Aadhaar

For the films, see Aadhaar (2019 film) and Aadhaar (2022 film).

Aadhaar
SloganMera Aadhaar, Meri Pehchaan
CountryIndia
MinistryMinistry of Electronics and Information Technology, India
Key people
  • Neelkanth Mishra,[1] Chairman, UIDAI
  • Amit Agarwal,[2] IAS, CEO, UIDAI
Launched28 January 2009; 15 years ago (2009-01-28)[3]
Budget₹11,366 crore (US$1.4 billion) (up to the month of August 2019)[4]
StatusIncrease 138.3 crore (1.383 billion) holders as of October 2024[5]
Websiteuidai.gov.in
Aadhaar Card
Specimen of an Aadhaar Card
TypeIdentity document
Issued byUnique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI)
Purpose
Valid inIndia
EligibilityResident of India[6]
ExpirationLifetime validity
CostFirst-time enrollment is free of cost.
Further demographic updates cost ₹50 (60¢ US) and biometric updates cost ₹100 (US$1.20).

Aadhaar (Hindi: आधार, lit. 'base, foundation')[7] is a twelve-digit unique identity number that can be obtained voluntarily by all residents of India, based on their biometrics and demographic data.[8] The data is collected by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), a statutory authority established in January 2016 by the Government of India, under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, following the provisions of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, benefits and services) Act, 2016.[3]

Aadhaar is the world's largest biometric ID system. World Bank Chief Economist Paul Romer described Aadhaar as "the most sophisticated ID programme in the world".[9] Considered a proof of residence and not a proof of citizenship, Aadhaar does not itself grant any rights to domicile in India.[10] In June 2017, the Home Ministry clarified that Aadhaar is not a valid identification document for Indians travelling to Nepal and Bhutan.[11]

Prior to the enactment of the Act, the UIDAI had functioned, since 28 January 2009, as an attached office of the Planning Commission (now NITI Aayog). On 3 March 2016, a money bill was introduced in the Parliament to give legislative backing to Aadhaar.[12] On 11 March 2016, the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, benefits and services) Act, 2016, was passed in the Lok Sabha.[13][14]

Aadhaar is the subject of several rulings by the Supreme Court of India. On 23 September 2013, the Supreme Court issued an interim order saying that "no person should suffer for not getting Aadhaar",[15] adding that the government cannot deny a service to a resident who does not possess Aadhaar, as it is voluntary and not mandatory.[16] The court also limited the scope of the programme and reaffirmed the voluntary nature of the identity number in other rulings.[17][18][19][20] On 24 August 2017 the Indian Supreme Court delivered a landmark verdict affirming the right to privacy as a fundamental right, overruling previous judgments on the issue.[21][22] A five-judge constitutional bench of the Supreme Court heard various cases relating to the validity of Aadhaar[23] on various grounds including privacy, surveillance, and exclusion from welfare benefits.[24] On 9 January 2017 the five-judge Constitution bench of the Supreme Court of India reserved its judgement on the interim relief sought by petitions to extend the deadline making Aadhaar mandatory for everything from bank accounts to mobile services. The final hearing began on 17 January 2018.[25] In September 2018, the top court upheld the validity of the Aadhaar system.[26] In the September 2018 judgment, the Supreme Court nevertheless stipulated that the Aadhaar card is not mandatory for opening bank accounts, getting a mobile number, or being admitted to a school.[27][28] Some civil liberty groups such as the Citizens Forum for Civil Liberties and the Indian Social Action Forum (INSAF) have also opposed the project over privacy concerns.[29][30][31]

Despite the validity of Aadhaar being challenged in the court,[32][33] the central government has pushed citizens to link their Aadhaar numbers with a host of services, including mobile SIM cards, bank accounts, registration of deaths, land registration, vehicle registration, the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation, and a large number of welfare schemes including but not limited to the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act, the Public Distribution System, old age pensions and public health insurances.[34] In 2017, reports suggested that HIV patients were being forced to discontinue treatment for fear of identity breach as access to the treatment has become contingent on producing Aadhaar.[35]

