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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Aadhaar woes for Assam -Pankaj Sarma

Aadhaar woes for Assam -Pankaj Sarma

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published Published on Dec 9, 2014   modified Modified on Dec 9, 2014
-The Telegraph

Guwahati: Apart from Tripura and Sikkim, enrolment for Aadhaar cards remains very low in the northeastern states, with Assam at the bottom of the list.

According to figures available with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), which handles the Aadhaar project, as on November 30, 2014, the percentage of enrolment against the total population was abysmally low in Assam - 0.3 per cent.

The trend is not much better in Meghalaya (0.4 per cent) and Arunachal Pradesh (4.6 per cent). In Mizoram, it is 15.2 per cent. The percentages in Nagaland and Manipur are somewhat better at 50.8 per cent and 47.9 per cent respectively. The situation is, however, completely different in Tripura and Sikkim, where the enrolment of residents for Aadhaar number and cards is almost complete. The percentage of enrolment in Tripura is 98.1 per cent while in Sikkim it is 97.7 per cent.

The deputy director-general of UIDAI's regional office in Guwahati, L.K. Pegu, told The Telegraph that the Authority was doing enrolment in Tripura and Sikkim only. In the remaining six northeastern states, the process is being undertaken by the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India (RGCCI), under the Union ministry of home affairs.

"In states where the RGCCI is doing the enrolment, our role is limited to processing and generating Aadhaar numbers and cards after the RGCCI provides us with the data," Pegu said. "We can't comment on why the enrolment is low in these six northeastern states as it is being done by the directorates of census operations on behalf of the RGCCI."

Under the project, the census department officials collect demographic details and biometric parameters like fingerprints and iris images.

On being asked about the reasons for low enrolment in Assam, the director of census operations, Assam, Prateek Hajela, said they were doing enrolment on a pilot basis in only three districts. "Currently, the enrolment is being carried out only in select areas of Sonitpur, Golaghat and Nagaon districts. Moreover, we have less number of enumerators. But we are going to increase the number of enumerators and cover the entire state in a phased manner. The percentage of enrolment will increase once we roll it out in the entire state."

The process of enrolment had started in Assam in August this year. At present, it is being done only in the municipal areas of the headquarters of the three districts. "We will soon start enrolment at Doboka in Nagaon and Dhekiajuli in Sonitpur. We hope to start the process in another three districts of Assam soon," another officer of the directorate of census operations, Assam, said on the condition of anonymity. He said the Aadhaar card would be an identity proof of the individual and not a proof of his or her citizenship as confused by many people.

"Since there is a problem of illegal migrants in Assam and other northeastern states, there is apprehension among a section of people that illegal migrants may get Aadhaar card and misuse it as a proof of citizenship. This is also a reason why the government is treading cautiously on this matter," he said.

A source in UIDAI said the process suffered a setback in Meghalaya when the Khasi Students' Union stopped enrolment drives in Shillong in July last year, demanding that the government should first come up with awareness campaigns to enlighten the people about the significance of the process. "In Arunachal Pradesh the enrolment process was started in three districts - Papum Pare, West Kameng and Tawang. It is still uncertain when the process will be completed in the six northeastern states," he added.

Aadhaar or unique identification project was initially conceived by the Planning Commission to provide each resident across the country an identification that would be used primarily for efficient delivery of welfare services. The basic aim is to provide direct transfer of benefits of government schemes like old-age pension, scholarships, public distribution system, subsidy on LPG connection to the bank account of Aadhaar card holders by linking Aadhaar numbers with bank accounts.


The Telegraph, 9 December, 2014, http://www.telegraphindia.com/1141209/jsp/frontpage/story_2797.jsp#.VIZvr9xdGxg


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