7 Indian railway stations to install AI-based facial recognition systems
What's the story
The Union government has announced its plan to install Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based facial recognition systems at seven major railway stations in India. The move aims to enhance security for women and aligns with concerns raised in a public interest litigation (PIL) by the Supreme Court Women Lawyers' Association, which highlighted the rising crimes against women. The stations include Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CST) and New Delhi.
Database expansion
National database on sexual offenders has over 20 lakh entries
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) revealed in an affidavit that the National Database on Sexual Offenders (NDSO) has crossed over 20 lakh entries. This database, accessible to all police stations through the Inter-Operable Criminal Justice System (ICJS), contains comprehensive details about sexual offenders such as their names, addresses, photographs, and fingerprints. The entries include information about crimes like rape, gangrape, stalking, and eve-teasing.
Security measures
IERMS in place at 499 stations
The MHA also said that the Integrated Emergency Response Management System (IERMS) is already in place at 499 out of 983 major railway stations, providing round-the-clock security for women passengers. The Konkan Railway Network has installed 740 CCTV cameras across 67 stations and plans to expand AI-based surveillance further. This is part of a larger effort to improve safety in high-risk zones using technology such as facial recognition, automatic number plate recognition, and drones.
Ongoing issues
Women Lawyers' Association raises concerns over effectiveness of measures
Despite these measures, the Women Lawyers' Association has raised concerns over their effectiveness. They cited National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data showing that crimes against women increased from 58.8 per lakh in 2018 to 66.4 per lakh in 2022. The association also expressed skepticism about existing tech-driven initiatives like the Crime and Criminal Tracking Network and Systems (CCTNS) and the Indian Cyber Crime Coordination Centre (I4C).