Bengaluru, May 18: Chaos erupted at the Regional Passport Office (RPO) in Bengaluru after the appointments schedule was rejigged to ensure social distancing. The RPO, which usually takes appointments of 1,500 applicants of new passport or passport renewals, slashed the number to 350 to prevent mass gathering amid COVID-19 outbreak. Catch the latest updates related to coronavirus outbreak in India and other parts of the world.

Messages were sent to the applicants about change in their appointment schedule. According to officials, some of the applicants were panicked after receiving the message and turned up at the RPO to confirm the same. Another set of applicants - who had applied through agents - were not aware of their appointment being postponed.

The police was called in after the situation turned chaotic outside the Passport Seva Kendra in Lalbagh area. The services were temporarily terminated, and resumed only after the crowd dispersed.

"Operations at PSK Lalbagh and Marathahalli have commenced. In line with MHA guidelines, citizens above 65 yrs and children below 10 yrs are requested to refrain from visiting the PSK during the lockdown period," said the updated statement issued by the RPO on Twitter.

See RPO Bengaluru Tweet

"All applicants are requested to visit the PSKs with valid appointment at the scheduled time only. Applicants who are early or late will not be allowed entry. Further, applicants will be allowed only if the Aarogya Setu app shows that the applicant is ‘safe’," the RPO statement read.

In case the applicant does not have a smartphone, a COVID-19 negative certificate must be produced by him, signed by a registered medical practitioner. They are also directed to wear face masks and bring their own hand sanitisers at the passport office.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on May 18, 2020 07:17 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).