ILAM: A total of 12,027 persons developed their passports in Ilam district in the past fiscal year. Of them, majority are believed to be destined for foreign employment.

Out of the total applicants, 8,018 developed the machine-readable passport (MRP) from the District Administration Office while 4,009 received it from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Kathmandu, according to assistant officer Binod Babu BC.

The development of passport led to a revenue collection of Rs. 41.68 million in the fiscal year 2014/15. Developing MRP from the district costs Rs. 5,000 and Rs. 10,000 as express charge from the capital.

The office is presently receiving application from 35 to 45 people on an average for developing their passports. The recent surge in the number of applicants is attributed to the decision of the government to enforce free visa and free ticket in seven major destination countries for Nepali workers, added BC.