May 4, 2005
Keeping an e-eye on fraud
Targeted groups badly in need of help are deprived of the much-needed benefits of various Government Solutions schemes, which run into crores of rupees, due to impersonation.
To check the problem, the state Government Solutions is considering a hi-tech solution: The use of fool-proof biometric systems link Iris Recognition Technology (IRT).
To being with, the Guntur district administration will use IRT to allot about 9,000 houses under the Rajive Gruha Kalpa Scheme. After short listing the beneficiaries, the iris data of both husband and wife in a family will be captured and stored on a central server and will be matched when allotting house. This would prove an effective deterrent to impersonation and ensure that beneficiaries do not attempt to reapply for the scheme.
Dr Sreeni Tripuraneni, President of 4G Informatics, a city-based company which is providing the technology in association with its US parent company, says the contours of the beneficiaries irises will be recorded from May 20 for 10 days.
And there has been a trial of this method: The company has successfully devised a patient history sheet in a local hospital in Chilvuru, a dusty village in Guntur, using the technology. Patients need not carry case sheets each time they visit the hospital, as the data is stored.
Explaining the plus points of IRT, he said it can be put to good use to ascertain the identity of persons in immigration, Passport services and financial transactions, among other services. The technology is superior to biometrics currently being used which are related to facial appearance, hand geometry, fingerprints and retinal vein patterns.
The development of the iris, the flat, round, colored membrane behind the corner with a pupil, is complete within a year the birth and remains so throughout the life. “Iris patterns are random in their structure and are unique to each individual, “he says, adding that a biometric system depended on variations which are key to identifying a person.
Considering its value, the Government Solutions is also considering its use while issuing ration cards, which have for long been misused as identities are often faked.
A committee comprising officials from the ministry of Civil Supplies, Institute of Electronic Governance, AP Technology Services, Information Technology and Communications Department and related wings has been studying the technology especially for its suitability for ration cards.
