In 2009, I became extremely concerned with the concept of Unique Identity for various reasons. Connected with many like minded highly educated people who were all concerned.
On 18th May 2010, I started this Blog to capture anything and everything I came across on the topic. This blog with its million hits is a testament to my concerns about loss of privacy and fear of the ID being misused and possible Criminal activities it could lead to.
In 2017 the Supreme Court of India gave its verdict after one of the longest hearings on any issue. I did my bit and appealed to the Supreme Court Judges too through an On Line Petition.
In 2019 the Aadhaar Legislation has been revised and passed by the two houses of the Parliament of India making it Legal. I am no Legal Eagle so my Opinion carries no weight except with people opposed to the very concept.
In 2019, this Blog now just captures on a Daily Basis list of Articles Published on anything to do with Aadhaar as obtained from Daily Google Searches and nothing more. Cannot burn the midnight candle any longer.
"In Matters of Conscience, the Law of Majority has no place"- Mahatma Gandhi
Ram Krishnaswamy
Sydney, Australia.

Aadhaar

The UIDAI has taken two successive governments in India and the entire world for a ride. It identifies nothing. It is not unique. The entire UID data has never been verified and audited. The UID cannot be used for governance, financial databases or anything. It’s use is the biggest threat to national security since independence. – Anupam Saraph 2018

When I opposed Aadhaar in 2010 , I was called a BJP stooge. In 2016 I am still opposing Aadhaar for the same reasons and I am told I am a Congress die hard. No one wants to see why I oppose Aadhaar as it is too difficult. Plus Aadhaar is FREE so why not get one ? Ram Krishnaswamy

First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win.-Mahatma Gandhi

In matters of conscience, the law of the majority has no place.Mahatma Gandhi

“The invasion of privacy is of no consequence because privacy is not a fundamental right and has no meaning under Article 21. The right to privacy is not a guaranteed under the constitution, because privacy is not a fundamental right.” Article 21 of the Indian constitution refers to the right to life and liberty -Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi

“There is merit in the complaints. You are unwittingly allowing snooping, harassment and commercial exploitation. The information about an individual obtained by the UIDAI while issuing an Aadhaar card shall not be used for any other purpose, save as above, except as may be directed by a court for the purpose of criminal investigation.”-A three judge bench headed by Justice J Chelameswar said in an interim order.

Legal scholar Usha Ramanathan describes UID as an inverse of sunshine laws like the Right to Information. While the RTI makes the state transparent to the citizen, the UID does the inverse: it makes the citizen transparent to the state, she says.

Good idea gone bad
I have written earlier that UID/Aadhaar was a poorly designed, unreliable and expensive solution to the really good idea of providing national identification for over a billion Indians. My petition contends that UID in its current form violates the right to privacy of a citizen, guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution. This is because sensitive biometric and demographic information of citizens are with enrolment agencies, registrars and sub-registrars who have no legal liability for any misuse of this data. This petition has opened up the larger discussion on privacy rights for Indians. The current Article 21 interpretation by the Supreme Court was done decades ago, before the advent of internet and today’s technology and all the new privacy challenges that have arisen as a consequence.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar, MP Rajya Sabha

“What is Aadhaar? There is enormous confusion. That Aadhaar will identify people who are entitled for subsidy. No. Aadhaar doesn’t determine who is eligible and who isn’t,” Jairam Ramesh

But Aadhaar has been mythologised during the previous government by its creators into some technology super force that will transform governance in a miraculous manner. I even read an article recently that compared Aadhaar to some revolution and quoted a 1930s historian, Will Durant.Rajeev Chandrasekhar, Rajya Sabha MP

“I know you will say that it is not mandatory. But, it is compulsorily mandatorily voluntary,” Jairam Ramesh, Rajya Saba April 2017.

August 24, 2017: The nine-judge Constitution Bench rules that right to privacy is “intrinsic to life and liberty”and is inherently protected under the various fundamental freedoms enshrined under Part III of the Indian Constitution

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the World; indeed it's the only thing that ever has"

“Arguing that you don’t care about the right to privacy because you have nothing to hide is no different than saying you don’t care about free speech because you have nothing to say.” -Edward Snowden

In the Supreme Court, Meenakshi Arora, one of the senior counsel in the case, compared it to living under a general, perpetual, nation-wide criminal warrant.

Had never thought of it that way, but living in the Aadhaar universe is like living in a prison. All of us are treated like criminals with barely any rights or recourse and gatekeepers have absolute power on you and your life.

Announcing the launch of the # BreakAadhaarChainscampaign, culminating with events in multiple cities on 12th Jan. This is the last opportunity to make your voice heard before the Supreme Court hearings start on 17th Jan 2018. In collaboration with @no2uidand@rozi_roti.

UIDAI's security seems to be founded on four time tested pillars of security idiocy

1) Denial

2) Issue fiats and point finger

3) Shoot messenger

4) Bury head in sand.

God Save India

Saturday, October 13, 2012

2708 - The new totalitarianism of surveillance technology - The Guardian



If you think that 24/7 tracking of citizens by biometric recognition systems is paranoid fantasy, just read the industry newsletters
Naomi Wolf
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 15 August 2012 21.12 BST


Tom Cruise as John Anderton in the futuristic film Minority Report, where the advertisements use recognition technology to call out to the shoppers. Photograph: Allstar/20th Century Fox

A software engineer in my Facebook community wrote recently about his outrage that when he visited Disneyland, and went on a ride, the theme park offered him the photo of himself and his girlfriend to buy – with his credit card information already linked to it. He noted that he had never entered his name or information into anything at the theme park, or indicated that he wanted a photo, or alerted the humans at the ride to who he and his girlfriend were – so, he said, based on his professional experience, the system had to be using facial recognition technology. He had never signed an agreement allowing them to do so, and he declared that this use was illegal. He also claimed that Disney had recently shared data from facial-recognition technology with the United States military.

Yes, I know: it sounds like a paranoid rant.

Except that it turned out to be true. News21, supported by the Carnegie and Knight foundations, reports that Disney sites are indeed controlled by face-recognition technology, that the military is interested in the technology, and that the face-recognition contractor, Identix, has contracts with the US government – for technology that identifies individuals in a crowd.

