A recent launching event of a biometric iris scanning facility for pension distribution in Andra Pradesh, India, saw Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu demonstrating the IriShield USB MK120U from IriTech.
Manufactured by IriTech, which is based in the United States, and made available in Andra Pradesh through the company’s Indian partner Biometronic Technology, the IriShield USB MK120U device is the first iris biometrics solution to be STQC certified for the Aadhaar national ID program.
According to Biometronic Technology director Binod E. Mathai, Andra Pradesh will be using iris biometrics as a primary authentication method to issue Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT).
Mathai says, “The state’s decision to use iris technology as a primary method to issue Aadhaar verified DBT will address concerns of total inclusiveness of its residence as well as providing a more accurate and a hygiene solution.”
“We are very proud and excited to be part of the implementation of iris technology on the national level,” says IriTech founder and CEO Daniel Daehoon Kim. “IriTech’s success in the Indian market is something we take with great pride. We are absolutely delighted to bring the world’s leading iris recognition technology to India and hope over time to demonstrate the value and versatility this technology offers.”
Iris recognition is a highly accurate, hygienic and convenient biometric modality, and the state’s embracing it for pension distribution is illustrative of the technology’s increasing accessibility. In a press release, IriTech notes that former UIDAI chairman Nandan Nilekani (who is also the co-founder of Infosys) asserted in February that iris biometrics will soon make the jump to commercial smartphones. Indeed, just last week at Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, Fujitsu demonstrated iris recognition on a smartphone.
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March 10, 2015 – by Peter B. Counter
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