Delhi Police’s Rs 15.7 Crore Facial Recognition CCTV Tender Flags Surveillance Concerns

Delhi Police Issues ₹15.7-Crore CCTV Tender

Delhi Police has issued a tender worth approximately ₹15.7 crore to procure and install 338 CCTV cameras with facial recognition capabilities across the New Delhi and Central districts. The proposed system includes fixed cameras, pan-tilt-zoom (PTZ) cameras and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras, along with video management software and storage infrastructure.

According to the tender details reported by The Economic Times, the five-year contract covers 248 fixed cameras, 43 PTZ cameras and 47 ANPR cameras. The proposed installation locations include areas around Ramlila Maidan, Turkman Gate, Delhi Gate, Rajghat, India Gate’s C-Hexagon, Mandi House and the Patiala House court complex. <Cite refs={["turn773629search0","turn773629search1"]}/>

The project is intended to strengthen surveillance and security arrangements, including along important routes and in sensitive public areas. However, the proposed use of facial recognition has prompted questions about how people’s images and identifying information will be processed, stored and used.

Internet Freedom Foundation Flags Privacy and Surveillance Gaps

Digital rights organisation Internet Freedom Foundation has raised concerns about the tender’s technical specifications, procurement process and safeguards for the use of facial recognition technology.

Its analysis reportedly identified missing or unclear provisions concerning a standard operating procedure (SOP) for facial recognition, a privacy impact assessment, the database against which faces would be compared and minimum accuracy thresholds for the system.

The organisation also highlighted the absence of clearly defined safeguards for false matches. Facial recognition software can identify a possible match between a camera image and a reference database, but a match is not, by itself, proof of a person’s identity or involvement in wrongdoing.

Without transparent rules governing verification and human review, errors could create risks for people who are incorrectly identified. The concerns therefore extend beyond the installation of cameras to the procedures governing their use by police personnel. <Cite refs={["turn773629search0","turn773629search1"]}/>

Questions Over Data Storage and Retention

The tender reportedly provides for 30 days of video storage but does not clearly specify retention rules for facial templates, facial-recognition match logs and data generated through automatic number plate recognition.

These distinctions matter because a surveillance system can produce more than ordinary video recordings. Facial templates may be used to compare biometric characteristics, while match logs can record when the system flags a possible identity. ANPR systems can capture vehicle registration details and potentially help reconstruct vehicle movements.

Clear retention periods, access controls, deletion procedures and audit mechanisms can help limit the risk of information being kept or used beyond its intended purpose.

The reported gaps have prompted broader questions about what safeguards should accompany the expansion of automated surveillance in public spaces. <Cite refs={["turn773629search0","turn773629search1"]}/>

Police Say the Project Predates Recent Protests

Delhi Police officials have maintained that the procurement is part of a broader modernisation initiative that was conceived around two years ago and is not linked to recent demonstrations in the capital.

According to reports, a proposal to install permanent cameras under the relevant modernisation scheme was considered in March 2025 and approved in September 2025. The tender for 338 cameras across Central and New Delhi was issued on July 30, 2026.

Police officials have also said that the initiative forms part of wider security planning, including arrangements for important routes and high-profile movements. The reported installation window is December 2026 or January 2027, although procurement and implementation details remain subject to the tender process. <Cite refs={["turn773629search0","turn773629search2"]}/>

The police explanation addresses the timing of the project, while the privacy concerns raised by IFF focus on the design and governance of the proposed system. The available reports do not establish that the tender was coordinated with the recent protests.

Camera Locations Draw Attention Amid Debate Over Protest Sites

The proposed camera locations have also drawn scrutiny because some are associated with public gatherings and prominent civic landmarks.

IFF noted that the tender was issued shortly after protests at Jantar Mantar related to the NEET paper-leak controversy concluded. In October, Delhi Police also changed the status of Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site and identified alternative locations, including Ramlila Maidan.

The proximity of these developments has prompted questions about the relationship between surveillance infrastructure and the monitoring of public assemblies. However, IFF has reportedly stated that it found no evidence that the decisions were coordinated. Police, meanwhile, maintain that the camera project originated in an earlier modernisation plan. <Cite refs={["turn773629search0","turn773629search1","turn773629search14"]}/>

The debate highlights the importance of transparent criteria for selecting surveillance locations and explaining how cameras will be used, particularly in places where citizens gather to exercise their right to peaceful assembly.

Tender Documents Also Face Technical Scrutiny

Beyond privacy concerns, IFF has reportedly identified 28 procedural issues in the tender documents. These include inconsistencies in camera quantities, specifications apparently carried over from older tenders, references to outdated independent monitors and inaccurate geographic coordinates for at least one proposed camera location.

Such discrepancies can raise questions about the clarity and reliability of procurement documents. Accurate specifications are important for ensuring that bidders understand the requirements and that the equipment supplied matches the intended system.

The reported concerns do not, by themselves, establish wrongdoing in the procurement process. They do, however, underline the need for clear documentation, technical verification and transparent oversight before a large surveillance system is deployed. <Cite refs={["turn773629search0","turn773629search1"]}/>

Balancing Public Security With Privacy Rights

CCTV cameras and automated identification systems can support public security and investigations, but facial recognition adds an identification capability that ordinary video recording does not necessarily provide.

For that reason, experts and digital rights advocates have called attention to the need for safeguards covering the purpose of surveillance, access to databases, accuracy testing, human verification, data retention and accountability for misuse.

Clear rules can help distinguish legitimate security use from unnecessary or disproportionate monitoring. Publishing operational protocols and providing independent oversight could also help build public confidence in the system.

As the Delhi Police tender moves towards implementation, the central question is not only how many cameras will be installed, but also what legal, technical and procedural protections will govern their use.

Conclusion

Delhi Police’s ₹15.7-crore tender for 338 CCTV cameras with facial recognition technology has brought renewed attention to privacy, surveillance and procurement standards in the capital. Police officials say the project predates recent protests and forms part of a long-term modernisation plan.

However, the Internet Freedom Foundation’s reported concerns about facial-recognition protocols, false-match safeguards, data retention and technical inconsistencies have raised questions about whether the tender adequately addresses the risks associated with automated identification.

With installation expected to begin in late 2026 or early 2027, the tender’s implementation will be closely watched for greater clarity on data protection, accountability and the safeguards that will apply to surveillance in public spaces.