Govt starts talks to furnish digital number to air travellers

The government has started consultations with various stakeholders to furnish a digital identification number to be given to air passengers at the time of booking tickets, Lok Sabha was informed today.
Civil Aviation Minister Ashok Gajapathi Raju said the upgradation of technology for passenger facilitation was a continuous process.
"Various stakeholders' consultations have been conducted and suggestions have been received for air passengers to furnish a digital identification number at the time of purchasing an air ticket to enable seamless air travel," he said during Question Hour.
Raju said discussions are held regularly with diverse stakeholders on the usage of technology for the benefit of passengers and adopting common protocols for data-sharing across airlines, airports, travel agents and others.

The Minister's reply came in response to a question whether the government was planning to make it mandatory for air passengers to furnish a unique identity number at the time of flight booking.
Raju said the civil aviation ministry has constituted three committees, including a technical committee, to implement technology-enabled seamless passenger facilities across airports in India.
"No specific timeline has been fixed because input will be received from the committee periodically regarding appropriate technology standards and inter-operability protocols," he said.