Originally Posted by Keyser

Went though the eGates in BOM yesterday. Everything worked well while passing though the gate. There were a number of staff members hanging out around the gates to help people. I asked one of them where I could get the stamp on my BP to indicate that I have used the eGate & was told there was no need for that. While walking away I saw another senior looking representative sitting at the eGate help counter so I asked him again if I need a stamp. He too confirmed it was not required.

When I got to the boarding gate, the agent checking my passport & BP asked where my stamp was. I told her I used the eGate. She didn’t seem to know what that meant & went to get one of her seniors. The senior agent asked me the same question & I gave her the same answer. Their confused looks seemed to suggest they had no idea what I was talking about but they allowed me to stay in line to board.

When it was my turn to board they asked me to wait. 2 other people came over & asked where my stamp was. I told them there was no stamp since I used the eGate. They said I would have to wait while they went to get another senior official. The senior official came over after a few minutes & stated I couldn’t leave the country without an immigration stamp because when I returned I would get into trouble & wouldn’t be allowed back in. I told him that his statement could not be true since I have used the eGate over a dozen times & at no point have I gotten into trouble when I returned for not having a stamp. He said it was not possible for me to have used the eGate so many times since it just recently started, I told him it has been operational in DEL for over 6 months but he wouldn’t believe that.

I was made to wait while they verified whether I needed a stamp or not. After about 10 minutes they let me board. I thanked the agent & suggested that perhaps a training session might be the need of the hour so that passengers are not put through this ordeal & given misinformation regarding the absense of an immigration stamp.

I walked through the boarding bridge but when I got to the door of the plane I was stopped again by the person checking my BP since he did not see a stamp. I told him I went though the eGate but he too had no clue what I was saying. He made we wait while he sent his colleague back to the gate to check what was going on. After 2 minutes his colleague came back & said I could board.

I got to my seat & settled down. A few minutes later the same senior official came over & said he needed to take a picture of my BP & again stuck to his claim that this was for my benefit otherwise I would get into trouble when I returned. I didn’t want to argue anymore so I simply handed over my BP to him so that he could take a picture.

Seems like there is a lot of training required in BOM. I used the eGates in DEL the same week they opened & faced none of these issues. The whole process was very smooth. BOM was a disaster.