Fast forward: after the Occupy crackdowns, I noted that odd-looking CCTVs had started to appear, attached to lampposts, in public venues in Manhattan where the small but unbowed remnants of Occupy congregated: there was one in Union Square, right in front of their encampment. I reported here on my experience of witnessing a white van marked "Indiana Energy" that was lifting workers up to the lampposts all around Union Square, and installing a type of camera. When I asked the workers what was happening – and why an Indiana company was dealing with New York City civic infrastructure, which would certainly raise questions – I was told: "I'm a contractor. Talk to ConEd."
I then noticed, some months later, that these bizarre camera/lights had been installed not only all around Union Square but also around Washington Square Park. I posted a photo I took of them, and asked: "What is this?" Commentators who had lived in China said that they were the same camera/streetlight combinations that are mounted around public places in China. These are enabled for facial recognition technology, which allows police to watch video that is tagged to individuals, in real time. When too many people congregate, they can be dispersed and intimidated simply by the risk of being identified – before dissent can coalesce. (Another of my Facebook commentators said that such lamppost cameras had been installed in Michigan, and that they barked "Obey", at pedestrians. This, too, sounded highly implausible – until this week in Richmond, British Columbia, near the Vancouver airport, when I was startled as the lamppost in the intersection started talking to me – in this case, instructing me on how to cross (as though I were blind or partially sighted).
Finally, last week, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg joined NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly to unveil a major new police surveillance infrastructure, developed by Microsoft. The Domain Awareness System links existing police databases with live video feeds, including cameras using vehicle license plate recognition software. No mention was made of whether the system plans to use – or already uses – facial recognition software. But, at present, there is no law to prevent US government and law enforcement agencies from building facial recognition databases.
And we know from industry newsletters that the US military, law enforcement, and the department of homeland security are betting heavily on facial recognition technology. As PC World notes, Facebook itself is a market leader in the technology – but military and security agencies are close behind.
According to Homeland Security Newswire, billions of dollars are being invested in the development and manufacture of various biometric technologies capable of detecting and identifying anyone, anywhere in the world – via iris-scanning systems, already in use; foot-scanning technology (really); voice pattern ID software, and so on.
What is very obvious is that this technology will not be applied merely to people under arrest, or to people under surveillance in accordance with the fourth amendment (suspects in possible terrorist plots or other potential crimes, after law enforcement agents have already obtained a warrant from a magistrate). No, the "targets" here are me and you: everyone, all of the time. In the name of "national security", the capacity is being built to identify, track and document any citizen constantly and continuously.
The revealing boosterism of a trade magazine like Homeland Security Newswire envisions endless profits for the surveillance industry, in a society where your TV is spying on you, a billboard you drive by recognizes you, Minority Report style, and the FBI knows where to find your tattoo – before you have committed any crime: "FBI on Track to Book Faces, Scars, Tattoos", it notes; "Billboards, TVs Detect your Faces; Advertisers Salivate", it gloats; "Biometric Companies See Government as the Driver of Future Market Growth", it announces. Indeed, the article admits without a blush that all the growth is expected to be in government consumption, with "no real expectation" of private-sector growth at all. So much for smaller government!
To acclimate their populations to this brave new world of invasive surveillance technologies, UK Prime Minister David Cameron and and his Canadian counterpart, Stephen Harper, both recently introduced "snoop" bills. Meanwhile, in the US – "the land of the free" – the onward march of the surveillers continues apace, without check or consultation.


2707 - Payment mode takes the sheen off subsidies K. A. MARTIN



KOCHI, August 17, 2012
K. A. MARTIN

Paddy farmers at work in fields near Palakkad on a rainy day just ahead of Farmers’ Day on Chingam 1, which falls on August 17. Poor rain has delayed sowing and harvesting in many areas. An expected poor harvest has already triggered a price rise. Photo: K.K.Mustafah

New problem for farmers is in addition to poor monsoon and high fertilizer prize
A rain deficit and spiralling price of fertilizers have combined to turn 2012 into one of the worst years for farmers in Kerala in recent memory.
Adding to their woes is the introduction of the new system for payment of various subsidies through bank accounts, prompting many small-time farmers to even forgo the government doles.
The introduction of the new subsidy payment regime, aimed at ending malpractices, has resulted in farmers not getting any benefit so far though the first season paddy crop is only about a month away from harvest.
V. Gangadharan, a paddy farmer in Palakkad, says that those who bought fertilizers for the first crop have not received any money so far though he feels that the new system will be of help in the long run.
K. Krishnamurty, paddy farmer, fears that subsidies will come late this year. The new system is proving cumbersome for farmers and the mandatory registration of farmers, despite several deadlines, is not complete yet, he says.
K. R. Jyotilal, Secretary, Agriculture, says that the new system is being streamlined though there are a few technical hitches. One of the problems, he says, is the treasury-bank link, which is being looked into. Otherwise the system is working perfectly, he says pointing out that farmers’ pension under Swabhiman scheme is being disbursed through the new system.
Mr. Jyotilal says there are some vested interests spreading canards about the regime.
PADDY CULTIVATION
Paddy cultivation has been the hardest hit by poor rains as exemplified by Palakkad, where yield is likely to be down by about 40 per cent. Besides, the harvest will be delayed because of the dry conditions. In Alappuzha, both Pokkali areas and Kuttanad have been hit by the monsoon shortfall.
About 150 hectares of Purakkad Karinilam lies fallow for the ongoing Virippu season because of excess soil acidity, which traditionally used to be treated with rain water. Around 250 hectares of Pokkali fields are remaining fallow for want of rain. Forty hectares of Pokkali, which came under sowing, does not promise normal yield, according to sources in the Agriculture Department.
A total of 12,000 hectares have come under the Virippu crop this season though the crop is at various stages between 30 and 60 days. Sources point out that the lack of rain threatened to hit the upcoming Puncha season, during which larger areas come under paddy in the district.
VEGETABLES
Cool season vegetable production in the high ranges of Idukki district is down about 50 per cent because of unseasonal rain. Rains in May caused potato seed stocks waste and poor rains in early June created a drought-like situation in Vattavada and Kanthalloor areas.
V.V. Pushpangadhan, chief executive officer of Vegetable and Fruit Promotion Council Keralam, says that the present estimate is that potato production in the two areas will be down about 50 per cent this season.
Production of other cool season vegetables like beans, carrot and cabbage as well as garlic has been hit by lack of rains in the high ranges this year.
FERTILIZERS
Despite poor offtake this season, fertilizer prices continue to move up. Price of the popular fertilizer mixture Factamfos is hovering around Rs.19,000 a tonne this season compared to Rs.14,000 last year. Similarly, the price of muriate of potash has gone up to Rs.16,700 a tonne from the previous level of Rs.12,000, industry sources said.
Ammonium sulphate, though not widely used in Kerala, has also seen price moving up a little this season to hover around Rs.11,000 a tonne from the previous level of Rs.10,000.
Urea, the price of which is still controlled by the government, has not seen any appreciation leading people to use an excess of the input this Virippu season, sources said.


