Latest news with #DIGIPIN
New Indian Express
3 days ago
- Business
- New Indian Express
Unique digital address for every home in India
NEW DELHI: After 53 years since the Department of Posts adopted the IN CODE system, a path-breaking digital initiative has been launched by the department with an aim to further reduce emergency response time and ensure better citizen-centric delivery of public and private services. The Department of Posts has recently launched a digital addressing system based on geographical data. This marks a major upgrade over the present pin code system which is area-specific, as it would be unique for each residence or office. 'The National Addressing Grid or Digital Postal Index Number (DIGIPIN) will speed up service delivery and emergency response,' said a senior official in the department. It has been developed in collaboration with the ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation), Indian Institute of Technology, Hyderabad and NRSC (National Remote Sensing Centre). The DIGIPIN is a 12-digit alphanumeric code. 'In a nutshell, it is a democratisation of the address system with each individual having a unique one. This is an open-source, geo-coded, grid-based digital address system,' the official said, adding, 'We are in the initial stages. As it progresses and becomes popular in future, one can just provide their name and house number with the DIGIPIN and everything could be delivered smoothly.' The new address system uses the latitude and longitude coordinates to fetch a unique DIGIPIN of a certain place and simplifies location mapping, the official added. It was in 1972 that the postal department adopted the PIN CODE system, which serves as the backbone of the Indian postal service. The novel digital initiative marks a modernisation of the address system.
India Today
5 days ago
- Business
- India Today
New DIGIPIN platform coming soon to modernise India's address system
The Department of Posts, Ministry of Communications, has launched two transformative digital platforms: 'Know Your DIGIPIN' and 'Know Your PIN Code', marking a significant step towards the modernisation of India's addressing system and geospatial platforms were launched in alignment with the National Geospatial Policy 2022, which envisions the development of an advanced geospatial infrastructure to support digital governance and public service YOUR DIGIPIN WEB APPLICATIONThe DIGIPIN (Digital Postal Index Number) is an open-source, interoperable, geocoded, grid-based digital address system developed by the Department of Posts in collaboration with IIT Hyderabad and NRSC, ISRO. It is a cornerstone of the Department of Posts' vision to offer Address-as-a-Service (AaaS) — an array of services associated with address data management to support secure and efficient interactions between users, government entities, and private sector 'Know Your DIGIPIN' portal enables users to:Retrieve their DIGIPIN based on precise latitude and longitude coordinates to fetch corresponding DIGIPINs and vice initiative simplifies location mapping, enhances logistics and emergency response, and ensures last-mile delivery, especially in rural and underserved areas. The DIGIPIN system, officially reviewed and adopted by the Thematic Working Group on Address under the National Geospatial Policy 2022, is now available to all Ministries, State Governments, institutions for integration into their workflows, and users for their own DIGIPIN as an additional address attribute enables the leveraging of GIS capabilities, laying the foundation for future GIS-based digitalisation of service delivery across various organisations in a cost-effective manner. DIGIPIN will enhance location accuracy across multiple sectors by providing precise geographic coordinates, ensuring accurate service delivery and reducing emergency response times. A complete repository of the DIGIPIN technical documentation and source code has been made available on GitHub, promoting open collaboration and nationwide adoption.A UNIFIED STEP TOWARDS DIGITAL INDIASpeaking on the occasion, Ms. Vandita Kaul, Secretary, Department of Posts, stated:The launch of these two applications reflects our government's unwavering commitment to digital transformation and precision governance. DIGIPIN, in particular, will redefine how we perceive addresses, ensuring that every citizen, even in the remotest part of the country, is digitally locatable and serviceable. "These applications are a testimony to the Department's continued efforts to modernise infrastructure and meet the evolving expectations of citizens and all other stakeholders'.With this dual launch, the Department of Posts advances its role not just as a postal service provider but as a critical enabler of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for India.
India Today
6 days ago
- Business
- India Today
Soon, every Indian address may get a unique Digital ID
After introducing Aadhaar for identity and UPI for digital payments, the Indian government is now planning a new step – a digital ID for every address. This will help locate homes and places more accurately and quickly, especially while delivering government services or THE IDEA?The Centre wants to bring addresses under India's Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) matrix. Right now, there is no proper system or rule to manage address details in the country. Many companies collect people's address data and may even pass it on without asking. To stop this, the government wants to make sure people's address information is shared only after their clear NOW?With online shopping, courier services, and food deliveries booming, correct address details have become very important. But many Indian addresses are written in unclear or incomplete ways – often using nearby landmarks or non-standard formats. This causes confusion and delays. Studies show such poor address systems cost the country nearly $10–14 billion every year, that's about 0.5% of India's WILL CHANGE? A new framework called the 'Digital Address' system is being prepared. It will have clear standards for writing and sharing addresses safely. It will also allow digital platforms to access addresses in a secure way but only with the person's system is being developed by the Department of Posts and watched closely by the Prime Minister's Office. A draft version of the plan will be shared for public suggestions soon, and a final version is expected by the end of this year. A special law could be passed in the Parliament's winter session to set up a new authority to look after this digital address DIGIPINadvertisementA key part of this new system is the DIGIPIN, i.e., Digital Postal Index Number. Unlike regular postal codes, DIGIPIN will be based on the exact location of a place using map coordinates. It will be a 10-character alphanumeric code that gives the precise position of a house, shop, or is very useful in areas where regular addresses don't work well – like villages, slums, forests, or hilly regions. With DIGIPIN, even a home in a remote area can have a unique digital NEXT?A draft with clear address standards will be shared for public feedback within a week and is likely to be finalised by year-end. Once in place, this system could become as important as Aadhaar or UPI in daily life.
