It’s Republic Day in India, and amid the celebrations the country is also welcoming a visit from US President Barack Obama. And according to an article on India TV’s website, the Indian officials are utilizing an unprecedented level of security for the visit, including biometric technology.For the first time ever, security officials will use face recognition technology to monitor crowds at about 100 different locations around Delhi. The software will be able to scan the faces of all the individuals caught on camera, and will check them against a database of known terrorists and criminals, thereby allowing Indian officials to nab those security threats before any wrongdoing can take place.
The unprecedented security measure is in place not just to protect the foreign dignitaries, but also to ensure the safety of Indian officials who will also be touring the city, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whose administration has been ambitious in advancing the country’s Digital India initiative. That project has seen other applications of biometric technology implemented in recent months, most notably in connection with the Aadhaar national identity card program, an initiative to set up a national biometric registry of all Indian citizens for the purposes of greater government transparency, more effective administration of government services, and ease of access for citizens, among other uses.
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January 26, 2015 – by Alex Perala
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