DigiYatra initiative can ease air travel experience with seamless entry at security checks with your face acting as the sole document, know more about it here
We have been hearing about the massive congestion at Terminal 3 of Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi which has resulted in multiple flyers missing their flights due to increased waiting time at security checks and long queues at entry points. The Ministry of Civil Aviation has come up with the ‘DigiYatra’ initiative to combat the congestion and make travel hassle free for flyers. In this piece, we will tell you everything that you need to know about this digital travel service of the Indian government.
What is DigiYatra?
DigiYatra is a facial recognition technology (FRT) based system to provide seamless travel experience to flyers. In other words, DigiYatra enables air passengers to use their face as the boarding pass and there is no need to carry separate identification cards for travel purposes. The face of an individual is the boarding document, ID proof and vaccine proof while it helps immensely in saving time at the entry points, security checks and boarding of aircraft.
How to use DigiYatra?
DigiYatra app is available on both Android and iOS for flyers. An individual needs to register on the app with Aadhaar-based validation and click a selfie to start using this service. Apart from taking a selfie and validating Aadhar-based login, the passengers also need to enter various other details such as name, email ID, mobile number and details of identity (Voter Id, driving licence, Aadhaar etc). Once the registration is complete, the passenger data is processed automatically on the basis of facial recognition at all checkpoints inside the airport.
How does DigiYatra work at the airport?
Right from the booking of tickets to boarding of aircraft, DigiYatra constantly stays with you. While booking tickets, the individual needs to quote the DigiYatra ID and at the same time, the DigiYatra ID is passed on to the authorities at the departure airport by the airlines. The first time users also need to visit the registration kiosk at the airport for validating their ID. However, the verification is digital in case of Aadhaar but in case, you are using other verification IDs, then it needs to be verified manually by the CISG personnel at duty on the airport.
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Where can DigiYatra service be used?
Currently, the DigiYatra service is available for domestic flyers at three airports in India namely Delhi, Bangalore and Varanasi. The government will extend it to four more airports – Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, and Vijayawada – from March 2023 while implementing it all across the country in a phased-wise manner.
How safe is DigiYatra?
Data privacy is always a concern in this modern era. There have been several instances of data theft and hence people are quite skeptical in sharing their private data online but as per the Indian government, the DigiYatra is fully secured. The biometric details of the passenger are stored on the smartphone itself and it is not shared with any other party or vendor.
Benefits of DigiYatra
There are various advantages of the DigiYatra initiative. First and foremost, it empowers a passenger by eliminating the need of showing boarding pass or ID at multiple checkpoints which subsequently results in lesser waiting time. It also accentuates security as only bonafide passengers are allowed entry through the security checks. The airport authorities too get benefitted from this service as they have access to real-time information of passenger load. Moreover, through this digital service, the airlines are aware about the exact position of a passenger at the airport.
