CISF to Link Facial Recognition Data at Major Airports

New Delhi: The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) is planning to create a "data fusion centre" in Delhi that will integrate facial recognition data from across the country's major airports, a top officer said on Monday.

The proposal is currently under consideration by the Ministry of Home Affairs, CISF Director General Praveer Ranjan said.

He was speaking at an event in the national capital, where Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay Kumar laid the foundation for a new headquarters building of the paramilitary force.

"A data fusion centre is proposed for creation in Delhi under which the facial recognition systems of major airports are planned to be linked. This proposal is under consideration of the home ministry. In the coming days, we plan to integrate about 1.5 lakh CCTVs installed in units under CISF security cover," he said.

The CISF director general also said the force is creating an integrated command and control centre at "vital" installations under its security cover.

The CISF has a total of 359 units under its security umbrella, including aerospace, nuclear and power plants, and 73 civil airports.

Ranjan said the force was recently mandated to provide security to the country's major and non-major seaports, and for this, they have prepared a proposal to raise three new battalions.

It is currently guarding 12 major seaports. India has a total of 250 such ports.

"We have also prepared a Standard Operating Procedure and template for a hybrid model of security in various establishments, which has been shared with stakeholders," the CISF director general said.

Under the hybrid model of security, CISF personnel render core security functions, while the non-core duties are undertaken by CISF-trained personnel called Private Security Assistants (PSA).

The CISF has trained about 2,500 PSAs so far, in addition to personnel from various state police forces, for duties such as airport and industrial security.

An official said the new nine-storey building, for which the foundation was laid on Monday, will be constructed on a 0.66-acre plot of land in the CGO Complex on Lodhi Road near the force's current headquarters. It will cost Rs 75.78 crore and is expected to be completed by May 2028.

The CISF, which has about 2 lakh personnel, was raised in 1969.