India's largest employer begins deployment of offline facial verification and tamper-proof blockchain records across its 1.2 million-strong workforce, building on technology that cut ghost employee fraud by 90% in prior government deployments 5th May 2026 - Indian Railways has commenced the implementation of DRISHTI, an AI and blockchain-powered Smart Workforce Management System that uses facial recognition and tamper-proof digital records to verify worker attendance and prevent fraud, being rolled out across the railway network, beginning with operations in Prayagraj. The system, developed by ChainCode Consulting LLP in collaboration with Billions Network, the universal human and AI verification platform, and Aptos Foundation, can verify entire teams from a single group photograph, works without internet connectivity, and creates permanent, tamper-proof records of every attendance event. It is designed for both field and office personnel across Indian Railways' operations. Indian Railways is one of the world's largest employers, with more than 1.2 million personnel operating across 7,300 stations and 18 zones. The rollout begins in Prayagraj, with completion of the initial regional deployment expected within three months and expansion across the wider network to follow. Where previous government deployments of the same technology, eliminated ghost employee fraud by up to 90%, reduced payroll costs by 30-40%, and halved payment delays, the Indian Railways implementation brings those proven standards to a new, high-profile use case with the potential to set a global precedent for workforce governance at scale. Managing attendance verification across a workforce this large and geographically spread has historically been vulnerable to ghost employee fraud and administrative inefficiencies, challenges that DRISHTI is designed to address directly. The system works offline, a critical requirement for railway operations in remote and rural areas where internet connectivity is unreliable. It can identify multiple workers simultaneously from a single photograph and locks every record on the Aptos blockchain, making it impossible to alter after the fact. The platform also handles supervisor approvals, real-time reporting dashboards, task allocation, and leave management. "AI-driven smart solutions with blockchain security are key to good governance. By combining facial recognition with blockchain's permanent, traceable records, we eliminate major security risks and give organizations greater control over workforce data integrity," said Alok Gupta, Founder and CEO, ChainCode Consulting LLP. ChainCode Consulting has previously pioneered blockchain-based attendance and identity platforms for different India's Government Bodies and contributed digital verification infrastructure for MahaKumbh 2025, one of the world's largest gatherings. "Every worker in a system this vast deserves to be accurately identified and fairly compensated without that requiring handing over sensitive personal data. That's the problem we're solving: identity verification that works for people. What India is building here shows how the world's largest institutions can operate with both accountability and dignity," said Evin McMullen, CEO and Co-Founder of Billions Network. Billions provides the decentralized identity and reusable identity infrastructure underpinning DRISHTI, building on the company's proven track record in high-stakes verification, including joint proofs-of-concept with Deutsche Bank and HSBC for advanced KYC solutions. Ashwin Pampati, SVP and Head of Ecosystem at Aptos Foundation, added: “Reliable, high-performance blockchain infrastructure is essential for nation-scale public-sector systems like DRISHTI, where data integrity, security and auditability are non-negotiable. Aptos provides a strong blockchain foundation that supports exactly these requirements.” About Billions Billions.Network (formerly Polygon ID) is the leading human and AI verification platform, built on mobile-first verification to scale the internet of value globally. Created by the stewards of the world's leading zero-knowledge verification framework, Circom, Billions secures the work of major organizations and blockchain ecosystems serving over 150 million users globally. The platform provides privacy-preserving digital identity solutions that work across both Web2 and Web3 applications. For more information, visit https://billions.network. About ChainCode Consulting LLP ChainCode Consulting is a blockchain and AI technology firm specializing in enterprise-grade decentralized solutions for government and private sector clients. Founded in 2019, the company delivers secure, scalable identity verification, supply chain traceability, and blockchain infrastructure across industries including healthcare, financial services, and public administration. ChainCode has been recognized among Bangalore's Top 50 FinTech Companies and received the Blockchain Leader of the Year award at SmartTech Asia Innovation Awards 2025. For more information, visit https://www.chaincodeconsulting.com/. About Indian Railways Indian Railways is a statutory body under the Ministry of Railways, Government of India, and operates the country's national railway system. With more than 1.2 million employees, it is the world's ninth-largest employer and India's second-largest employer. For more information, visit https://indianrailways.gov.in. About Aptos Aptos is a Layer-1 blockchain designed for scalability, security, and sub-second transaction finality. Founded in 2021 by Avery Ching and Mo Shaikh, former leaders of Meta's Diem blockchain initiative, Aptos is built on the Move programming language, developed for secure smart contract execution. The network has processed over 4.4 billion transactions and has established strategic partnerships with BlackRock, Google, Mastercard, and Franklin Templeton. For more information, visit https://aptosnetwork.com/ (Disclaimer: The above press release comes to you under an arrangement with NRDPL and PTI takes no editorial responsibility for the same.). PTI PWR

AI and blockchain workforce verification strengthens attendance integrity, reduces ghost employee fraud, and supports offline public-sector operations. Indian Railways has begun deploying DRISHTI, an AI- and blockchain-enabled smart workforce management system, to verify employee attendance through facial recognition and tamper-proof digital records. The system operates offline, can verify multiple workers from a single group photograph, and is intended for both field and office personnel. It creates permanent, unalterable attendance records while also supporting supervisor approvals, real-time reporting dashboards, task allocation, and leave management.