A passenger who was seen shouting in an inebriated state during a journey onboard the Hyderabad metro earlier this month was arrested on Saturday. The accused, Seelam Kanakaraju, was identified with the help of CCTV footage and face recognition technology at Tarnaka metro station.
— MD HMRL (@md_hmrl) September 21, 2019
The incident reportedly took place on September 8 but came to light later that week. The man, seemingly drunk, could be heard using abusive language and dancing to a song while recording himself and swinging around the bars in the train. Kanakaraju is an employee of Container Corporation of India (ICD), Sanatnagar.
Weeks after the incident, on Saturday, when the man came to Tarnaka metro station, the authorities nabbed him and handed him over to the Osmania University police. A complaint has been lodged against him for misbehaviour in the train and creating a nuisance.
NVS Reddy, Managing Director of HMRL, said that the accused who escaped after creating nuisance in inebriated condition was nabbed with the help of the CCTV footage and face recognition technology. Facial recognition system is a technology that identifies or verifies a person from a digital image or video clip. However, it is not clear whether Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL) has the authority to use facial recognition technology in its premises for any purpose.
Remember the guy who created nuisance in a metro train on 8th seemingly in inebriated condition & escaped. He was nabbed today at Tarnaka station with the help of CCTV footage & face recognition technology. Facial recognition system is a technology that identifies or verifies a person from a digital image or video clip. However, it is yet not clear whether Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited (HMRL) has the authority to use facial recognition technology in its premises for any purpose.
— MD HMRL (@md_hmrl) September 21, 2019
Osmania University, Station House Officer (SHO) Rajasheker Reddy said, “Following the complaint that metro staff had lodged he has been arrested and he was asked to appear before Court on Monday."
Facial recognition technology is a much debated and controversial piece of technology. It is currently used at the Hyderabad airport, and on select flights of Bengaluru airport. Reports suggest the the central government willl soon start opening bids to build a centralised system for storing facial recognition data
According to the police, the man has been booked under Section 59 of Metro Rail (O&M) Act, 2002 (for being in an intoxicated state on the metro) and under Section 70 (b) City Police Act (Indecent acts). This is the first time that the HMRL has used face recognition technology to nab an accused.
The video prompted the Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited officials to launch security helplines for the convenience of the passengers.