While coming from my Norway trip ,
At Schiphol Airport I noticed citizens of the US, Canada, EU countries, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and even Malaysia walking straight through automated eGates.
No queues. No officer. No questions.
India was missing from that list.
We stood at least an hour before our turn came to see the officer.
It was a small reminder that GDP headlines and geopolitical chest-thumping are one thing.
Global trust in a country’s documents, institutions and migration profile is another.
A passport is not just a travel document.
It is a report card of how much the world trusts the systems behind it.
At Schiphol Airport I noticed citizens of the US, Canada, EU countries, Japan, South Korea, Singapore and even Malaysia walking straight through automated eGates.
No queues. No officer. No questions.
India was missing from that list.
We stood at least an hour before our turn came to see the officer.
It was a small reminder that GDP headlines and geopolitical chest-thumping are one thing.
Global trust in a country’s documents, institutions and migration profile is another.
A passport is not just a travel document.
It is a report card of how much the world trusts the systems behind it.
While it’s impossible to engage with all the responses, my point is see the deeper reality.
That many people hear any discussion about India’s global standing as an attack on India. Im not saying “India is inferior.” I’m asking why a country of 1.4 billion people and the world’s fifth-largest economy still does not enjoy the same level of travel trust as several much smaller countries. That’s a legitimate question. And we have been fed a huge lie that Indian passport has become so strong in this last decade.
That many people hear any discussion about India’s global standing as an attack on India. Im not saying “India is inferior.” I’m asking why a country of 1.4 billion people and the world’s fifth-largest economy still does not enjoy the same level of travel trust as several much smaller countries. That’s a legitimate question. And we have been fed a huge lie that Indian passport has become so strong in this last decade.
Many Indians appear offended by the tweet.
That changes nothing.
You can argue about technology, geopolitics, reciprocity, or airport policies all day.
The reality is that you will still stand in the long queue while others walk through automated gates.
Passports are not powered by chips.
They are powered by trust.
That changes nothing.
You can argue about technology, geopolitics, reciprocity, or airport policies all day.
The reality is that you will still stand in the long queue while others walk through automated gates.
Passports are not powered by chips.
They are powered by trust.
The bigger issue is not the queue itself. The bigger issue is what the queue symbolizes:
Countries trust some nationalities enough to automate scrutiny.
Others are still placed in the “verify manually” category.
The uncomfortable reality is that India still has a significant number of visa overstays and illegal migration cases in Europe, the UK, Canada, and the US. That affects how immigration systems classify risk. A border-control officer thinks statistically, not emotionally.
For a nation that aspires to be a developed economy and a global power, moving from the second category to the first is a more meaningful milestone than many headline GDP numbers.
A passport is, in many ways, a global report card of how much the rest of the world trusts the systems behind it.
Countries trust some nationalities enough to automate scrutiny.
Others are still placed in the “verify manually” category.
The uncomfortable reality is that India still has a significant number of visa overstays and illegal migration cases in Europe, the UK, Canada, and the US. That affects how immigration systems classify risk. A border-control officer thinks statistically, not emotionally.
For a nation that aspires to be a developed economy and a global power, moving from the second category to the first is a more meaningful milestone than many headline GDP numbers.
A passport is, in many ways, a global report card of how much the rest of the world trusts the systems behind it.
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