Basic passport safety for all kinds of travelers

Traveling is a privilege to see the world and gain new perspectives from foreign sights and cultures. Before waxing poetic about the joys of seeing the world, tourists must first ensure their safety during the trip. The most basic way to do this is by taking care of one’s passport. Here are some suggestions:

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1. Invest in a good passport cover.

Machine-readable passports are sensitive. Travelers must protect their passports by not getting wet, torn, or even folded. To prevent these from happening, tourists can buy a plastic cover that can protect their passports from getting damaged especially while on a trip.

2. Photocopy your passport (and other travel documents).

Travelers need to photocopy to have a photocopy of their passport in case they lose it. They can store the copy in their wallets or keep it in a safety deposit box with other travel documents. If carrying a photocopy of their passport is too much of a hassle, taking a photo of using their smartphones will suffice.

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3. Keep your passport with you always.

Except when the traveler is a child, people shouldn’t let others keep their passports. If a foreign host, tour guide, or hotel personnel offers to keep your passport for safety, it is best for the traveler to refuse even if they mean well.

4. Refrain from posting on social media your passport details.

Photos of boarding passes and passports are regularly seen on social media networks these days. However, it is is not exactly the safest thing to do. Tt is best for the traveler to keep the details of his passport (and even his itinerary) to himself to prevent identity theft and illegal reproduction of important documents.

To avoid problems during a trip abroad, travelers must ensure that their passports and other documents are safe. Following the tips above will save them time in case they run into problems.

Cox & Kings Global Services is a specialist business process outsource agency incorporated in 2008 that serves consular sections of diplomatic missions. It provides administrative support and management services for non-judgmental tasks related to the lifecycle of a visa, passport, and consular application process. Get acquainted with GKGS’ services by visiting this Facebook page.

Shree Siddhivinayak Ganapati: A journey into India’s Ganesha belief system

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The Siddhivinayak temple is one of the most beautiful historical architectures in Mumbai, India. Located in Prabhadevi, it is one of the most visited pilgrimage sites by locals and foreign devotees alike. Even Bollywood celebrities visit this temple of worship to receive blessing before the premiere of a movie or project. Up to 25,000 devotees visit the temple every day to say their prayers and seek blessing from Lord Ganesha. The word “Siddhivinayak” literally means “Ganesha who grants all wishes.”

The Siddhivinayak temple is considered as a historical masterpiece and is one of the top tourist spots in Mumbai. It was built in the early 18th century by professional contractor Laxman Vithu Patil. It was a wish of a wealthy lady of Agri Samaj of Matunga, Mrs. Deubai Patil, who was childless. She had the idea of constructing a Ganesha temple where women who are not able to bear children, like her, can sincerely pray and ask blessings from the Lord Ganesha.

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The statue of Lord Ganesha is built from a single black stone that stands around two feet tall. It has four hands. The upper hands hold a lotus flower and an axe; the lower hands hold a rosary and a “modak,” which is said to be the favorite delicacy of the Lord Ganesha. Beside the statues are figures of Lord Ganesha’s two wives: Riddhi, the goddess of success and Siddhi, the goddess of prosperity.

Cox & Kings Global Services offers India visa processing. For more information about the company's services, visit its website.

Indelible marks: The facts surrounding fingerprinting in transport papers

Several countries, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, require travelers to leave fingerprints in applications for visas and other transit papers. Fingerprints serve a dual role in maintaining security and streamlining the process of travel, allowing officials to quickly verify the identities of travelers.

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Fingerprints are among the most common biometrics in use in security today. This is because of the age-old understanding that no two fingerprints are alike (even between identical twins) and can serve as a clear way of identifying a person in many instances. Fingerprint identification is also nigh impossible to cheat; surgical attempts to permanently remove fingerprints are rare and do not work to deter forensic investigators. Technological developments also mean that fingerprint identification may become more streamlined, allowing for shorter queues in international terminals.

In most cases, adults under the age of 80 and adolescents over the age of 14 are required to provide fingerprints as part of the application process. Barring exceptional circumstances, these applications would not be considered complete until after the fingerprints have been recorded.

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Many embassies and consulates are aware of the legitimate instances that impede the collection of fingerprints from visa applicant. For example, there are times when collecting fingerprints may not be possible, such as when they have considerably eroded (as in extreme old age).

Different protocols exist to handle these exceptional cases, which are sometimes judged in part on the circumstances as understood by the consular officers. For instance, officials from the United States would send instructions the applicant's way only after all attempts at getting clear prints have been for naught.

Cox & Kings Global Services is a specialist business process outsource providing administrative support solutions for consulates and embassies. For more on the company and its range of services, visit its official website

Three interesting Indian festivals to attend

The sheer number of festivals celebrated across the country reflect India's cultural and religious diversity. Out of the hundreds of festivals celebrated in India every year, there are a few that stand out for various reasons.

First-time and seasoned travelers who wish to experience India in new ways should consider attending one of the following festivals.

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1. Nag Panchmi

Snakes play an important role in Hindu mythology, which is why devout Hindus all over India and in some areas of Nepal dedicate one day to their worship. On Nag Panchmi, people cannot dig in the earth as doing so might harm the snakes that live there. Images of snakes are washed with milk or water then worshipped by reciting a certain mantra. In some places, live snakes are worshipped. Offerings of milk, crystallized sugar, rice pudding, and lotus flowers are made.

