Biometric-based immigration at Indian airports soon

New Delhi: In a relief to international air travellers, the Union government is working to speed up immigration processes at airports by introducing biometric-based immigration and e-gates.

Union aviation minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Friday met officials from airport operators, CISF and Bureau of Immigration (BoI) to "discuss possible changes in airport interior design, as well as new technologies to expedite immigration and security check processes for international travelers," a government statement said.

Speeding up these processes, especially immigration, and bring them in line with best global practices is key to having international hubs in India, the statement said. While Delhi's IGIA is set to be India's first true global hub and will see the changes soon, the Mumbai and Bengaluru airports will also trial biometric-based immigration.

Chairing an advisory committee group meeting with airport operators, CISF and BOI officials, Scindia "delved into solutions derived from studying international airport models such as those of Singapore and Canada."

A number of plans are being explored for each passenger interface to speed up things.

Exploring the possibility of cross-utilising domestic and international XBIS machines at Delhi airport to ensure greater availability of machines, and hence, lesser wait time," the statement said.

Deployment of new technologies: "Proof of concept trials for use of e-gates and e-biometrics for immigration are already underway. These are set to redefine the standards of efficiency and security in air travel," it said.

Increasing Manpower: "A thorough analysis has been undertaken with regard to manpower requirement of CISF and Immigration officers. This analysis takes into account the planned expansion of existing, as well as new airports to come across the country, including those in Jewar, Navi Mumbai, and others," the statement added.

“We are currently discussing the design models to speed up immigration and security for international travelers. New technologies such as e-biometrics are also on the anvil and are currently being tested. These will be key in our vision for international aviation hubs in India,” Scindia said.

He emphasised government's commitment for embracing innovation and leveraging technology to transform India's civil aviation landscape to create multiple aviation hubs in the country.