Maharashtra, IIT Bombay Plans AI-Based Language Tool To Flag Suspected Bangladeshi Nationals

The Maharashtra government, in partnership with IIT Bombay, is working on an AI-powered language verification system that will be able to assess speech patterns, tone, and usage in order to identify suspected illegal Bangladeshi nationals and Rohingyas in the state.

The device, which is being developed by the state’s information technology department under a ₹3-crore project, is expected to help law enforcement agencies during the initial stage of identification. “It will act as an initial screening process, after which the police will conduct a detailed check of nationality through documents,” an official said.

As per the Hindustan Times report, while releasing the Mahayuti manifesto on January 11, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said, “We’ll free Mumbai from Bangladeshis. We’ve deported the highest so far. With AI, we’ll identify and deport 100% Bangladeshis.”

West Bengal and Bangladesh have very similar dialects, accents, and vocabularies because both were once part of the same linguistic area before the political separation. This is especially true in the border districts of North 24 Parganas, Nadia, Murshidabad, and Malda.

However, despite this challenge, the officials asserted that the AI system would employ language indicators such as accent, tone, and vocabulary to identify Bangladeshi nationals from Bengali-speaking residents of West Bengal. After the AI system identifies an individual as a possible non-resident of the state, the authorities will then verify the documents to determine the individual’s nationality.

As per the Hindustan Times report, “We have been working on it for the last three months, and its reliability has proven to be 60%. In the next six months, it will be foolproof and in a position to use,” Fadnavis said. He also stated that the government has established a detention centre for such people before deporting them, claiming that the infiltrators first come to West Bengal and then migrate to other parts of the country after availing government schemes.