Mumbai: Central Railway to install cameras with face recognition system across 364 stations

In a release on Tuesday, the Central Railway announced that up to 6122 closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras, including 3650 with facial recognition technology, would be deployed at 364 railway stations.

The Railway Board has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with RailTel in this regard, it said. Central Railway stations, including all stations on the Mumbai Suburban Network, will soon be equipped with face recognition cameras, a technology that will help apprehend wanted criminals and manage crowded areas, the release stated.

However, several stations, including the Lokmanya Tilak Terminus, Dadar, Kurla, Thane, and Kalyan, won't be covered because they already have Integrated Security Systems (ISS). Cameras with face recognition systems, video analytics, video management system will enhance passenger safety, control crime, deter law abusers and monitor compliance with railway rules, the release said, adding that these cameras represent a significant step towards "comprehensive surveillance.

These cameras can recognize a person whose face is stored in the database, instantly alerting the administration to the presence of known criminals as they enter a station, the release said, adding that they can identify various parts of a face, such as retina or forehead. Each HD camera consumes approximately 750 GB data, while 4K cameras consume 3TB of data per month. The video footage will be stored for 30 days for post-event analysis, playback and investigation purposes, although important videos can be stored for a longer duration, the release said.