Tirupati: The Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD), the official custodian of the famous Venkateswara temple here, is exploring the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and facial recognition technology to enhance the pilgrimage experience, said an official on Thursday.
TTD executive officer (EO) J Syamala Rao said the temple body will employ these technologies to authenticate genuine pilgrims for ensuring a smooth darshan (visit to deity), prevent impersonation and fraudulent activities and ease accommodation, access control and other operations.
“TTD envisioned adopting the latest technological solutions available in the market, including Artificial Intelligence to improve the overall pilgrimage,” said Rao in a press release.
EO Rao said that to implement these initiatives, pilgrims will be provided with time-slotted darshan tokens, which will capture their face’s features using facial recognition technology, news agency PTI reported.
Once a pilgrim’s image is captured, it will be cross-checked with the past 30 days’ data or with about 10 lakh images to eliminate any duplicate bookings, thereby making space for more devotees.
This will make the token issuing and verification process quick and hassle-free, while simultaneously preventing impersonation and fraudulent activities.
AI and facial recognition technology are also used to track the number of pilgrims at various spots across the premises, such as devotees’ queue, compartments and inside the Tirumala temple, among others.
TTD’s EO said that the installation of AI-powered facial recognition cameras are expected to power this range of facial detection.
“This solution leverages TTD management to exactly assess the probable darshan time expected for the pilgrims who are waiting and also can assess the darshan time for pilgrims joining queue lines,” he added.
Such technology will also enable the temple body to notify pilgrims about their expected time of darshan so that they can plan their pilgrimages accordingly.
This technology will be installed across the darshan paths in the temple, helping TTD to estimate the time taken to complete the darshan under various categories. The temple trust will also be able to bridge the gaps in the operations.
AI and facial recognition cameras will reportedly be useful for tracking and identifying intruders across Tirumala at their exact locations.
Subsequently, EO Rao said, this facial recognition technology will be extended to all possible TTD services.
The TTD trust board on Wednesday also approved the implementation of anti-drone technology around the Tirumala temple to tighten security measures.
The board meeting, which took place the day before at Annamaiah Bhavan, decided to increase the green cover on Tirumala Hills, develop the temple development master plan, rename the guest houses in Tirumala, and license canteens. The board also decided on developing the Akash Ganga and Papavinasam areas, supporting SVIMS superspeciality hospital, and establishing a transfer and retirement policy for non-Hindu employees.
