NXP Pitching For Indian e-Passport Order

NXP Semiconductors is pitching for a multi-million dollar order from the Indian government to supply chips for electronic passports (e-passport).

"With the government of India deciding to go for e-passports soon, we are looking forward to provide our chips and contactless identification technology to the passport offices across the country," confirmed Ashok Chandak, director, Sales and Marketing, NXP.

The government will undertake a pilot programme this year-end to study the pros and cons of issuing e-passports with security features, including bio-metrics in place of the existing passports in book format.

"An electronic passport, which will be similar to the regular passport, will have an IC (integrated circuit) chip embedded in the back cover. The chip will securely store the same data displayed on the photo page of the passport and will include a digital photograph of the holder for biometric comparison," Chandak pointed out.

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"We command market leadership in supplying ICs for e-passports. Around 85% of the developed countries adopting the electronic format are using NXP chips and identification systems," Chandak added.

Among the countries using NXP chips for e-passports are Austria, France, Germany, New Zealand, Singapore and the US.

IANS