KATHMANDU, June 25: Due to inadequate preparation, the government is currently making arrangements to print about two million passports through variations, without conducting an open competition. After the bidding process was not initiated in time, France's Idemia company, which has been printing passports for about the past 13 years, is going to be entrusted with the printing of passports again.

Currently, only approximately 500,000 passports are available. As it takes time to print and purchase passports through tenders in international competition, there is a need to expedite the supply through alternative means. At a committee meeting, Foreign Minister NP Saud said that because procurement of passports through international bidding takes considerable time, they have to pay expensive prices. "According to the Public Procurement Act 2007, it takes time to purchase passports by inviting international bids," he said, “Now there is a situation where we have to make variations to avoid shortages."

The government has been criticized for printing passports without open competition. In 2010, the company that won the tender to print Machine Readable Passports (MRP) was entrusted with printing e-passports in 2020. During the tender of 2020, it was planned to print about 5 million passports initially, but only two million passports were printed.

Concerns were raised after the government prepared to entrust the printing of passports to the same company by making several variations. Durpada Sapkota, the spokesperson for the Department of Passport, said that discussions are underway to purchase passports from variants to run the work for the time being. "The process for purchasing passports through competition has also progressed," Spokesperson Sapkota said.

She said there are ongoing discussions regarding the procurement issue including alternative methods to avoid any immediate shortage. She further explained that the tender process for purchasing passports typically takes around one to one and a half years. Since initiating a new tender would consume additional time, the authorities are planning to print passports in large quantities through a competitive process. "As interim management, they are exploring the option of utilizing previous companies through variation," she stated.

In the year 2020, Idemia company was selected through an international competition. Although there was a discussion about printing five million units of passports in 2020, there is now a shortage due to the fear that it will not be successful because of the new technology.

Bids have been invited only twice in a period of 13 years. From 100,000 to 150,000 passports are distributed monthly. France's Idemia company has received two previous tenders. Even after making a variation, the same company is going to be entrusted with the printing of passports. A passport was printed at the price of $10.45 in the last competitive bidding process.

In this way, considering the exchange rate of Rs 131.16 per USD on Friday, the current printed price of a passport amounts to Rs 1,370.26. However, the procurement of passports through alternative means incurs additional expenses, leading to an increased price. Based on this existing price, printing 2 million passports would cost approximately Rs 2.74 billion.

Even though the tender process should have been started at that time, both the department and the ministry remained silent, leading to the current situation of resorting to purchasing through variations. Officials within the ministry have expressed concerns about the possibility of collusion in this matter. "Given the monthly distribution of approximately 100,000 to 150,000 passports, it is imperative to commence the open competition process without delay," emphasized the official. It is worth noting that although there was an agreement to introduce e-passports in 2020, they were only implemented starting from November 2021.

 
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