India govt blocks plans to procure facial recognition, drones to monitor election

A request by the government of India’s National Informatics Centre (NIC) to acquire surveillance technology including drones and biometrics for election security has been blocked by the Election Commission, Times of India reports.

The NIC was officially looking for partners in election surveillance. Medianama reports that a tender issued in December seeks a vendor for “procurement and deployment of surveillance equipment including drones and facial recognition systems for monitoring election processes during state and central elections.” The proposed tender …

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