2706 - "World Bank Public Sphere"


From: "World Bank Public Sphere" <publicsphere@worldbank.org>
Date: Aug 17, 2012 2:44 AM
Subject: What New on People, Spaces, Deliberation - August 16, 2012


Quote of the Week: Nandan Nilekani
Submitted by Sina Odugbemi on Mon, 08/13/2012

"Well, I think the way I see it simply is in the private sector the number of people you're to come into is much less. You convince your management team, your board, your investors, your analysts and you go and do something, go in new direction, buy a company, whatever.

In the public space, you are answerable to a lot more stakeholders, the government, parliament, bureaucracy, activists, journalists, the judicial system, the investigators. So I think what I learned is the amount of time you are to invest in evangelizing and consensus building is hugely more in the public space. And crafting a strategy which is sort of acceptable to everybody really takes a great deal of time. And that's where the big difference to me between the two worlds." Nandan Nilekani. 

As quoted in an interview on Fareed Zakaria GPS, July 1, 2012.

It's all about crafting a strategy: in this case, about achieving the greatest common bad.

2705 - American Express looks to do 'a few new & cool things' in India



Sidhartha, TNN | Aug 16, 2012, 06.09AM IST

Sanjay Rishi is an American Express veteran, having spent 25 years in the company in various capacities. As he looks to turn the company's focus from a premium-segment player to a mass-market firm, Rishi is hoping that his second stint in India to be "even better" than the first. Known to set stiff targets, Rishi was initially dealing with the development of payments business but is now looking after the entire operations. The buzz is that several executives have had to curtail the time they spend on the golf course. In an interview, Rishi spoke to TOI about leadership, the growth mindset and, of course, American Express' new India strategy. Excerpts:

Q: This is your second avatar in your second stint in India since you were initially dealing with the development of payments business in emerging markets. What should we expect in the coming months?

A: We decided to concentrate our efforts in India given the assets and momentum we already have in this critical market. We will extend our business model to move into emerging payments and adjacent opportunities. Historically, we have a strategy that has been focused on premium customers and large to mid-sized corporations. That is always going to be a core part of our strategy even as we seek to broaden and deepen our relationships with these segments. But just given the size of the opportunity that India represents, it's necessary for us to augment our core by moving into new segments, new geographies with new value propositions.

Q: What does this mean in terms of products?

These could be upstream products that appeal to a younger and aspiring affluent population. Or, they could be products for those who are predominantly cash users. We have acquired a number of new assets to add value to our present and future customers, such as prepaid products and loyalty marketing services. The logical point of entry for new segments does not have to be a credit card product. It could be a money transfer product, a travel or lifestyle product or a pre-paid card or marketing services or a loyalty product. There is also going be a lot of focus on the digital space given that e-commerce hasn't really translated into e-payments. However, our focus on serving premium customers will continue .We have direct relationships with both our card members and our merchants that we can leverage since we operate across the payments spectrum - something that our rivals and banks don't do. We are among the top credit card issuers and now a lot of industry is moving premium, where we have always been strong. So we see this as a validation of our approach

Q: Are you also looking at the financial inclusion and direct subsidy payments space via UID?

A: There are a number of developments in the payments space that did not exist even six years ago, which is what makes it a very exciting opportunity. Six years ago, plastic was pretty much an urban affluent phenomenon, we did not have credit bureaus or there was hardly any presence of organized retail. Similarly, the UID and financial inclusion process will help in many different ways. We are thinking about the right engagement model.

Q: In a way you are going mass market. Right?

A: We certainly want to play a bigger role in the payments business. My vision for our business is to have India as a growth engine for American Express globally while driving electronification of payments through relevant products and services.

Q: You mentioned that you are among the top three issuers. That is a big change. Has the card market matured.

A: Don't memorize that! But yes, we have certainly experienced rapid and profitable growth and intend to continue growing. We've offered superior value card products. The market has evolved and credit information bureaus have had a large role to play. Beyond the world of payment products, our loyalty marketing services business (Loyalty Partner) has been a good acquisition for us and we have managed to build a relationships with millions of customers, many of whom are not even card users.

Q: Is India some sort of a lab for the rest of the world, especially for the emerging markets?

A: I am hoping that in India we will do a few new and cool things with new customer segments and new capabilities that could be scaled.

Q: You seem to have a much smaller merchant presence compared to your competition. Is that also going to change?

A: We keep a very close finger on the pulse of the card member. As we scale up our card member relationships, we will have a corresponding strategy to build merchant relationships. Distribution costs of signing merchants are a reality and we therefore need to work these pieces together. As we've grown our cardmember base, we have enabled many new merchant relationships in retail as well as on-line. In the on-line space, we have increased our Card members' shopping experience by introducing new tools and services.

Q: On the corporate side, are you seeing companies cutting down on spending?

A: We have recently seen companies cut back on travel and entertainment spending so our organic growth rates soften a little bit. It hasn't really impacted our growth rates because we get a lot of business from new customers. In fact, during this kind of economic environment, we see a lot of demand for our expense management solutions which our corporate payment services provide.




2704 - Cabinet Committee on Unique Identification Authority of India related issues


Cabinet Committee on Unique Identification Authority of India related issues

Composition
Prime Minister.
Shri Sharad Pawar, Minister of Agriculture and Minister of Food Processing Industries.
Shri P. Chidambaram, Minister of Finance.
Shri S.M. Krishna, Minister of External Affairs.
Shri Sushilkumar Shinde, Minister of Home Affairs.
Shri Mallikarjun Kharge, Minister of Labour and Employment.
Shri Kapil Sibal, Minister of Human Resource Development and Minister of Communications and Information Technology.
Kumari Selja, Minister of Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Minister of Culture.
Shri Salman Khursheed, Minister of Law and Justice and Minister of Minority Affairs.
Shri Jairam Ramesh, Minister of Rural Development and Minister of Drinking Water and Sanitation.

