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IT firms vie for developing biometric PAN cards
By siliconindia
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Monday, 13 April 2009, 15:59 IST |
3 Comments
Mumbai: Biometric permanent account number (PAN) cards, which capture fingerprints and facial features, will be available for tax payers within the next few months. Around seven IT firms are vying to develop the cards and the infrastructure that can handle 12 million new users annually.
The introduction of the biometric cards has been in discussion since last three years and the final decision of the finance ministry has unveiled opportunity for many players, including Infosys, HCL, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) and its subsidiary CMC. Others shortlisted for the request-for-proposal (RFP) stage include Electronics Corporation of India (ECIL), ITI and Bharat Electronics (BEL), reports Business Standard. A number of firms have also have negotiated tie-ups with other service providers.
The initiative comes in the wake of the government is also working on a project for a national identity card, on the lines of the U.S. social security number, and has already allocated Rs 100 crore for it. It is also to ensure that an individual does not have more than one PAN. According to documents made available to the bidders, the government intends to capture fingerprints of four fingers of an individual - two from each hand - and the facial image, with the eyes clearly visible. Along with the card, there are plans to spruce up the PAN issuance infrastructure. Bidders have been asked to ensure that they set up points of service for 10 hours a day, six days a week. A mobile facility that ensures doorstep service has also been planned, officials said. A call centre that works for at least 10 hours a day, six days a week, along with a national helpline number and an online facility have also been proposed. The proposed system is being designed to handle 70 million PAN records and handle 100,000 applications a day. There is, however, no clarity on who would bear the cost of the card, which at present costs Rs 67.
