AI startup Staqu to help Punjab police issue e-passes for essential delivery services

Gurugram-based artificial intelligence startup Staqu Technologies has partnered with the Punjab police to ease the application and approval process of curfew passes, which must be carried by those delivering essential goods during the Covid-19 lockdown.

One must fill an online form available on the Punjab police website, attach relevant documents such as identity proof and submit the form, a statement said. The applications will then be assessed and approved by the Punjab police, it said. Once approved, the applicants will get an e-pass on their phone, it added.

The e-passes are accessible with a QR code, and are colour-coded and letter-coded to enable easier identification and maintain social distancing, the statement added.

“These passes are integral and will assist everybody -- from a doctor to the people who are delivering groceries at people’s doorsteps. Working with startups like Staqu, we have also added QR code technology on the passes to ease the download and verification process. All applications will go to the district headquarters of the areas applied in rather than the central head office to ensure quickness in approvals,” Dinkar Gupta, director general of the Punjab police, said.

During the 21-day lockdown, only personnel engaged with the essential services and movement of essential goods are allowed to travel. This includes medical professionals, delivery personnel and bank employees. 

Read: Coronavirus India LIVE Updates

Last week, the company said it rolled out an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven thermal camera to detect high body temperature. The cameras have been installed at various hotspots and provide first-level, contactless screening of the crowd, it said. Information on possible Covid-19 positive cases are passed on to the authorities, it added. 

Founded in 2015 by Atul Rai, Anurag Saini, Chetan Rexwal and Pankaj Sharma, Staqu provides big data analytics and security solutions, and works with both government and private entities. 

In 2018, it developed an AI-based app Trinetra to assist the Uttar Pradesh police department. The app digitises criminal records using AI and helps the police at ground zero with real-time information retrieval during investigations, along with regular checks and verifications at police checkpoints.

The company last raised funding in 2016 from Indian Angel Network (IAN). It was also among the top four startups selected for the IBM Global Entrepreneur Programme as part of their Smart Camp challenge.