Even as the new parking facilities are poised to be expanded to cities like Mumbai and Bengaluru, experts have raised concerns about the lack of information around how FASTag-related data is governed. We missed this earlier: The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) in a statement last week said that it is in talks with the Maharashtra Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) about launching other FASTag-enabled parking facilities across the country after it inaugurated the first one in Delhi recently. What are FASTags? FASTags are based on a radio-frequency identification (RFID) system and were initially rolled out in 2014 for faster toll payments in the Golden Quadrilateral between Ahmedabad and Mumbai. Through RFID scanners at toll booths, they enable toll deduction through auto-debits from the driver or vehicle owners' bank account. FASTags are prepaid rechargeable tags affixed on the windshield of vehicles and connected to the users' bank account or to an NHAI prepaid wallet to facilitate the quick deduction. In its statement, the NPCI said that it was, "geared to expand the facility in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, and Trivandrum, amongst other cities" and has initiated discussions with public and private entities like malls, hospitals, and private parking lots for implementing the ‘contactless’ parking facility as well. DMRC facility launched amid data concerns Last week, when the first parking facility was launched by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC), Pranesh Prakash from the Centre for Internet and Society in Bengaluru, spoke to MediaNama and expressed concerns about the lack of information around…
