The Ministry of Civil Aviation used 21 February 2026 to mark the second major expansion of DigiYatra, India’s voluntary facial-recognition boarding system, since its national launch just over three years ago. At simultaneous ceremonies, New Delhi officials virtually switched on DigiYatra e-gates at Navi Mumbai, Bhubaneswar, Coimbatore, Indore, Ranchi and Surat. The addition of these tier-2 and tier-3 business cities raises the number of DigiYatra-enabled airports to 13 and brings the technology within reach of an estimated 47 million additional passengers a year. DigiYatra allows enrolled travellers to create a secure, one-time token by uploading their selfie and boarding pass in the mobile app. At the airport, dedicated e-gates match the live facial image with the encrypted token, automating entry to the terminal, security hold and aircraft gate without a paper boarding pass or physical ID check. The Civil Aviation Ministry claims the process cuts average dwell time at the first checkpoint from four minutes to 45 seconds, a saving welcomed by frequent flyers and corporate travel managers alike. For India’s fast-growing tier-2 corporate hubs—Indore’s pharmaceuticals corridor, Bhubaneswar’s IT services parks and Navi Mumbai’s container-port zone—the upgrade promises smoother commuter air shuttles and reduced queuing at peak hours. Airports have also been instructed to introduce shorter, dedicated drop-off lanes and DigiYatra help desks for first-time users, addressing pain points highlighted during the December 2025 pilot at Chennai. From a data-privacy perspective, officials reiterated that passengers’ biometric templates remain on their own devices and are shared only with the airport of departure for 24 hours before auto-deletion. The government says foreign passengers will be able to enrol "later in 2026" once an upgraded app accepts international passports.
![India rolls out DigiYatra biometric boarding at six more airports, taking the programme nationwide to 13 hubs]()
For international travelers who may still need to secure or renew an Indian visa before taking advantage of DigiYatra’s seamless airport experience, VisaHQ offers an easy online solution. Through its portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/), individuals and corporate travel managers can complete visa applications, monitor processing in real time, and receive timely updates on any regulatory changes—making trip preparation as friction-free as the e-gate boarding process itself.
Corporate mobility teams should now update India travel playbooks: encourage employees to download the latest DigiYatra app (v3.4, released 18 February 2026), complete profile creation before arrival, and carry a physical ID as a contingency. Travel risk managers should also note that DigiYatra lanes may close temporarily if a flight experiences last-minute gate changes, so buffer time remains advisable until operational teething issues settle.
For international travelers who may still need to secure or renew an Indian visa before taking advantage of DigiYatra’s seamless airport experience, VisaHQ offers an easy online solution. Through its portal (https://www.visahq.com/india/), individuals and corporate travel managers can complete visa applications, monitor processing in real time, and receive timely updates on any regulatory changes—making trip preparation as friction-free as the e-gate boarding process itself.
Corporate mobility teams should now update India travel playbooks: encourage employees to download the latest DigiYatra app (v3.4, released 18 February 2026), complete profile creation before arrival, and carry a physical ID as a contingency. Travel risk managers should also note that DigiYatra lanes may close temporarily if a flight experiences last-minute gate changes, so buffer time remains advisable until operational teething issues settle.