  1. ^ "Neelkanth Mishra appointed part-time chairperson of UIDAI, Neelesh Shah and Prof Mausam join as members". 22 August 2023. Archived from the original on 7 September 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  2. ^ "Amit Agrawal takes charge as CEO of UIDAI". The Hindu. 20 June 2023. Archived from the original on 7 September 2023. Retrieved 7 September 2023.
  3. ^ a b "About UIDAI". UIDAI. Archived from the original on 23 July 2017. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
  4. ^ "UIDAI Finance and Budge Section". UIDAI. Archived from the original on 27 May 2018. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
  5. ^ "Aadhaar Dashboard". UIDAI. Archived from the original on 29 December 2019. Retrieved 19 October 2024.
  6. ^ "Home – Unique Identification Authority of India | Government of India". Uidai.gov.in. Archived from the original on 10 March 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
  7. ^ McGregor, R. S., ed. (1993). "आधार". The Oxford Hindi-English dictionary. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 86. ISBN 0-19-864317-9. OCLC 30111536.
  8. ^ "Aadhaar is voluntary—but millions of Indians are already trapped". Quartz. 26 September 2018. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
  9. ^ "'Adhaar' most sophisticated ID programme in the world : World Bank". Daiji World. Archived from the original on 13 September 2018. Retrieved 17 March 2017.
  10. ^ "Aadhaar Card not proof of citizenship: Calcutta HC". 25 December 2016. Archived from the original on 5 March 2017. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
  11. ^ "Aadhaar not valid for Indians travelling to Nepal, Bhutan: Home Ministry". Archived from the original on 25 June 2017. Retrieved 25 June 2017.
  12. ^ "Aadhaar legislation tabled as a money Bill". Business Line. 3 March 2016. Archived from the original on 17 September 2023. Retrieved 6 March 2016.
  13. ^ "Aadhaar bill passed in Lok Sabha". Live Mint. 11 March 2016. Archived from the original on 12 March 2016. Retrieved 11 March 2016.
  14. ^ The Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, benefits and services) Act, 2016 (PDF) (18). 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 20 July 2016.
  15. ^ "No person should suffer for not getting Aadhaar: SC". 23 September 2013. Archived from the original on 3 October 2017. Retrieved 3 October 2017.
  16. ^ "Don't tie up benefits to Aadhaar, court tells Centre". The Hindu. 24 September 2013. Archived from the original on 30 August 2014. Retrieved 27 May 2015.
  17. ^ "Aadhaar Card Not Mandatory, Supreme Court Rules". NDTV. 11 August 2015. Archived from the original on 13 September 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  18. ^ "SC rules Aadhaar card not mandatory, says government cannot share any personal information". CNN-IBN. 11 August 2015. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  19. ^ "Supreme Court counters push for Aadhaar". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 28 March 2017. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
  20. ^ "Identity project | Scroll.in". scroll.in. Archived from the original on 6 January 2018. Retrieved 3 December 2017.
  21. ^ "Indian top court stands up for privacy". BBC. 24 August 2017. Archived from the original on 17 March 2018. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  22. ^ "Judgment 24 Aug 2017 by the Supreme Court of India" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2 August 2018. Retrieved 17 September 2018.(Puttaswamy v. Union)
  23. ^ "Aadhar Case: SC to Set up Constitution Bench to Hear Pleas Against Aadhaar". thewire.in. Archived from the original on 1 December 2017. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  24. ^ "Aadhaar Act Case Background". scobserver.clpr.org.in. Archived from the original on 27 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  25. ^ "Government To Extend All Aadhaar Linking Deadlines To March 31". bloombergquint.com/. 14 December 2017. Archived from the original on 17 August 2018. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  26. ^ "India's top court upholds constitution validity of Aadhaar card". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 26 September 2018. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
  27. ^ "Supreme Court verdict on Aadhar". The Hans India. 26 September 2018. Archived from the original on 26 September 2018. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
  28. ^ "Aadhar is constitutional but don't make it mandatory: Indian SC to govt | Setopati – Nepal's Digital Newspaper". setopati.net. Archived from the original on 27 September 2018. Retrieved 26 September 2018.
  29. ^ "UID an assault on individual liberty: Activists". Rediff. 6 September 2010. Archived from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
  30. ^ "AADHAR: Union Cabinet of Ignorance!". Rediff. Archived from the original on 22 June 2015. Retrieved 29 May 2015.
  31. ^ "Nine issues to debate on Aadhaar Bill". The Hindu. 11 March 2016. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 12 March 2016. Retrieved 28 June 2016.
  32. ^ "Challenge to the Constitutionality of Aadhaar Act 2016". Archived from the original on 27 February 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2018.
  33. ^ Indian court upholds legality of world's largest biometric database Archived 26 September 2018 at the Wayback Machine The Guardian, 2018
  34. ^ Deepalakshmi, K. (24 March 2017). "The long list of Aadhaar-linked schemes". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 24 March 2017. Retrieved 28 November 2017.
  35. ^ Rao, Menaka. "Why Aadhaar is prompting HIV positive people to drop out of treatment programmes across India". Scroll.in. Archived from the original on 27 January 2018. Retrieved 28 November 2017.