logo
India Launches Chip-Based ePassports: Colorplast proud Partner to the Government to Power the Future of Travel

India Launches Chip-Based ePassports: Colorplast proud Partner to the Government to Power the Future of Travel

The Hindu27-06-2025
24th June 2025
New Delhi
India has officially taken a significant step forward in modernising travel documentation with the rollout of chip-based ePassports, a landmark initiative supported by Colorplast Systems Pvt. Ltd. in collaboration with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of External Affairs.
As India's leading embedded technology company for secure identity solutions, Colorplast has played a pivotal role in developing the technological foundation of these next-generation ePassports. The launch signifies the beginning of a digitally secure, efficient, and globally recognised passport experience for Indian citizens.
'This isn't just a new document; it's a reflection of how India is transforming itself to meet global benchmarks in identity and security. The ePassport strengthens the identity of every Indian citizen, and we are honoured to be part of this national project that will positively impact every Indian traveller'.
Mr. Ayussh Battra, Director, Colorplast Systems Pvt. Ltd.
About Colorplas t Systems Pvt. Ltd.
Colorplast is a leading Card and technology company focused on the Payments, Connectivity, identity managed Services, and Print and Packaging Sectors. Via our embedded technology products and services, we connect, transact, and authenticate over 150 million people/products each year.
Colorplast is today present in 5 continents and has supplied over 3 billion products globally, including in India.
Colorplast works with Industry leaders globally for the provision and supply of secure SIM/eSIM, Dual interface technology bank cards, including but not limited to Prepaid cards, Debit cards, Credit cards, Metal cards, along with Electronic Driving Licenses, Vehicle Registration Certificates, and allied technology services associated with the aforesaid products.
Colorplast is also recognized by its partners for delivering trusted, secure and innovative products and solutions across its various verticals. The company's vision is closely aligned with the Government of India's Digital India mission and the successful rollout of the ePassport is a testament to that journey.
'This is a company press release that is not part of editorial content. No journalist of The Hindu was involved in the publication of this release.'
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Telecom testing just got cheaper as govt slashes certification fees by up to 95%
Telecom testing just got cheaper as govt slashes certification fees by up to 95%

Mint

time15 minutes ago

  • Mint

Telecom testing just got cheaper as govt slashes certification fees by up to 95%

India has slashed the security certification fee for telecom equipment makers, the latest in a series of regulatory moves to ease business compliance requirements for companies importing or making telecom and tech equipment or products indigenously. Companies such as Nokia, Ericsson, Cisco Systems Inc., HFCL Ltd, and Dixon Technologies (India) Ltd will benefit from the government's decision to cut the fee by up to 95% for more than 50 categories of telecom and tech products. These include routers, connected devices, satellite equipment, smart meters, optical fiber cables, and 5G and WiFi gear, according to a government official and an internal document reviewed by Mint. 'Testing of telecom equipment is a key requirement," the official said, declining to be identified. 'The current downward revision in pricing pertains to the fee paid by the companies to the government to get certification, which is also known as security test report evaluation fee." A telecom or tech equipment maker or importer needs to engage a lab designated by the government to test its products and ensure the devices are safe for users and secure for communication networks. The government will later issue a security certificate if satisfied with the lab's report. Effective 1 August, the cost for this certification has been slashed to ₹10,000-50,000 per equipment model from ₹2-3.5 lakh. The National Centre for Communication Security (NCCS) on 30 June circulated a note to Department of Telecommunications officials informing about the reduction in the security test report evaluation fee. 'On an average, the overall cost for testing comes to ₹60-65 lakh per unit, which largely includes the third-party lab-testing costs," said Paritosh Prajapati, chief executive and founder of Sweden-based broadband equipment maker GX Group, which is a beneficiary of India's productivity-linked incentive scheme for the telecom sector. 'While this reduction in certification fee now is a breather, there is also a need for the government to increase testing labs and increase their capacity," he added. A time-consuming process The relaxation in testing and certification costs for telecom companies comes at a time when India is engaged in key trade negotiations with the United States, even as the US announced a 25% tariff plus a penalty on Indian goods from 1 August. In March, the US Trade Representative (USTR) had raised concerns about India's testing and certification system. The concerns included limited testing capacity, a slow and complex registration process, cancellations over non-safety issues, and high compliance costs. 'The US government has recommended that the Indian Government recognize internationally accredited labs, harmonize labeling requirements withglobal practices, harmonize the validity period of test reports and certification, and eliminate retesting requirements," USTR said in its report. India has seven designated telecom security testing labs, and has issued 92 security certificates so far, NCCS data show. HFCL, Cisco, Dixon Electro Appliances, and Hewlett Packard Enterprise, among others, have applied and received security certifications for different products. While India launched the Communication Security Certification Scheme in 2020 to streamline the process, there have been delays in implementing rules related to certification. Also, as telecom equipment makers raised complaints about inadequate testing capacity and a cumbersome registration process, the scheme has not been universally applied across the telecom ecosystem. While the government's decision to reduce the security certification fee will help the industry, 'the more challenging part is the time consumed in this process of testing, which also needs to be brought down", said Konark Trivedi, founder and managing director of telecom equipment maker Frog Cellsat Ltd. The industry also needs a system to ensure that every equipment entering the country meets the government's security criteria, he added. Ease of doing business, but at what cost? Apart from a security certificate, telecom companies are also required to obtain a trusted source certification from the National Security Council Secretariat, and mandatory testing and certification of telecom equipment, which is issued by the Telecommunication Engineering Centre. On 7 April, the National Centre for Communication Security excluded products related to optical network terminals and optical line terminals from mandatory testing and security certification, and including them under the voluntary security certification regime till 31 August. NCCS also waived administrative and security test evaluation fees for the period. An optical line terminal is the main device at a telecom provider's end that manages data flow over fiber networks. An optical network terminal is the device at the customer's home that converts fiber signals into internet and other services. The fee reductions were part of the government's efforts towards improving ease of doing business in India for global telecom equipment makers. On 15 July, Mint reported that India had dropped its demand that telecom equipment suppliers hand over proprietary source code, a key piece of software that controls the working of an equipment. Instead, manufacturers are required to provide just a summary of internal security test results. However, local gear makers expressed concerns sustained pressure from multinational companies may have influenced the government's decision to relax its source code sharing and certification requirements.

