News Releases

Indian Government Speeds Program Registrations Using
Cross Match Livescan System

Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. August 3, 2010 – Cross Match Technologies, Inc., a global provider of biometric identity solutions, along with technology partner Smart ID, is working with the Indian government to help register rural residents, such as those in Bihar, for a national guaranteed employment program (NREGA).

NREGA provides an opportunity for adult members of rural households to obtain 100 days of public work-based employment annually. The implementation and management of the program is handled by BeST, a joint venture company between Beltron (Bihar State Electronics Development Corporation) and IL&FS.

To enroll Bihar’s citizens into the NREGA program, Beltron selected Cross Match’s Guardian applicant livescan and fingerprint enrollment systems. The Guardian devices are in use throughout remote locations in Bihar, capturing citizens’ fingerprint images as 25 million residents register for the rural employment guarantee program. “We are working with Smart ID on this project, where upon completing the biometric registration process, residents’ identities can be easily verified when applying for jobs through the NREGA program,” explains Bill Dumont, Senior Vice President of Worldwide Sales and Marketing at Cross Match.

Using Guardian, Smart ID has been able to easily capture forensic-quality images, despite harsh environmental conditions. “Bihar is flood prone and experiences heavy rainfall annually and very extreme temperatures,” states Nirmal Prakash, Managing Director at Smart ID. “We have experienced temperatures in excess of 113 degrees Fahrenheit (45° C) and Guardian has operated flawlessly.”

Dr. Dinesh K. Tyagi, CEO (CSC), IL&FS adds: “Guardian systems are so easy to use that operators were trained in 3 working days and are able to enroll 10,000 citizens per day. To date, the government has collected 1.35 million records in the Patna District. We are encouraged by the success of the Bihar pilot and look forward to working with Cross Match on other identity management projects.” 

About Cross Match Technologies
Cross Match Technologies, Inc. is a leading provider of biometric identity management systems, applications and enabling technologies to governments, law enforcement agencies and businesses around the world. These solutions are used to capture and process the unique physical characteristics of individuals to establish and verify their identities. Offerings include multiple biometric technologies capable of wireless, mobile or stationary use that encompass fingerprint, palm and full-hand scanners, facial capture systems, iris scanning technology, document readers, biometric software, and related services. For more information, visit www.crossmatch.com.

Company Contact:
John B. Hinmon
VP, Global Marketing
(561) 493 7401 Office
(561) 346 5862 Mobile
john.hinmon@crossmatch.com