Hi,
Good news is that my father received request for passport -- processing center is Ottawa. This is about a month after medicals were sent, and a week after they showed as received. Phew
A minor thing that bothers me is that on the letter only my father's (principal applicant) UCI and name is mentioned, not my mom's. Although when the letter asks them to submit photos it says for "all dependents". The paragraph on passports does not say anything about dependents. I am assuming that this was just a minor human error, and that the principal applicant's approval automatically implies dependent's approval. Expert members of the group please opine