Trump slaps 25% tariff on all Indian goods; exports worth $85 billion at risk
Trump slaps 25% tariff on all Indian goods; exports worth $85 billion at risk

Time of India

time15 minutes ago

  • Time of India

Trump slaps 25% tariff on all Indian goods; exports worth $85 billion at risk

The United States has levied high tariffs on India, potentially affecting a significant portion of Indian exports. This move places India among the most heavily penalized nations under the new tariff regime. Ongoing trade negotiations between India and the US aim to address these concerns. The Indian government downplays the impact, emphasizing its commitment to protecting national interests. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The US has imposed an across-the-board 25% tariff on all Indian-origin goods, effective August 7, along with penal duties on scores of other countries. The duties range from 10% to 41%. India 's competitors, including Pakistan, Vietnam, Bangladesh and Turkey, were levied lower tariffs of 15-20%. The steep duty could hurt nearly half of India's exports of more than $85 billion to the US. This measure, part of a new executive order issued by US President Donald Trump on July 31, places India among the most harshly treated countries in the new tariff regime, of fering no product-level exemptions even for sectors deemed critical, such as pharmaceuticals, energy and the order mentions that tariffs may be reduced once countries do a deal with the US. India and the US are currently in negotiations over a trade accord. Indian government officials played down the measure's impact and added that New Delhiwill not be pressured into giving any duty exemptions on agricultural, dairy and genetically modified (GM) products in trade pacts.'The impact (of the tariff) will not be very big. More than half of India's exports to the US are expected to remain unimpacted. Due to the Section 232 exemption of the US, exports worth about $40 billion would be impacted with these tariffs,' said an has been intensifying his rhetoric against India in the past few days. New Delhi, though, has said it will take all necessary steps to safeguard its national interest, besides pointing out that the country's economy—the fastest-growing major one —was a bright spot amid global Indian goods , such as pharma and electronic goods, are already in the exemption category of the US and would not attract any duty, he said the tariffs will not have any adverse effect on the economy and India will not come under pressure. 'The GDP loss likely to be less than 0.2% in the worst case scenario. Exports may fall slightly, but most of the goods exported to the US will not be subject to tariffs,' said the official.'India is giving top priority to its interests, There will be no compromise on agriculture, dairy, GM crops… (considering) religious sentiments. There will be no compromise on non-veg milk and beef,' said another official. 'No adverse effect will be allowed on the interests of Indian farmers.' Commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal will meet exporters from textiles, engineering, pharmaceuticals, steel, IT and chemicals, from August 2-3 in Mumbai to discuss the implications of the 25% tariff. Similar stakeholder consultations would be held in New Delhi the next have been seeking immediate rollout of Interest Equalisation Scheme for pre- and postshipment export credit, and market support for goods meant for the US. The government should absorb some of the cost disabilities due to the tariffs, said the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO).'We expect $45-47 billion of exports to get impacted by this move,' said Ajay Sahai, director general of FIEO. The US was India's largest export destination in FY25, with shipments valued at $87 billion, accounting for about a fifth of the $437 billion and the US have been negotiating a bilateral trade agreement (BTA) since March and aim to conclude the first tranche of talks by October. The US has been pressuring India to allow farm, dairy and GM imports as part of the pact. So far, five rounds of talks have been completed. The sixth round of talks will be held from August official cited earlier insisted that animal feed is used in the dairy sector in the US, and that New Delhi has never given any duty concessions in any of its earlier trade pacts on its imports. 'There are religious sentiments… so it is not acceptable,' the person said. 'There will be no compromise on these segments in any of India's trade pacts.'Another official said that certain segments, such as gems and jewellery, will not be impacted much as these are region-specific. 'If American consumers buy jewellery which is made in Rajasthan, then that demand would not get impacted much,' the official said that the new order puts India at a disadvantage relative to some of its rivals that face lower tariffs. Trump has also threatened an unspecified penalty levy to be imposed on India for doing business with Russia. 'The implications of the recent development are being examined. The ministry of commerce and industry is engaged with all stakeholders, including exporters and industry for taking feedback of their assessment of the situation,' commerce and industry minister Piyush Goyal said in his statement in Parliament on per the order, countries have been subject to tariffs ranging from 10% to over 41% with differential rates based on geopolitical risk, economic alignment, and trade volume. 'Many trading partners have been constructive, bold, and visionary in their commitment to this fundamental change initiated by the President,' US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said on the executive order. 'This new trading system will lower the US trade deficit and lead to better outcomes for American workers, their families, and their communities. In the coming weeks, this new system will begin to take shape, as the Trump administration works with trading partners on a common path to shared prosperity.'The EU has been granted a special concession. If the existing US most favoured nation tariff on an EU product is below 15%, total tariff will rise to 15%. However, if the MFN tariff is already 15% or higher, no additional duty will be charged. Those that have been hit by the highest Trump tariffs are Iraq and Serbia (35%), Switzerland (39%), Laos and Myanmar (40%), and Syria (41%).

