Mobitel launches NFC-enabled student ID card

The national mobile service provider, Mobitel launched a student identity card solution that works on NFC (Near Field Communication) technology, for the first time in Sri Lanka. The student identity card named iCard was launched at Royal College.

The NFC card reader devices set up at entrance points at the school, allows students to 'tap' in their attendance.

A pre-defined cut off time ensures that absentees' parents are informed of it via SMS. The iCard bears vital information of the student, such as name, school admission number, photograph, validity period, emergency contact number and card number.

The card will serve as a means to monitor attendance, control access to buildings, a travel card, canteen card and library card, while the iCard management system will also generate management reports.

Royal Colleges Principal, H.A. Upali Gunasekara said, "We have a long-standing partnership with Mobitel, and the launching of this project only means that this partnership grows in strength. The iCard project developed by Mobitel is certainly one that we needed to increase the levels of safety and security of our students and also reiterate to parents that their children are safe. This technology also helps us to address truancy, which is a common issue in all schools.

This multi-faceted project has much potential and we are proud to be the first school in this endeavour." Mobitel CEO, Lalith de Silva said, "iCard is more than just a new student ID card. It offers the much sought-after solution using the latest technologies like NFC for administration and management of schools serving many stakeholders such as students, academic staff, parents and service providers.

It helps parents to monitor their children while assisting principals and the senior management of schools to make their operations more efficient. This project will do away with cumbersome manual reports, creating a digital, paperless environment in schools."

"As a nation which lost 30 years due to terrorism, we now have to catch up rapidly and ICT will become a key catalyst, taking the country towards fully embracing the digital age. We have taken the initiative to rise above the call of being the national mobile service provider, by developing new technologies and introducing them to much-needed areas to improve the quality of life and to bridge the digital divide, fulfilling one key area addressed by the Government's ICT policy."