Can’t prove ID? DNA bank soon

Lucknow will soon be home to the country’s first DNA bank. "This is a DNA bank, and not a DNA lab, and the two must not be confused," said Saeed Ahmad, the director of IQRA Biotech Services (IBS), which is setting up the bank.

The facility at the DNA bank will not be research-oriented, like other DNA banks the world over, and is open to the public. The bank, which will become functional within a fortnight, will allow anyone to get his or her DNA stored for 50 years by paying a nominal Rs 1,500 and giving four drops of blood.

The company will also store basic information about the person, like his photograph, name, qualification and contact details. More importantly, it will store fingerprints and retina scans along with signatures and handwriting samples.

The emphasis is on giving a person a concrete identity. Other information, like his date and place of marriage, foot size, sitting height and the number of wives the person’s father has, will be stored in the individual’s data bank. The individual profile will also include a list of diseases the person suffers from and any history of drug allergy.

According to the director, the idea is to provide a person with a concrete identity. "All government documents, like a voter’s photo identity card, are easily reproducible, as media reports have often proved, and there are enough instances of even passports being forged." he added.