Nag Panchmi falls on the fifth day of the waxing or waning of the moon, in the month of Shravan (July or August.)

2. Kila Raipur Sports Festival

Often referred to as the "rural Olympics," this festival features many impressive feats of athleticism. These include wrestling and strongman contests, as well as more unusual activities such as lifting a plow with one's mouth, getting run over by a tractor, and forming complicated stunts on motorcycles.

The festival has been held annually in Kila Raipur near Punjab since 1938, and the entire celebration lasts for three days.

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3. Pulikali during Onam

Onam is a harvest festival and the national festival of Kerala. In Thrissur and Palghat, pulikali is an important part of Onam celebrations.

On the fourth day of Onam, men painted and dressed as tigers perform pulikali, the tiger dance. To prepare for pulikali, they shave their body hair and get painted to look like tigers. They also wear masks, fake teeth, and belts with bells. When the paint dries, the performers converge on Thrissur and dance in the streets, shaking their bellies to music played on local instruments, with spectators joining in on the fun and dancing with them.

Festivals in India are celebrations of life, history, and culture. To learn more about them, subscribe to this CKGS blog.

Support services: Tasks you should be outsourcing

In the early days, lower operational and labor costs were among the primary motivations to outsource. However, today, organizations from different industries outsource so that they can continually focus on their core businesses and functions, while hiring outside resources to perform activities traditionally handled by internal staff and resources.

Outsourcing has many benefits. It can reduce and control operating costs, improve company focus, and provide access to world class capabilities. Organizations looking for support services should be outsourcing these tasks to maximize their operations:

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In the early days, lower operational and labor costs were among the primary motivations to outsource. However, today, organizations from different industries outsource so that they can continually focus on their core businesses and functions, while hiring outside resources to perform activities traditionally handled by internal staff and resources.

Outsourcing has many benefits. It can reduce and control operating costs, improve company focus, and provide access to world class capabilities. Organizations looking for support services should be outsourcing these tasks to maximize their operations:

Administrative tasks. Application processes, documentations, data entry and other non-judgmental tasks can usually be handled by a specialist business process outsource agency. Although these tasks could be crucial to proper operations of an organization, they are not usually the core activities.

Customer service. Customer support workers or “agents” from BPO companies are ideal assistance as companies rarely have time to deal with every customer question and concern.

IT operations. Due to its cost, most entities hire an IT company to handle the maintenance and repair functions of their organizations.

Marketing. From website design to product development, a marketing firm can effectively provide an outside perspective that an internal marketing staff cannot. They can also be efficient, both in terms of budget and time, as they allow you to focus more on the main objectives of your team.

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The best way to hire high-quality business process outsource agency is by assessing them based on their expertise and experience.

Cox & Kings Global Services provides administrative support for diplomatic missions worldwide. Subscribe to this Google+ page for more insights on outsourcing.

Proposed unified Southeast Asia visa nearing full approval

A few years ago, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations planned to adopt a single visa system to enable non-ASEAN citizens to visit any of the group’s 10 member states (Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar) on a single visa. The accord is yet to gather full support from all involved countries since the proposal was floated in 2011, but it seems implementation is nearing.

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Patterned after Europe’s Schengen single visa system, the ASEAN single visitor visa policy aims to enhance and advance the tourism sector in the region, boosting arrivals to member states. To date, only diplomatic missions are given access to the country without the stringent process that a regular visitor usually goes through.

The ambitious plan takes into account global realities and is designed to improve hospitality-related metrics in the ASEAN region. While it has fallen short of fulfilling the Tourism Strategic Plan 2011/2015 (which aims to promote the region as a single tourist destination) within the targeted timeframe, it is still slated to improve the region’s tourism standards and enable tourism employees to work in any ASEAN country.

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The strategy also gained strong support from the so-called ‘Plus 3’ countries, which are comprised of Asian countries China, Japan, and South Korea. In addition, ASEAN is moving toward the implementation of an open skies aviation policy, which is scheduled to come into effect within the coming years.

Cox & Kings Global Services provides administrative support and management services for non-judgmental tasks related to the whole lifecycle of visa, passport, and consular applications. To know more about the company, visit this website.

Beyond visa processing: Why choose electronic record-keeping?

There is no stopping technology. Innovations that were deemed impossible decades ago are now commonplace in today’s society. But as technology evolves, so should the practices and systems people employ in their daily lives to keep up.

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Electronic record-keeping is a prime example of how adapting new technology can make systems more dependable. For starters, electronic documentation expedites processes through the retrieval of prompt data. Compared to paper-based systems, electronic documentation facilitates indexing and reference. Through a reliable built-in search structure, required documents can be furnished upon request in a significantly shorter time.

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Backing up documents also becomes more reliable with electronic records management. Since documents are in digital form, the files’ lifetime is extended exponentially. Wear and tear, an obvious problem with paper records, becomes a thing of the past.

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Furthermore, security options have been expanded by digitizing documents. With a competitive security program or software, managers can easily control file access among the employees. They can dictate which employees can see, edit, and even delete certain documents. And in the case of a security breach, reliable security programs also enable managers to quickly detect cases of file tampering.  

Cox and Kings Global Services (CKGS) provides electronic document management services to diplomatic missions around the globe, making it possible for them to secure, index, and retrieve their files in a simple yet reliable manner. Learn more about CKGS by visiting this website.