Delhi, Varanasi and Bengaluru airports got the new Digiyatra which enables paperless travel where the technology used is biometric facial recognition thus allowing passengers for hassle-free travel.
The facial scan allows passengers to identify their identity and with this, there is no need to show any physical ID proof where the travel details will be captured through this technology.
As per the news reports, during the first phase, 7 airports will be DY-enabled starting with Delhi, Bengaluru and Varanasi, whereas by March 2023, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune and Vijayawada airports will also get this facility.
Union Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia said that the project allows travellers to pass through various checkpoints through a paperless and contactless process using facial features to establish their identity which could be linked to their boarding pass.
To use this facility, one-time registration on DY App is required using Aadhaar-based validation and a self-image capture. The project has tremendous advantages of improving passenger convenience and ease of travel, he added.
He also informed that there is no central storage of ‘personally identifiable information (PII) keeping in mind privacy (issues). Passenger’s ID and travel credentials are stored in a secure wallet in the passenger’s smartphone itself, while the uploaded data will utilise blockchain technology and all the data will be purged from the servers within 24 hours of use, he stated.
This latest development will enable airports in India to join the ranks of world-class airports like London Heathrow and Atlanta that use biometric identification.