Special Invitees.
Shri Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission.
Shri Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, UIDAI.

2703 - Mankind’s biggest database of biometric data and unfolding surveillance regime by Gopal Krishna



From: Gopal Krishna <krishna1715@gmail.com>
Date: Wed, Aug 15, 2012 at 10:04 PM
Subject: Mankind’s biggest database of biometric data and unfolding surveillance regime

Citizens Forum for Civil Liberties (CFCL)

To

Hon’ble President of India
Government of India
President's Secretariat
Rashtrapati Bhavan
New Delhi-4

August 15, 2012

Subject-Mankind’s biggest database of biometric data and unfolding surveillance regime

Sir,

I salute you for recalling in your speech on the eve of Independence Day that India had 24.5% of World Manufacturing Output before our independence was snatched away by British East India Company[1], an entity created by Queen Elizabeth I through a royal charter on December 31, 1600. Our current share in manufacturing output is 2.2%, as per UN National Accounts Main Aggregates Database, 2010. As a fellow citizen, I hope that you will consider preparing a blue print for gaining pre-1750 position for our country in world trade.  

I wish to draw your attention towards advertisements dated August 14, 2012 in the newspapers regarding Home Ministry’s National Population Register (NPR) and World Bank’s eTransform Initiative. The advertisement is attached.  

I submit that the illegal collection of citizens’ biometric data appears to be a result of illegitimate advances of biometric technology companies to facilitate emergence of a police state.  

I submit that NPR is unfolding in violation of the Census Act.  It contemptuously disregards the observations of the Parliamentary Standing Committee (PSC) on Finance that specifically raises questions about the legality, and wisdom, of the collection of biometrics while creating a citizen/resident data base, Home Ministry has announced National Population Register (NPR) Biometric Camps for it. The PSC Report reads (in para 3© of the section on ‘Observations/Recommendations’: “The collection of biometric information and its linkage with personal information without amendment to the Citizenship Act 1955 as well as the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules 2003, appears to be beyond the scope of subordinate legislation, which needs to be examined in detail by Parliament.” The report was submitted to the Parliament on December 13, 2011. Unmindful of this our Prime Minister informed the nation today that “about 20 crore people have been registered so far” under biometric data based UID/Aadhar scheme. This registration process appears to be in contempt of Parliament. 

I wish to draw your attention towards the speech of UK’s Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg said in British House of Commons. He said, “This government will end the culture of spying on its citizens. It is outrageous that decent, law-abiding people are regularly treated as if they have something to hide. It has to stop. So there will be no ID card scheme. No national identity register, a halt to second generation biometric passports,” He added, “We won’t hold your internet and email records when there is just no reason to do so. Britain must not be a country where our children grow up so used to their liberty being infringed that they accept it without question. Schools will not take children’s fingerprints without even asking their parent’s consent. This will be a government that is proud when British citizens stand up against illegitimate advances of the state.” The speech of the British Deputy Prime Minister is relevant for India and Indian as well. The speech is attached.

I submit that Indian National Congress led United Progressive Alliance government should take note of it to avoid the fate of Tony Blair and his UK’s Identity Cards Act, 2006. Both have been abandoned.

I submit that Wikileaks has revealed a secret U.S. documents which confirmed that the deposed President Hosni Mubarak and his interior minister Habib al-Adli handed over to the US intelligence agency, FBI all the data contained in the archive of Egyptian national ID database and fingerprinting and registration code.


I submit that the minutes of Approach Paper for legislation on Privacy communicated by the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT) by communication dt.18-10-2010 in No. 17/1/2010-IR defined ‘Personal Sensitive Data’ that includes biometric data and genetic information.

I submit that the NPR exercise is based on admittedly fallible science of identifying a person through his unique body measurements such as fingerprints, iris scans, voice prints or DNA.

I submit that PSC report reveals that the collection of biometric data is without legal mandate.  It is noteworthy that biometric identification technologies are surveillance technologies. This exercise poses threats to human rights of present and future generation of Indians.

I submit that the biggest-ever database being attempted in the history of mankind merits a rigorous political debate. An autocratic social control technology regime is silently giving birth to a permanent emergency architecture.

I submit that under the chapter “Creating an appropriate legislative framework the White Paper on Black Money prepared by Union Finance Ministry claimed that UID-Aadhaar initiative will cut down corruption and the generation of black money in India.  It is ironical that Unique Identity (UID)-Aadhaar project is mentioned under the title ‘Creating an appropriate legislative framework’ because its Centralized Identities Data Register (CIDR) is being prepared outside any ‘appropriate legislative framework.

I submit that the manifest short term and long term foreign interest in biometric information based projects is aimed at creating ‘solutions architecture’ through linguistic corruption in the form of proposed National Information Utilities (NIUs) by Union Finance Ministry’s Technology Advisory Group on Unique projects. These NIUs are envisaged as private companies with public purpose and with profit making as the motive but not profit maximizing. The construction of this sentence seems to betray the ulterior motives of vested interests. It appears that words indeed have meaning, which the masters give to it a classic case of nominalism, a tendency of the ruling elite to decide on the meaning of a word.
I submit that in a reply to a question in Parliament on December 7, 2011, the Home Ministry informed that it has a proposal to issue every adult resident in the country an identity card and NPR is being prepared for the same.

I submit that even as this exercise is unfolding, the fact remains that biometric data like finger print, voice print, iris scan and DNA do not reveal citizenship.

I wish to draw your attention towards how under patronage from the government "a small group of entrepreneurs within the government have set out to identify to every one of their 1.2 billion residents by using biometric technologies, such as iris scans and fingerprints" to prepare NPR and Centralized Identities Data Register (CIDR) of UID/Aadhaar.

I submit that the new Chief Election Commissioner, Shri V.S. Sampath should be advised to rescind the dangerous proposal of Shri S.Y. Quraishi, his predecessor to Union Ministry of Home Affairs asking it “to merge the Election ID cards with UID”. Such an exercise would mean rewriting and engineering the electoral ecosystem with the unconstitutional and illegal use of biometric technology in a context where electoral finance has become source of corruption and black money in the country. This would lead to linking of UID, Election ID and Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) which is not as innocent and as politically neutral as it has been made out to be. It is noteworthy that all EVMs have a UID as well. This proposal makes a mockery of the recommendations of the Parliamentary Committee on Finance on UID Bill.