From shopfloor to C-suite: Mahindra offers Diwali Esops to 14,000 employees
From shopfloor to C-suite: Mahindra offers Diwali Esops to 14,000 employees

Time of India

time38 minutes ago

  • Time of India

From shopfloor to C-suite: Mahindra offers Diwali Esops to 14,000 employees

The Mahindra Group has announced a one-time employee stock ownership plan (Esop) grant for 12,000-14,000 employees, including shop floor workers for the first time ever. The move across three core companies—Mahindra & Mahindra (auto and farm sector), Mahindra Electric Automobile and Mahindra Last Mile Mobility —comes amid surging sales and profit on the back of hit products such as the Thar driving the M&M stock up more than 12 times in five years. Mahindra has also overtaken Hyundai to become the country's second biggest manufacturer of passenger vehicles, thanks to its range of SUVs. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Project Management Product Management MBA Data Science Healthcare healthcare Leadership Others Technology Artificial Intelligence Finance Data Analytics Operations Management Digital Marketing others Degree CXO MCA Design Thinking Public Policy Management Data Science Cybersecurity PGDM Skills you'll gain: Portfolio Management Project Planning & Risk Analysis Strategic Project/Portfolio Selection Adaptive & Agile Project Management Duration: 6 Months IIT Delhi Certificate Programme in Project Management Starts on May 30, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Project Planning & Governance Agile Software Development Practices Project Management Tools & Software Techniques Scrum Framework Duration: 12 Weeks Indian School of Business Certificate Programme in IT Project Management Starts on Jun 20, 2024 Get Details The Esops will help broad-based wealth creation, the tractor-to-technology conglomerate said in an internal circular. ET has seen the note. It did not reveal how many shares the group will earmark for this purpose, but people in the know estimate the total outflow to be in the range of Rs 400-450 crore. While granting Esops to keep employees motivated is not unusual, this could be the first time a large Indian conglomerate extends these benefits to shopfloor workers. The Esops, structured as restricted stock units (RSUs). by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Indonesia: Unsold Sofas at Bargain Prices (Prices May Surprise You) Sofas | Search Ads Search Now Undo Productivity Boost? The grant is being positioned as a reward for long-term contribution and a tool to align employees with value creation. 'This special grant reflects the organisation's appreciation for your efforts, makes you a co-owner of this enterprise, and gives you a share in the value that you have helped co-create,' said Anish Shah, group chief executive and managing director of M&M, in a note to employees. Live Events Rajiv Agarwal, department chair for strategy at leading B-school SPJMR, said with this move, Mahindra is fostering a productive environment, where labour participation drives higher overall productivity. 'This approach not only supports the company's growth but also allows employees to benefit from the rise in the stock price,' Agarwal said. 'It's a smart strategy — compensating workers not just with their salaries for the hours they work, but also rewarding them when the company does well. This dual benefit truly aligns employees' interests with the company's success.' The Esop scheme comes on the back of a sharp surge in valuations of Mahindra Electric and Mahindra Last Mile as well. Both have seen over 10x growth in the past five years, supported by strong execution, strategic focus and new business momentum. M&M's shares closed at Rs 3,160 on the BSE on Friday, down 1.35% from its previous close. Its market cap stood at Rs 3,92,925 crore. The Esop shares will be granted to employees on permanent payrolls with at least 12 months' tenure in the group as of the announcement date. Depending on their income tax bracket, the beneficiaries may have to pay tax on the profits they make when they sell their Esop shares. However, shopfloor workers who earn below the taxable income limit won't have to pay any tax on these gains. The Mahindra Group communication credited executive chairman Anand Mahindra and executive director Rajesh Jejurikar for steering the transformation, while thanking employees' families and retired leaders for their support.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store