BENGALURU: Honeywell Automation India Limited has bagged the Rs 496.57 crore ($67M) Bengaluru Safe City project under the Nirbhaya Fund, by the Government of India. An initiative of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the project aims to create a safe, secure and empowering environment for women and girls in public places, to enable them to pursue all opportunities without the threat of gender-based violence or harassment.
Honeywell will create an integrated Command & Control Centre to manage a state-of-the-art video system that features more than 7,000 video cameras at more than 3,000 locations across the city. The video system will provide advanced video analytics, including facial recognition, a ‘Dial 100’ application and drones.
Honeywell will also upgrade the existing Suraksha app of the city police to help improve incident response rate and citizen engagement. The Bengaluru Safe City project will be implemented in phases. Honeywell will operate and maintain the security infrastructure for five years.
“We are honoured to be selected for the Bengaluru Safe City project to address a key concern to improve the safety of its citizens, especially women and girls,” said Ashish Gaikwad, President, Honeywell India, and Managing Director, HONAUT. “For more than 30 years, Honeywell has supported India’s growth with differentiated technologies, working to make our cities safer, smarter and more connected.”
Bengaluru is among eight cities selected for the Safe City project, which involves identification of hotspots for crimes against women, and deployment of infrastructure and technology through awareness programmes. “In India, we have been a strong partner to the Government’s 100 Smart Cities Mission, with focus on people, process and technology.
Our technology-led integrator approach is helping city administrators make informed decisions and improve safety for citizens in near real time. We want to now deliver this for Bengaluru, to turn it into a city that’s safer and more resilient,” said Ashish Modi, President, Honeywell Building Technologies, Asia.
Honeywell has delivered similar projects under the Smart Cities Mission across multiple states, including Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Gujarat.