Should India stop the Aadhaar Project?

Should India stop the Aadhaar Project?

The Government's highly propagated unique identification project, Aadhaar, has become a hot topic of discussion among the people. Many activists, lawyers and experts are debating on the pros and cons of Aadhaar. What started as an initiative to provide identity to the left out section is drawing flaks from several sections of society. What is your view? Should India stop the Aadhaar Project?

Yes

• Aadhaar card has become a tool used for profiling and targeting individuals. It was not the motive behind implementing Aadhaar.

• The main issue concerned with Aadhaar is the huge cost involved in the project. It requires huge investment and also there is no cost-benefit analysis of the project.

• The legislation around which the unique identification project was framed lacks the proper structure.

• There are no measures to protect a person’s privacy. The information of the people is shared with the private companies.

• Also the database of unique identification project is based on a very weak data. There are enough loopholes in the system that fails to prevent identity theft.

No

• There are left out groups in India who can identify themselves as transgender under UID and can get an identity proof.

• It will help the government to provide benefits to the targeted sections. It is a way to ensure that the government can control its fiscal commitments.

• The most important part is Subsidies. With the Unique Identification Number scheme subsidies can be targeted with precision.

• It will serve as an identity proof to open bank account leading to the growth of financial inclusion.

• The government wants to give place to the branchless banking even in rural areas, and that is why Aadhaar holds significance.

• It provides the identity to the poorer section that can then make use of the certain facilities like getting a ration card and others.

Conclusion

The motive of Aadhaar is undoubtedly fair. It wants to provide an identity tool to the left out sections but then there are certain loopholes in the system that is making it an unsuccessful project. Instead of removing it, it is better to work on the drawbacks of the system so that it can efficiently serve its purpose.