How QR Code reunited 10 missing children with their parents in India
In a remarkable use of tech, the Vijayawada District Administration in Andhra Pradesh successfully reunited 10 missing children with their parents using QR code-enabled wristbands. The children went missing during the Bhawani Deeksha Viramana event, a significant cultural gathering that saw thousands of people attend. To ensure the safety of young attendees, the authorities deployed a clever solution—QR-coded wristbands—for children under five years old.
As reported by ANI, the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) set up at least 60 teams at strategic locations, including key points such as railway stations, bus terminals, and city entry points. Their task was to track and ensure that children entering the city were tagged with QR wristbands. These wristbands were embedded with important details about the child and their parents, including contact numbers and basic identification information. So, if a child became separated, anyone who found the child could scan the QR code and immediately access the parent’s contact information, ensuring a swift reunification process.
QR Code Reunited Missing Children
During the course of the event, over 12,000 children were equipped with the QR wristbands, a proactive step taken by the authorities to safeguard the young attendees. Thanks to this innovative approach, the efforts resulted in the safe return of 10 children who had been separated from their parents over the last five days of the event. The use of QR code technology not only helped track the children efficiently but also minimized the risks involved in such large-scale public gatherings.
The use of QR-coded wristbands for children’s safety at large events, such as the Bhawani Deeksha Viramana, sets a strong example of how modern tools can help ensure public welfare and security. According to data from QRCodeChimp, there were 26.95 million QR code scans globally in 2022-2023. This figure is projected to rise by 22% by 2025. As of 2023, 44.6% of internet users worldwide, aged 16 to 64, scan at least one QR code each month. The United States leads global QR code scans with 42.2%, followed by India at 16.1%, with France, the UK, and Canada also making notable contributions, according to some reports.
History of QR Code
The development of the QR code can be traced back to the limitations of the traditional UPC barcode system. While the UPC barcode was widely used for tracking products, especially in supermarkets, it had several drawbacks as technology advanced. It could only store a small amount of data, required expensive scanning equipment, and had to be scanned from a specific direction, slowing down processes in both grocery stores and industrial production lines. In the 1990s, Japanese automotive company Denso Wave found these limitations particularly problematic. They were forced to use multiple barcodes on single products, which slowed down their production process, especially when trying to scan automotive parts of different shapes and sizes.
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In 1994, Masahiro Hara, an employee at Denso Wave, came up with the idea of the QR code while playing the game Go. Inspired by the 19×19 grid system of the game, Hara realized that a grid-based system could hold much more information and could be scanned from multiple directions and angles, making it more efficient for tracking items. His vision was to create a code that could not only hold more data but also speed up production by eliminating the need for specialized scanning directions. The QR code, or Quick Response Code, was born, and it quickly revolutionized the way products were tracked in industries, offering a more versatile, efficient, and information-rich solution compared to traditional barcodes.
QR codes grew steadily throughout the 2010s, but their use surged exponentially during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. Today, QR codes are widely used across various sectors, from digital payments and restaurant menus to linking social media profiles, with their popularity particularly soaring in India.
