Photos: Clockwise from top left: 1.  Use of facial recognition for access control at an event in India was pioneered in 2019 at the IoT India Congress organised by IET.
2. Matrix Comsec's  COSEC FR solution for face recognition access control
3. The newly installed gate in Delhi Airport T3 for entry using the face recognition and the DigiYatra app
4.  The Prospekt Mira station of the Moscow Metro has all  turnstilegates equipped.
Facial recognition for  access control is not new. Indeed it was used for the first time in India in 2019 at the IoT India Congress in Bangalore. But its adoption has been slow for public events.  
However enterprises have embraced the technology for controlling access to offices or secure areas-- and Vadodara based Matrix Comsec is a company that has rolled out multiple facial recognition-based solutions.
For the first time on August 15, 2 Indian airports -- Delhi and Bangalore-- launched a face recognition -based app  DigiYatra, allowing passengers to upload their images and pass through airport without  having to show any other credentials.
On October 15  2021, the Moscow Metro  launched what  was claimed as the world’s first fare payment system based on facial recognition technology.The cashless, cardless and phone-less system, called “Face Pay,”  was  fitted at special turnstiles across the Russian capital’s more than 240 metro stations.
To enter the metro, passengers  did not need  to use a card or a smartphone — they  just looked at the camera on the turnstile.. which was good at a time when passengers were worried about corona virus and contact dangers.
The disadvantages cited by users include a small number of turnstiles that accept the Face Pay. That is being corrected.  This week the Moscow Metro launched the first station with all turnstiles accepting the Face Pay.
For a detailed look at facial recognition usage in India see  our lead story today