The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) has reported significant financial savings and operational improvements following the implementation of facial recognition technology for recording the attendance of sanitation workers. This innovative system has not only reduced expenditure but also enhanced the accuracy and reliability of attendance tracking.
According to a statement from GHMC, the annual cost of maintaining the attendance system has been reduced from ₹1.93 crore to ₹67 lakh, representing a substantial saving. Additionally, the overall wage bill for sanitation workers has decreased from ₹33.5 crore to ₹31 crore, primarily due to the elimination of fake attendance records. This improvement has enabled better identification of actual staff presence and more effective planning of staff deployment.
The introduction of facial recognition technology has led to a noticeable reduction in the number of workers recorded. Specifically, there are now 33 fewer Sanitary Field Assistants (SFAs), 912 fewer sanitation workers, 25 fewer entomology workers, and 36 fewer veterinary staff. These reductions reflect in the wages payable, highlighting the system’s impact on curbing fraudulent attendance.
Previously, there were serious issues with fake attendance being recorded using silicon fingerprints, and allegations of collusion between Assistant Medical Officers and SFAs to inflate worker attendance figures. Although biometric devices were introduced to improve transparency, they were also circumvented. To address these challenges, GHMC introduced the facial recognition attendance management system on a pilot basis in the Karwan Circle in January this year.
Following the successful pilot, the contract for the system’s full implementation across GHMC was awarded through a competitive bidding process. The live mobile application for facial recognition has been operational since the first week of April in the Sanitation, Entomology, and Veterinary wings of GHMC.
The system works by capturing a live photo of the worker and checking for liveliness in the face to ensure accurate attendance recording. This has made it significantly harder to manipulate attendance records, leading to more precise staff tracking and deployment.
In a recent surprise inspection at Domalguda, officials verified the effectiveness of the facial recognition app in capturing attendance on the field. This initiative demonstrates GHMC’s commitment to leveraging technology to enhance operational efficiency and reduce unnecessary expenditure.
The facial recognition attendance system has proven to be a valuable tool in improving accountability and transparency within GHMC, setting a benchmark for other municipal corporations to follow. With these advancements, GHMC is poised to continue its efforts in enhancing service delivery and financial management.