I submit that surveillance is a “shameful act” of supervising and imposing discipline on a subject through a hierarchized system of policing. (Michel Foucault, 'Discipline and Punish: The Birth of the Prison', New York, 1977). In this seminal work Michel Foucault examines the systems of social power through the lens of the 18th century philosopher Jeremy Bentham, the originator of the now iconic Panopticon. This Panopticon was/is a design for a prison in which the inmate’s cells are arranged in a circular fashion around a central guard tower. The architectural configuration allows for a single guard’s gaze to view all inmates, but prevents those inmates from knowing exactly when they are being watched. It has been observed that “The major effect of the Panopticon: to induce in the inmate a state of conscious and permanent visibility that assures the automatic functioning of power.”

I submit that this design as a “generalized model of functioning and a way of defining power relations in terms of the everyday lives of men.” In the initiatives like NPR and CIDR the subject is seen but he/she does not see. He/she is the object of information, but never a subject in communication.

I submit that Foucault’s Panoptic model is quite valid for NPR and CIDR because these databases are meant to ensure real time tracking and profiling of citizens and turns them into subjects and in a slave like situation.

I submit that tumultuous colonial history of the technologies associated with surveillance reveal that the origins of surveillance happened during free trade of slaves.

I submit that NPR and CIDR treats Indian citizens worse than slaves. We are being identified prior to any act of omission and commission.  It is a case of a deepening of everyday surveillance.

I submit that both NPR and CIDR are similar to what was done under the Britain’s Habitual Criminals Act of 1869 required police to keep an “Alphabetical Registry” and cross-referenced “Distinctive Marks Registry. The first held names, and the latter descriptions of scars, tattoos, birthmarks, balding, pockmarks, and other distinguishing features. This registry of marks was systematically disaggregated into nine general categories pertaining to regions of the body. Therefore there were files for the head and face; throat and neck; chest; belly and groin; back and loins; arms; hands and fingers; thighs and legs; feet and ankles.

I submit that the idea of using dactyloscopy, or fingerprinting, for criminal identification surfaced in a letter to the publication Nature, from a Henry Faulds, a British physician which was deployed by colonial masters in India after First War of India's Independence in 1857.

I submit that the biometric information based identification exercise is being implemented under the influence of transnational companies like Safarn Group and Accenture. It appears that corporate funding to the ruling political parties is facilitating the decision regarding NPR and CIDR. It merits parliamentary probe.  

I submit that unlike the earlier attempts the Database of Union Ministry of Home Affairs and Planning Commission that registers the names and distinctive marks builds on the biometric information of the human body that was used for tracking the misdeeds of the criminals and for identifying prisoners. This is an act of political record keeping. It is an act of using human body as data.

I submit that the proposed convergence of biometric information with financial and personal data such as residence, employment, and medical history heralds the beginning of the demolition of one of the most important firewalls in the structure of privacy.

I submit that this mandatory ID (under NPR and CIDR) in every context acts not as a “unique personal identifier”. This identifier is to everyday surveillance as the discovery of longitude was to navigation.
I submit that George Orwell's 1984 has taught us that an all-knowing corrupt government is a terrifying situation. In recent times the wide spread use of biometrics is attributed to its endorsement by George Bush on May 14, 2002 for use in the US government.

I submit that the lure of biometric technology companies reminds one of Mary Howitt's children's poem, "The Spider and the Fly". In this poem, the spider cunningly tempts and eventually persuades the fly to come into his parlour. At first the fly is hesitant; knowing that all who enter never return. Before long, however, the fly's curiosity and vanity get the better of him and he enters the parlour.

I submit that like the fly, citizens and States are slowly being lured into an intricate web of deception. The poem ends with the spider warning alert citizens to think before acting: "And now dear little children, who may this story read, To idle, silly flattering words, I pray you ne'er give heed: Unto an evil counsellor, close heart and ear and eye, And take a lesson from this tale, of the Spider and the Fly."

I submit that like the fly, citizens and States are slowly being lured into an intricate web of deception.

I submit that if a technology defines a situation as real, it is real in its consequences.  The personal information is a growing commodity. Our personal information is a valued resource. According to the Canadian Internet Policy and Public Interest Clinic, "once a biometric identifier is compromised, it stays compromised".

I wish to seek your attention towards 'Perceptions of Privacy and the Consequences of Apathy' (published in Dalhousie Journal of Interdisciplinary Management – Volume 4 – Spring 2009 3), wherein Sir Ken Macdonald, the Director of Public Prosecutions in Great Britain is quoted as warning that the penalties of adopting a "Big Brother surveillance state could lead to serious consequences and suggests that "we should take very great care to imagine the world we are creating before we build it. We might end up living with something we cannot bear".

I submit that Biometrics “means the technologies that measure and analyse human body characteristics, such as ’fingerprints’, ’eye retinas and irises’, ’voice patterns’, "facial patterns’, ’hand measurements’ and ’DNA’ for authentication purposes” as per Information Technology (Reasonable security practices and procedures and sensitive personal data or information) Rules, 2011 under section 87 read with section 43A of Information Technology Act, 2000.

I submit that National Defense Magazine, a US publication in an article entitled "Defense Department Under Pressure to Share Biometric Data" reveals that the United States has bi-lateral agreements with other nations aimed at sharing biometric data. It reads: “Miller [a consultant to the Office of Homeland Defense and America's security affairs] said the United States has bi-lateral agreements to share biometric data with about 25 countries. Every time a foreign leader has visited Washington during the last few years, the State Department has made sure they sign such an agreement.”

I submit that it appears that NPR is unfolding under such agreement.  The collection of biometric data supports the ideology of biological determinism with its implicit and explicit faith in the biometric technologies. There are dangers of trusting such technological advances for determining social policies.