India.com
6 days ago
- Business
- India.com
Govt Launches 2 Digital Platforms To Simplify India's Addressing System- Details Here
New Delhi: In a major push towards modernising India's addressing system, the government on Tuesday rolled out two new digital platforms — 'Know Your DIGIPIN' and 'Know Your PIN Code'. These initiatives aim to make location-based services smarter and more accessible for citizens across the country. These platforms were launched as part of the National Geospatial Policy 2022 and aims to build a modern geospatial system to improve digital governance and make public services easier to access. What is DIGIPIN? The DIGIPIN (Digital Postal Index Number) is a geo-coded, grid-based digital address system that is open-source and interoperable. It was developed by the Department of Posts in collaboration with IIT Hyderabad and NRSC, ISRO. It is a cornerstone of the Department of Posts' vision to offer Address-as-a-Service (AaaS) — an array of services associated with address data management to support secure and efficient interactions between users, government entities, and private sector organisations. The 'Know Your DIGIPIN' portal enables users to retrieve their DIGIPIN based on precise geolocation, and input latitude and longitude coordinates to fetch corresponding DIGIPINs and vice versa. This initiative simplifies location mapping, enhances logistics and emergency response, and ensures last-mile delivery, especially in rural and underserved areas. The DIGIPIN system, officially reviewed and adopted by the Thematic Working Group on Address under the National Geospatial Policy 2022, is now available to all Ministries, State Governments, institutions for integration into their workflows, and users for their own use, said the Department of Posts, Ministry of Communications. Incorporating DIGIPIN as an additional address attribute enables the leveraging of GIS capabilities, laying the foundation for future GIS-based digitalisation of service delivery across various organisations in a cost-effective manner. DIGIPIN will enhance location accuracy across multiple sectors by providing precise geographic coordinates, ensuring accurate service delivery and reducing emergency response times. The six-digit PIN Code system, introduced in 1972, has served as the backbone of India's postal delivery. However, recognising the need to modernise and refine its geographic accuracy, the Department undertook a national geofencing exercise across all postal jurisdictions to geo-reference all the pin code boundaries of the country. Based on this, the Department of Post has now launched the 'Know Your PIN Code' web application which uses GNSS location features to allow users to identify the correct PIN Code based on the location and submit feedback on PIN Code accuracy for continuous refinement of pin code dataset. The geo-fenced PIN Code boundaries dataset has also been uploaded on Open Government Data Platform under the title 'All India PIN Code Boundary geo-json'. With this dual launch, the Department of Posts advances its role not just as a postal service provider but as a critical enabler of Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) for India. (With IANS Inputs)
Time of India
6 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
After UPI & Aadhaar, Centre plans digital IDs for homes, places
New Delhi: After Aadhaar-based digital identification and UPI-based digital payments , the Centre is now set to embark on bringing the 'digital address' into India's Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) matrix. At the centre of the move is recognising " address information management " as "core public infrastructure" which is currently an unregulated space in India, despite increasing digitalisation. The aim is two-fold: One is setting up protocols to ensure citizen consent and secure address sharing across public-private sector digital entities; two is to ensure targeted, last-mile service delivery of government services to the correct address and in the quickest way possible. Steered by the Department of Posts and closely tracked by the Prime Minister's Office, the draft 'digital address' framework, complete with "addressing standards" will be put out for stakeholder discussion within a week and acquire a firm structure by year end, ET has learnt. Already on fast track, a legislative route may also be considered by the winter session of the Parliament to enable the setting up of a digital address-DPI authority/mechanism for implementing the new address ecosystem with a regulatory oversight, it is gathered. Live Events LOCATING AN ADDRESS The 'digital address' move has been triggered due to multiple reasons. The foremost being every other digital entity - from e-commerce to delivery services - seeking and saving users' "address information" and often passing it on to other interested agencies or even monetising it without the knowledge of the user, the Centre has been mulling over the need to enter the scene to ensure protocols are put in place for secure address use, only after consent is taken from the user. A clear, citizen-first protocol is expected to be drawn up for the same, including on sharing data with government entities. Apart from this, there are other concerns owing to the "poor address" system in India. Inconsistent or incomplete address descriptions, relying often on landmarks or in incompatible formats have been often found inadequate for digitalisation and consequent service delivery. Recent studies before the government estimate that incorrect/incomplete address descriptions carry economic costs close to $10-14 billion which is about 0.5% of the GDP. Concerned over the issue, the Centre set up a Thematic Working Group on "addresses" in December 2023 under the National Geospatial Policy to formulate "addressing standards". The revamped Post Office Act of 2023 also paved the way authorising the Centre to prescribe address standards, usage of postcode and so on. DIGIPIN IS THEY KEY A sectoral Group of Secretaries in 2024 identified the Digital Postal Index Number (DIGIPIN) project as a key enabler to "transforming public service delivery". While a regular postal address depends on locality, street, and house numbers, DIGIPIN is a geospatial reference using a 10-character alphanumeric code based on the exact coordinates of a location, with reference to an all-India grid. The DIGIPIN, therefore, can significantly simplify address management by providing "precise location-based identification, especially in areas with unstructured or changing addresses" especially rural regions, forests and so on.
