News Excerpt:
Recently Digi Yatra service was started at Chennai Airport Domestic terminals.
More About the News: Digi Yatra may soon extend to hotels, rail travel, and other public places like historical monuments.
What is Digi Yatra
- It is a facial-recognition technology used for seamless check-ins at various public places.
- It uses biometric data, like facial scans, instead of boarding passes, enabling paperless movement through various airport checkpoints.
Objective of Digi Yatra
- The primary objective of Digi Yatra, as outlined in its 2017 policy document, is to improve passenger throughput at airports, enhancing infrastructure efficiency to accommodate increasing passenger volumes.
- The potential extension of Digi Yatra’s use to hotels and other public places indicates a broader scope beyond air travel.
Expansion of Digi Yatra
- Launched in December 2022, the initiative currently covers 14 airports, with plans to include 15 more by the end of 2024.
- The expansion would significantly improve the travel experience for tourists who need to present their passports for hotel check-ins and police verifications. For example, visitors to the Taj Mahal could benefit from this technology.
- The CEO of Digi Yatra Foundation revealed that discussions with various government agencies, including the Ministry of Tourism, are underway to expand this service.
Obligation on Foreign Tourist
- Currently, nationals from certain countries, such as Pakistan, must report their arrival and departure within 24 hours at the nearest police station.
- Tourists from other countries with visas exceeding 180 days are required to register with the Foreign Regional Registration Office (FRRO).
Preventing Data Leakage
- Extending Digi Yatra to hotels and public places would enhance data security.
- Unlike traditional identity verification methods that often involve sharing unencrypted documents, Digi Yatra IDs do not contain personally identifiable information.
- The system only retains a hash value or numerical identifier, ensuring that personal data such as name, Aadhaar number, face scan, and passport number cannot be leaked.
Privacy Concerns and Revised Policies
- Addressing privacy concerns, a revised policy document would soon be released to clarify issues regarding third-party vendor data access and conditions under which the mandatory data purge within 24 hours might be exempted.
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Digi Yatra Foundation
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