Air travellers from December 1 have been given the facility to enter terminal buildings and board a flight without any physical identity proof. All thanks to the government’s DigiYatra initiative which ensures the entry of flyers using facial recognition at the airport.
The initiative rolled out at three airports earlier this month – Delhi, Bengaluru, and Varanasi – will be introduced at seven airports in the first phase. The next four airports to get the facility by March 2023 are Hyderabad, Kolkata, Pune, and Vijayawada.
A facility like this could come as a major relief at times like these when the Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi is facing congestion as scores of people have taken to flying ahead of the holiday season. Jet Airways CEO Sanjiv Kapoor on Sunday tried DigiYatra for the first time and shared his review with followers on Sunday.
Calling it “a huge boon for travellers”, Kapoor listed how the service worked and what were the difficulties he faced.
Here’s Jet Airways CEO Sanjiv Kapoor’s review of DigiYatra:
– Instructions on how to set-up the DigiYatra app could be a little clearer. Kapoor noted that Digilocker needs to be set up first to make the DigiYatra prices more seamless. The passenger’s ID is stored in Digilocker and accessed by DigiYatra from there.
– The Boarding Pass upload process was not stable. PDF BPs were not working, though there is an option for that. It accepted my JPEG BP (QR code must be clear) in my app, but not my wife’s. She had to use the “scan BP” option and scan from an image of her BP on my phone.
– However, initially our BP QR codes were giving an error. Then the staff pointed out we had to hit the “share” option on the DigiYatra app for the BP to be uploaded. This was not clear in the instructions. Once we did that, it scanned and face ID worked perfectly.
– The dedicated DigiYatra lane at Delhi Airport’s T3 was operational and staffed. Lots of envious looks from other passengers in the regular line. Staff was very helpful, the Jet Airways CEO shared.
– Dedicated DigiYatra lane at the Delhi Airport was open and working. The face ID worked instantly and perfectly, no need to scan BP again.
The DigiYatra lane opens into the belt closest to the Business Class belt. Shared belt with other passengers.
– The x-ray scanning area was backed up as usual, with half the lanes closed off. However today I saw fewer bags being sent to secondary, which is good.
Overall, Kapoor’s DigiYatra experience seemed splendid as he gave it a rating of 9/10. “Once a few UI issues and kinks are worked out, it will be a huge boon for travellers,” the aviation veteran noted.
Several users too praised the government’s initiative for the seamless experience.
Note that the DigiYatra service is currently available only at Domestic Departure Gate 2A, Terminal 3, according to the Delhi Airport website.
Here’s how to enroll on the DigiYatra App:
Step 1: Download the app from Google or Apple Play Store and register using your mobile number and OTP.
Step 2: Link your identity credentials using DigiLocker or Offline Aadhaar. (Linking COWIN is optional).
Step 3: Take a selfie when prompted and upload onto the app.
Step 4: Update your Boarding Pass on the app and share with the departure airport.
