BLS International, an outsourcing and technology services provider for governments and diplomatic missions, has appointed Golok Kumar Simli as its President for Technology and Innovation. Simli, who until May was Principal Advisor and Chief Technology Officer of the Passport Seva Programme at the Ministry of External Affairs, will now be responsible for shaping the company’s technology roadmap.
The move comes at a time when outsourcing firms are under pressure to upgrade digital infrastructure, strengthen data security and enhance citizen-facing services. BLS, which handles visa, passport, consular and other citizen services for several governments, is increasingly positioning itself not only as a processing partner but also as a technology-driven service provider.
One senior government official who closely worked with Simli said his appointment signals companies like BLS’s intent to draw on government-honed expertise to bolster technology push. Simli is best known for leading technology operations at Passport Seva, one of India’s most visible e-governance projects.
During his tenure, he oversaw the roll-out of Passport Seva 2.0 and the introduction of e-passports, initiatives that expanded digital access, integrated biometrics and introduced AI and data analytics for service delivery and security. Under his watch, the programme scaled to passport offices, service centres and Indian missions abroad, processing tens of thousands of applications daily.
His career spans nearly three decades across government and industry. Before joining the foreign ministry, Simli worked with the Ministry of Electronics and IT on the National e-Governance Plan, with IL&FS on state IT missions and with the Institute for Development and Research in Banking Technology at the Reserve Bank of India. Earlier stints included Hindustan Petroleum and IFCI, where he focused on network and data centre operations.
He has received multiple awards, including the National e-Governance Gold Award and citations in the CIO Power List and is a regular speaker on digital infrastructure, cybersecurity and AI in governance.
For BLS, his appointment highlights the company’s growing reliance on technology to deliver services securely and at scale. The outsourcing sector has faced scrutiny around data privacy, service delays and grievance redressal and experts suggest executives with experience in high-volume government programmes could help firms navigate those challenges.
Simli holds a Bachelor of Engineering (B.E.) in Computer Science & Engineering from BIT Sindri and a Master of Science (M.S.) in Data Science from Chandigarh University. He has also completed advanced programmes in Business Strategy at XLRI Jamshedpur, along with professional certifications in Information Security, Artificial Intelligence, and Business Intelligence.
