This doubt has been raised in the Parliament and the Minister of External Affairs has submitted a written reply to this question, “Since the issue of passports is a Central subject and was allotted to the Ministry of External Affairs under the Transaction of Business Rules, the issuance of passports in India is done solely by Ministry of External Affairs through designated Passport Issuing Authorities, which are MEA Headquarters (CPV Division), 37 Passport Offices, Andaman & Nicobar Islands Administration and Missions/Posts abroad. Hence, passports to Central Government employees and their family members will continue to be issued by these designated Passport Issuing Authorities”.