Mahakumbh 2025 gets a tech makeover: How AI facial recognition takes over security at the mega fair
Mahakumbh 2025: With over 400 million attendees expected at Mahakumbh, AI-powered facial recognition and surveillance systems are revolutionising public safety. These technologies help monitor crowds, identify threats, and track missing persons at the world's largest human gathering.
Mahakumbh 2025: With over 400 million people expected to descend over Prayagraj over 45 days in the ongoing Mahakumbh 2025, ensuring public safety poses a challenge for law enforcement authorities.
The mega event at the Mahakumbh Mela at the Triveni Sangam in Prayagraj, billed as the largest human gathering on earth, began on January 13 inUttar Pradesh’s Prayagraj and concludes on February 26.
The ‘Mahakumbh’ takes place once every 12 years. This year, it is being held over an area of 4,000 hectares.
AI-powered facial recognition
Experts emphasise that Artificial Intelligence (AI)-powered facial recognition and surveillance systems have emerged as game-changing technologies that prevent potential threats during large public gatherings such as Mahakumbh 2025.
These advanced solutions, they said, empower security teams to monitor vast areas, identify anomalies, and respond quickly to thwart risks and untoward incidents. With the ability to analyse live video feeds from surveillance cameras, AI can pinpoint suspicious activities, alert authorities, and even predict crowd behavior patterns to ward off any possible mishap, the experts said.
“With the integration of AI into the public safety system, events of such a mass footfall like Mahakumbh 2025 can be concluded peacefully. The AI-embedded systems can monitor the crowd in real-time by swiftly identifying and resolving potential threats," said Tarun Wig, a leading security expert and co-founder & CEO of Innefu Labs, an Information Security R&D startup based in New Delhi.
"Facial recognition technology plays a significant role in this regard by assisting authorities in identifying missing persons or tracking individuals with criminal backgrounds,” he said.
Law enforcement authorities overseeing the once-in-a-12-year fair have turned to technology to help trace people and manage crowds. “For the first time, we'll use facial recognition and artificial intelligence (AI) to locate lost people,” Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Prayagraj Rajesh Dwivedi was quoted as saying in a Bloomberg report.
While technology may not be foolproof, the goal is to have somewhat-perfect tech, he said. Face-level cameras have been placed strategically to help prevent stampedes, by sending real-time notifications to officials on crowd build-up and sudden mass surges, he said.
AI an enabler
Superintendent of police, in-charge of Integrated Command and Control Centres (ICCCs), Amit Kumar told Times of India that AI was proving to be an enabler in addition to the institutional ground information. Kumar said that AI was helping them bolster not just estimates of visitors but also engage in traffic management and check crime.
Krutrim, a Bengaluru-based startup of Ola's Bhavish Aggarwal, has launched an AI-powered chatbot in 11 Indian languages, according to reports. Google is providing AI maps to help locate emergency assistance facilities, while Walmart-owned PhonePe has introduced affordable insurance for visitors to cover for accidents or emergencies at under ₹99.
“Therefore, once a relative reports a missing person at any of the designated counters, AI tools will be used to generate digital images of the missing individuals, which will then be used to scan the crowds via thousands of cameras,” Dwivedi said.
2,700 AI-enabled cameras
The Uttar Pradesh police has deployed about 40,000 police personnel and cybercrime experts at the fair. Underwater drones capable of diving up to 100 meters, drones reaching heights of 120 meters monitoring crowd movements and 2,700 AI-enabled cameras equipped with facial recognition technology are being used for security purposes.
Some other technologies being used include RFID wristbands (with details such as emergency contacts and medical records) and a mobile app for people to share live locations.
“Moreover, by cross-referencing real-time images with existing databases, facial recognition systems provide law enforcement agencies with actionable insights, which enable authorities to contain the suspicious individuals and foil their plans,” Wig said.
Experts believe that the scalability of AI systems ensures that even gatherings as massive as the Mahakumbh 2025 can be effectively managed without compromising safety. In addition to managing crowds, AI-powered systems leverage Open-Source Intelligence (OSINT) to analyse data from the deep web, dark web, and surface web, providing security agencies with critical insights into emerging threats and criminal activities, they said.
“For instance, Innefu’s Insight, which works on sophisticated algorithms, is quick to identify illicit activities like extremist propaganda by mapping concealed networks and tracking communication patterns across diverse linguistic landscapes. These capabilities enable authorities to preemptively address risks, protect vulnerable communities, and maintain public order at large gatherings,” the Innefu CEO said,
Earlier use
AI has come to use in earlier religious gatherings too. In 2021, for example, millions of devotees thronged the ghats in Uttarakhand's Haridwar to take dips in the Ganges during the Maha Kumbh congregation amid the deadly second COVID-19 wave sweeping the country.
Then, the Uttarakhand police had hired a Noida-based ‘examination security solutions’ firm to manage crowds as videos and pictures of pilgrims, squeezed shoulder-to-shoulder on the river banks jostling for a dip emerged amid social distancing instructions.
Facial Recognition Concerns
With the integration of AI into the public safety system, events of such a mass footfall like Mahakumbh 2025 can be concluded peacefully.
The facial recognition is broadly deployed for three uses. One, to establish an identity. Two, to spot people in crowds and three, to track behaviour. While the technology is being widely used worldwide, it has faced privacy concerns too.
In India too, non-profit organisations like Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF), that defends online freedom, privacy and innovation opposes use of facial recognition by police/security agencies and has even called for a ban on such use.
Key Takeaways
- AI technology enhances public safety measures during large gatherings.
- Facial recognition can effectively identify individuals and track potential threats.
- The integration of technology with traditional security measures helps manage crowds and prevent incidents.
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Business NewsNewsMahakumbh 2025 gets a tech makeover: How AI facial recognition takes over security at the mega fair
First Published:22 Jan 2025, 08:39 AM IST
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