I submit that a decision of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) decision about violation of the right to privacy and family life by DNA profile retention in criminal justice databanks merits attention. The case was heard publicly on February 27, 2008, and the unanimous decision of 17 judges was delivered on December 4, 2008. The court found that the “blanket and indiscriminate nature” of the power of retention of the fingerprints, cellular samples, and DNA profiles of persons suspected but not convicted of offenses, failed to strike a fair balance between competing public and private interests and ruled that the United Kingdom had “overstepped any acceptable margin of appreciation” in this regard. The technique of DNA profiling was pioneered in the United Kingdom, and it was the first nation to establish a criminal justice DNA databank. The decision is nonappealable. This decision is relevant to  NPR.  

I submit that DNA Profiling is also part of biometric data collection. Unmindful of this, the same is unfolding in India as well. Profiling of citizens in the name social security is a dehumanizing act.  

I submit that the 178 page Unclassified Report of the US Defense Science Board Task Force on Defense Biometrics states in Chapter 17, Recommendation 45 that ‘it is wise to protect, and sometimes even to disguise, the true and total extent of national capabilities in areas related directly to the conduct of security-related activities. This also potentially applies to Biometrics. It goes on to say that this is a classic feature of intelligence and military operations. In short, the goal is to preserve the security of what the intelligence community calls `sources and methods'. The report is attached. It is clear from it that NPR is being undertaken indiscriminately in keeping with such recommendations. NPR is not limited to suspects, it suspects the entire citizenry.  

I submit that once the database of biometric is in place the enlargement of scope for its new predictive uses cannot be ruled out given scientific advancements underway. In such a situation readymade NPR based inferences makes impartiality of the criminal justice system and other systems become questionable.

I submit that this is contrary to the existing legal provisions under Census Act and Citizenship Act since this data will also be used for the "creation and maintenance" of population statistics that can be used for "identification, research, protocol development or quality control".

I submit that quite like prisoners whose biometric data like finger prints can be collected only under the Identification of Prisoners Act, 1920, it is quite outrageous that NPR is taking biometric data of every resident and citizen of India disregarding absence of any legislative mandate for it. In the case of prisoners their biometric data is required to be destroyed on their acquittal but in the case of NPR and Centralized Identities Register (CIDR) of Unique Identification (UID)/Aadhaar Number, the same will be recorded for ever. Are residents and citizens worse than prisoners?

I wish to submit that it is claimed that NPR id being in keeping with the Citizenship Act, 1955 which is “an Act to provide for the acquisition and determination of Indian citizenship”. The Citizenship Rules, 2009 provides for creation of a Register of citizens saying, “The Central Government shall maintain a register containing the names and other details of the persons registered or naturalised as citizen of India”. The Act and the Rules do not provide for creation of Citizens Register based on without biometric data. As a consequence what the Union Home Ministry is doing through NPR is without any legal mandate.

I submit that according to the Manual of Instructions for filling up of the NPR Household Schedule, 2011 prepared by the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner (ORG&CCI), Union Ministry of Home Affairs, the objectives of NPR involves “Collection of personal details of all residents of the country and Capture of photograph and finger prints of all residents who are of age 15 years and above in villages/urban areas.” The data collection for preparation of NPR is undertaken along with the House listing Operations of Census 2011. It categorically states that “NPR will contain the details of all the ’usual residents’ of the country regardless of whether they are citizens or non-citizens.” If that is the case how can it qualify to be an act under the Citizenship Act and Rules given the fact that the Register will have both citizens and non-citizens?

I submit that as per the Manual, NPR’s utility lies in creation of “a comprehensive identity database in the country. This would not only strengthen security of the country but also help in better targeting of the benefits and services under the Government schemes/programmes and improve planning.” It further states, “It may be noted that nationality declared by respondent does not confer any right to Indian Citizenship”. In such a case isn’t Census itself quite sufficient for it?

I submit that Census Commissioner is supposed to gather the data of population under the Census Act, 1948 on the pre-condition that it would be kept secret and it will not be revealed even to the courts.

I submit that unlike the data collected under Census Act which is confidential as per Section 15 of the Act, the provisions of the Citizenship Act and the citizenship or nationality Rules that provides the basis for creation of the Register of citizens do not provide for confidentiality. The fact is that there is no mention of capturing biometrics in the Citizenship Act or Citizenship Rules. It is clear that the collection of biometrics is not a statutory requirement. This is not permissible under also Collection of Statistics Act. But both Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and ORG&CCI which are creating the NPR are collecting biometric data as well. It is not a question of duplication alone; it is a question of treating citizens worse than prisoners.

The Identification of Prisoners Act provides that “Every person who has been, (a) convicted of any offence punishable with rigorous imprisonment for a term of one year or upwards, or of any offence which would render him liable to enhanced punishment on a subsequent conviction, or (b) ordered to give security for his good behaviour under Section 118 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, shall, if so required, allow his measurements and photograph to be taken by a Police Officer in the prescribed manner.”

It further provides that “Any person who has been arrested in connection with an offence punishable with rigorous imprisonment for a term of one year or upwards shall, if so required by a police officer, allow his measurements to be taken in the prescribed manner.” As per Section 5 of the Act, “If a Magistrate is satisfied that, for the purposes of any investigation or proceeding under the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1898, it is expedient to direct any person to allow his measurements or photograph to be taken, he may make an order to the effect, and in that case the person to whom the order relates shall be produced or shall attend at the time and place specified in the order and shall allow his measurements or photograph to be taken, as the case may be, by a police officer:”

I submit that providing for a dignified treatment of the citizens of India, Section 15 of the Census Act establishes that “Records of census not open to inspection nor admissible in evidence”. It reads: No person shall have a right to inspect any book, register or record made by a census-officer in the discharge of his duty as such, or any schedule delivered under section 10 and notwithstanding anything to the contrary in the Indian Evidence Act, 1872, no entry in any such book, register, record or schedule shall be admissible as evidence in any civil proceeding whatsoever or in any criminal proceeding other than a prosecution under this Act or any other law for any act or omission which constitutes an offence under this Act." Demolishing this dignity of the citizens, the Union Home Ministry is dehumanizing citizens by according them a status inferior to that of prisoners.

I submit that as per Section 7 of Identification of Prisoners Act, “Where any person who, not having been previously convicted of an offence punishable with rigorous imprisonment for a term of one year or upwards, has had his measurements taken or has been photographed in accordance with the provisions of this Act is released without trial or discharged or acquitted by any court, all measurements and all photographs (both negatives and copies) so taken shall, unless the court or (in a case where such person is released without trial) the District Magistrate or Sub-divisional Officer for reasons to be recorded in writing otherwise directs, be destroyed or made over to him.” In the case of NPR the data will be stored forever.

