Why in the news?
The Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, launched Abhigyan, a mobile application developed by the National Crime Records Bureau that enables police personnel to identify suspects through portable fingerprint scanning linked to the national fingerprint database.
Abhigyan App
- Enables police officers to capture fingerprints using portable scanners and smartphones.
- Connected to the National Automated Fingerprint Identification System (NAFIS).
- Can match fingerprints with national records in about 35 seconds.
- Features:
- Real-time identification
- Mobile access to criminal records
- Two-factor authentication
- Field-level policing support
National Automated Fingerprint Identification System (NAFIS)
- Launched in 2022 by NCRB.
- A centralized biometric database of Criminal suspects, Arrested persons, Convicts, and Prison inmates
- Contains over 1.3 crore fingerprint records.
- Facilitates nationwide sharing and matching of fingerprint data.
Legal Basis
- Based on the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Act, 2022.
- Authorizes collection of biometric measurements including Fingerprints, Palm prints, Iris and retina scans, Photographs, and Biological samples
Significance
- Faster identification of repeat offenders and absconders.
- Strengthens inter-state criminal tracking.
- Supports crime investigation and law enforcement.
- Raises concerns regarding Privacy, Data protection, and Scope of biometric collection from individuals not formally accused.
Criminal Procedure (Identification) Act, 2022
- Replaced the Identification of Prisoners Act, 1920.
- Expands the categories of persons whose biometric data can be collected.
- NCRB is designated as the central repository of records.
- Data may generally be retained for 75 years, subject to prescribed conditions.
[2018] In addition to fingerprint scanning, which of the following can be used in the biometric identification of a person?
1. Iris scanning
2. Retinal scanning
3. Voice recognition
Select the correct answer using the code given below.
[A] 1 only
[B] 2 and 3 only
[C] 1 and 3 only
[D] 1, 2 and 3