 9, 2020

Several Indian states are tightening the restrictions put in place to stop the COVID-19 virus from spreading. The Government of Andhra Pradesh is also working towards limiting the spread of the virus. On 8 July 2020, Vishal Gunni, Guntur Rural SP, paid a surprise visit to the inter-state border. He visited the post near Pondugula Village and mentioned that every passenger vehicle entering the state must have the e-pass. The vehicles possessing a valid e-pass shall be allowed to enter Andhra Pradesh during the 12-hour period – 7 AM to 7 PM. People can obtain an e-pass by visiting the Spandana website. In case of an emergency, people without an e-pass can be allowed to enter the state. The SP asked the police officials to fortify the border surveillance measures to stop smuggling activities concerning sand and liquor and went on to visit the police stations in Dachepalli and Macherla.

– July 9, 2020

The Tamil Nadu Government has tightened the restrictions regarding inter-district travel amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. If people want to move from one district to another, they need to do so by first obtaining an e-pass. The Police officials are asking motorists and those visiting Erode on foot to obtain an e-pass but the people, mostly workers, are not abiding by the rules and entering the district without an e-pass. The imposed restrictions are impacting people who travel to their offices and workers belonging to the Namakkal district who visit Erode daily. People have to spend around 60 minutes at the check post and the daily-wage earners have mentioned that they are not aware of the process and the documents required to obtain an e-pass. A senior member of the Police force mentioned that the restrictions are in place to prevent the virus from spreading.

– July 8, 2020

According to new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), the entry will be restricted in Mohali to only those who have an e-pass or a valid office ID. Deputy Commissioner Girish Dayalan said that all five checkpoints bordering the district will be watched closely. People with a genuine reason to enter the district will be allowed under strict vigilance. Tricity residents will be allowed to enter or exit the district because many of them work at government offices or in IT companies. They will be asked to show either company ID or proof of residence to cross the border. To increase the control over the spread of COVID-19, multiple medical screening centres will be set up at Jharmari, Siswan, Bohra Khera Morh, Zirakpur, and Nagel Morh checkpoints. A mobile application called Cova will help the officials and people to keep a track of activities. The details of people entering and exiting the border will also be maintained by operators present at each screening centre. Every vehicle entering the region should bear the e-registration slip on the windshield. Every mode of transport i.e. airways, roadways, or railways will be monitored.

– July 6, 2020

The Government of Himachal Pradesh opened its state borders for everyone on Saturday, 4 July 2020. The earlier condition of an e-pass for inter-state movement has now been relaxed by the state authorities. Such a decision has come after the Centre denied permission to proceed with travel restrictions. However, individuals looking to enter the state will still need to register on the COVID-19 e-pass portal. Use of the Aarogya Setu App is also compulsory for such individuals. Tourism units shall function as per the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) shared by the Tourism Department. Tourists shall be exempted from quarantine provided they meet the guidelines stated by the state’s Disaster Management Cell. The Union Home Ministry had issued Unlock 2.0 guidelines to states allowing inter-state movement of people. The Himachal Pradesh Government had requested the Centre to enforce travel restrictions due to the coronavirus cases in the state but this request was denied.