I submit that NPR is also mentioned in Column 7 of the Aadaar/UID Enrolment Form. Census Commissioner who is ex-officio Registrar General of India (RGI) has awarded the NPR project to Department of Information Technology for 19 States and 2 Union Territories that covers a total population of 49 crores in urban and 13 crores in rural areas, 74 zones and 410 districts.

I submit that unlike UK, as per ORG&CCI, NPR process include collection of details including biometrics such as photograph, 10 fingerprints and Iris information for all persons aged 15 years and above. This is be done by arranging camps at every village and at the ward level in every town. Each household is required to bring the Acknowledgement Slip to such camps. In the next step, data is printed out and displayed at prominent places within the village and ward for the public to see. After authentication, the lists are sent to the UIDAI for de-duplication and issue of UID Numbers. The cleaned database along with the UID Number will then be sent back to the ORG&CCI and form the NPR.

I submit that it is evident that ORG&CCI has amalgamated its two independent mandates using two Forms for each household in India. The first form relates to the House listing and Housing Census that has 35 questions relating to Building material, Use of Houses, Drinking water, Availability and type of latrines, Electricity, possession of assets etc. The second form relates to the NPR that has 14 questions including name of the person, gender, date of birth, place of birth, marital status, name of father, name of mother, name of spouse, present address, duration of stay at present address, permanent address, occupation, nationality as declared, educational qualification and relationship to head of family. There are 10 columns in the Aadhaar/UID Enrolment Form.

I submit that ORG&CCI admits that “all information collected under the Census is confidential and will not be shared with any agency - Government or private.” But it reveals that “certain information collected under the NPR will be published in the local areas for public scrutiny and invitation of objections. This is in the nature of the electoral roll or the telephone directory. After the NPR has been finalised, the database will be used only within the Government.”

I submit that while dual work of Census and NPR has blurred the line between confidential and non-confidential, UIDAI has gone ahead to seek consent for “sharing information provided…to the UIDAI with agencies engaged in delivery of welfare services" as per Column 9 of the UID/Aadhaar Enrolment Form.

I submit that it has come to light that French surveillance and identification technology company, Safran Group which is involved in UID project has opened an office in the Hindustan Times building in New Delhi. On July 19, 2011, L-1 Identity Solutions which has been awarded contract by UIDAI and is part of World Bank’s eTranform Initiative (for their transformational government project in 14 developing countries including India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh and others) has been bought over by Safran after Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States resolved their national security concerns.

I wish to draw your attention towards a Statement of Concern by eminent citizens including former judges of the Supreme Court and High Court and academicians including Justice V R Krishna Iyer, Justice A P Shah and 15 others who have sought halting of NPR and UID/Aadhaar like identification exercises that has been rejected in countries like UK, China, USA, Philippines and Australia citing national security concerns and grave violation of civil liberties. The statement is attached.

I submit that in such a context, the enactment of Privacy Bill, 2011 should have preceded initiatives like Public Information Infrastructure, NPR and UID/Aadhaar else the very purpose of the proposed legislation is defeated. Before the creation of Data Protection Authority of India (DPAI) as envisaged under Section 49 of the Privacy Bill and Central Electronic Services Delivery Commission (CESDC) under Section 8 of the Electronic Delivery of Services Bill, 2011 with proven impeccable judicial competence, the implementation of all biometric data collection related programs must be stopped both in private as well as in the government. The supersession of the adjudication by DPAI and CESDC in the proposed legislations compromises their independence and does not inspire confidence.

I wish to draw your attention towards a Washington Post news report "Supreme Court worries that new technology creates ‘1984’ scenarios" published on November 9, 2011 that records the deliberation in the US Supreme Court on November 8, 2011 merits attention. “You could tomorrow decide that you put a GPS device on every one of our cars, follow us for a month. No problem under the Constitution?” asked John G. Roberts Jr, Chief Justice of US Supreme Court.

In an elaborate exchange in which the Big Brother of George Orwell’s novel “1984” was referenced six times and the nine judge bench wondered about a person’s reasonable expectation of privacy in such context. GPS device is a tracking device that utilizes the Global Positioning System (GPS) technology. The issue before the court is: Whether the US Constitution or any democratic constitution allows the Government to put a tracking device on a car without either a warrant or the owner’s permission. It is quite clear that NPR, RFID, UID/Aadhhar and proposed DNA Database is meant for tracking citizens for ever. Undertaking a surveillance or identification exercise on all the citizens of India is indeed a matter of judicial concern. Isn’t this judicial deliberation relevant to Indian situation?

I submit that National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) too has expressed grave concerns regarding discrimination, protection of information and identity theft in its written submission to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance in the matter of biometric date based identification. It is reported in NHRC newsletter of August 2011. NHRC’s views are relevant for NPR as well.

It is noteworthy that UIDAI had initially claimed that enrolment based on biometric data is voluntary. Subsequent events and official documents reveal that it is linked to NPR and is explicitly mandatory. This appears to be an exercise in deceiving citizens and legislatures to collect biometric data at any cost.   

I submit that Home Ministry has not disclosed that NPR is linked to National Intelligence Grid (NATGRID), National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC), Draft Human DNA Profiling Bill, Union Surface Transport Ministry’s Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Union Finance Ministry’s National Information Utility, Planning Commission’s Unique Identification Number/Aadhaar, Union Rural Development Ministry’s Land Titling Bill, World Bank’s eTransform Initiative, NATO’s identification policy and Shri Sam Pitroda’s Public Information Infrastructure and Innovations etc. This merits examination and revisit by the Parliament and State legislatures.

I submit that databases like NPR and Centralized Identity Data Register (CIDR) of UID/Aadhaar are saleable commodities.

In all likelihood NPR, DNA Data Bank, CIDR and Criminal Database will get converged in furtherance of World Bank’s eTransform Initiative unfolding in partnership with six transnational companies namely, Gemalto, IBM, L-1 Identity Solutions, Microsoft and Pfizer and two national governments of France and South Korea. Such convergence also includes convergence of private sector, public sector and citizen sector.

