The Indian government has launched a new digital address system called DIGIPIN that aims to enable the precise identification of locations in the country.
DIGIPIN is expected to streamline services such as last-mile delivery for e-commerce giants like Amazon and Flipkart. It could also aid police, ambulance, and fire services in improving their emergency response times as DIGIPIN claims to offer a level of geographical accuracy that has been lacking in India so far.
“The DIGIPIN will lead to secure and efficient communication between the citizens and government and private entities. It is an open-source, interoperable, geo-coded and grid-based digital address system,” the government said in a press release.
“DIGIPIN simplifies address management by providing precise location-based identification, especially in areas with unstructured or changing addresses. It also helps in areas where no clear address exists, such as rural regions, forests, and oceans,” India Post said in a post on X.
As the government rolls out DIGIPIN nationwide, here is what you need to know about the unique digital ID as well as how you can generate a DIGIPIN for your own home.
What is DIGIPIN?
DIGIPIN is a unique ten-character alphanumeric code that can be generated for any property that is approximately 4 by 4 square meters on Indian land. This means that unique DIGIPINs can be generated for nearly all types of properties including in urban locations and rural areas across different maritime zones. For example, the DIGIPIN for The Indian Express office building in Noida is 39J-53M-TJF9.
The underlying technology of DIGIPIN has been developed by the Department of Posts in collaboration with Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Hyderabad and National Remote Sensing Centre, which works under the aegis of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
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The government has emphasised that DIGIPIN is an open-source, interoperable, and privacy-focused system. Each DIGIPIN is a encoded with the geographic coordinates of that property so it does not store any personal information.
In terms of the accuracy of the DIGIPIN, India Post said that it might come down to the device used to capture the Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) location.
The DIGIPIN will not replace the traditional six-digit PIN system. Instead, it is intended to act as an extra layer of precision built on top of existing postal addresses.
How to check your DIGIPIN?
To find out the DIGIPIN for your home or any other location, follow these steps:
– Go to dac.indiapost.gov.in/mydigipin/home. This is the dedicated ‘Know Your DIGIPIN’ portal launched by the Department of Posts for people to easily generate their unique code.
– Ensure that your web browser has access to your location. If location is turned off, you may need to enable it in the browser settings.
– If a pop-up appears asking for location access, click on Allow.
– Tap ‘I Consent’ if you agree to the terms of the DIGIPIN privacy policy.
– You will be able to see the unique alphanumeric code at the bottom right corner of the screen.
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You can also find out the DIGIPIN for any other location by entering the geographical coordinates and vice-versa.
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