I submit that the initiative was announced by the World Bank on April 23, 2010 in Washington. I also wish to draw your attention towards a Wikileaks cable that reveals how the US State department is interested in knowing about India’s Unique Identification program, a biometric database of the world’s largest democracy. The information sought by US authorities is available on Wikileaks website.

I submit that UNDP’s “Innovation Support for Social Protection: Institutionalizing Conditional Cash Transfers“ [Award ID: 00049804, Project: 00061073; Confer: Output 1, Target 1.2 (a) & Output 3 (a), (b)] is also linked to it. I submit that on 9th July, 2011, a "Citizens Declaration Against UID Number" was adopted in New Delhi which called for the audit of the activities of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) since January 2009 by Comptroller Auditor General (CAG) of India.  Prior to this at a meeting "to learn from ongoing struggles, discuss Legislative Oversight on IFIs & strategise towards Policy Standards for National/Private financial institutions in India" held in Kolkata during 20-21st June 2011, some 70 organisations called for the scrapping of the UID Number project which is linked to NPR.

I submit that such convergence of databases poses a threat to minorities and political opponents as they can be targeted in a situation where government is led by any Nazi party like political formations. 

In view of the above, I urge to intervene to safeguard citizens’ privacy and their civil liberties that face an unprecedented onslaught from collection of biometric data and other related surveillance measures that are being bulldozed by unregulated and ungovernable technology companies by overawing the ministry through its marketing blitzkrieg.

I also wish to take this opportunity to seek appointment for a delegation of eminent citizens to meet you with relevant documents in this regard.
Thanking You  

Yours faithfully
Gopal Krishna
Member
Citizens Forum for Civil Liberties (CFCL)
New Delhi
Hon’ble Vice President of India & Chairman, Rajya Sabha
Hon’ble Speaker, Lok Sabha, New Delhi
Hon’ble Members of Parliament
Secretary to the President of India

Chief Minister, Government of Bihar

Chief Minister, Government of Tripura

Chief Minister, Government of Uttar Pradesh

Chief Minister, Government of Tamil Nadu

Chief Minister, Government of Punjab

Chief Minister, Government of Goa

Chief Minister, Government of West Bengal

Chief Minister, Government of Madhya Pradesh

Chief Minister, Government of Odisha

Chief Minister, Government of Jharkhand

Chief Election Commissioner, Election Commission of India

Comptroller & Auditor General of India

Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs

Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Finance

Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law & Justice

Chairman, Public Accounts Committee

Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence

Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs

Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Agriculture

Lt Governor, Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi

Chief Secretary, Government of Andhra Pradesh

Chief Secretary, Government of Bihar

Chief Secretary, Government of Chattisgarh

Chief Secretary, Government of Goa

Chief Secretary, Government of Gujarat

Chief Secretary, Government of Haryana,

Chief Secretary, Government of Himachal Pradesh

Chief Secretary, Government of Jammu and Kashmir

Chief Secretary, Government of Jharkhand

Chief Secretary, Government of Karnataka

Chief Secretary, Government of Kerala

Chief Secretary, Government of Madhya Pradesh

Chief Secretary, Government of Maharashtra

Chief Secretary, Government of Orissa

Chief Secretary, Government of Punjab

Chief Secretary, Government of Rajasthan

Chief Secretary, Government of Tamil Nadu

Chief Secretary, Government of Uttar Pradesh

Chief Secretary, Government of Uttarakhand

Chief Secretary, Government of West Bengal

Chief Secretary, Government of Puducherry

Chief Secretary, Government of Arunachal Pradesh

Chief Secretary, Government of Assam

Chief Secretary, Government of Manipur

Chief Secretary, Government of Meghalaya

Chief Secretary, Government of Mizoram

Chief Secretary, Government of Nagaland

Chief Secretary, Government of Sikkim

Chief Secretary, Government of Tripura

Chief Secretary, Government of Andaman and Nicobar (UT)

Administrator, Government of Dadra and Nagar Haveli (UT)

Administrator, Government of Daman and Diu (UT)

Administrator, Government of Lakshadweep (UT)




[1] Company’s full name was Governor and Company of Merchants of London trading with the East Indies





2702 - 'US spying on everyone via TrapWire'



Scott Shane, NYT News Service | Aug 15, 2012, 07.02AM IST

WASHINGTON: A new release of stolen corporate e-mails by WikiLeaks has set off a flurry of concern and speculation around the world about a counterterrorist software program called TrapWire, which analyses images from surveillance cameras and other data to try to identify terrorists planning attacks.

"US government is secretly spying on EVERYONE using civilian security cameras, say WikiLeaks," read a headline on Monday at the British newspaper Web site Mail Online. The article included a photograph from the movie "The Bourne Identity." PC Magazine described TrapWire as "a secret, comprehensive US surveillance effort."

Though TrapWire Inc, the Virginia company that sells the software, would not comment on Monday, the reports appear to be wildly exaggerated. TrapWire was tried out on 15 surveillance cameras in Washington and Seattle by the homeland security department, but officials said it ended the trial last year because it did not seem promising. A claim in the leaked e-mails that 500 cameras in the New York subway were linked to TrapWire is false, said Paul J Browne, the New York police department's chief spokesman. "We don't use TrapWire." TrapWire is discussed in dozens of e-mails from Stratfor Global Intelligence, a private security firm in Austin, Texas, that were posted online last week by WikiLeaks. The e-mails were part of a large cache captured late last year and early this year by hackers associated with the loose-knit international collective called Anonymous, which gave the e-mails to WikiLeaks. The WikiLeaks web site has been shut down by unidentified hackers in recent days, leading to speculation that it might be retaliation for the e-mail leaks.

TrapWire was originally developed in 2004 by the Abraxas Corporation, which was founded by several former CIA. employees. It later spun off TrapWire, but the CIA connection, along with the company's vague but impressive descriptions of the program's capabilities, appears to have fuelled the furore on web that it was a sort of automated Big Brother.

TrapWire's marketing materials say it uses video cameras and observations by security guards to develop a 10-point description of people near a potential terrorist target and an eight-point description of vehicles. It also records "potential surveillance activity, such as photographing, measuring and signaling," combining in a TrapWire database "this human- entered data with information collected by sensors." If the same person or car is picked up in multiple locations engaging in suspicious behaviour, the software is supposed to make the connection. But a privacy statement on the TrapWire Web site says the software does not capture "personal information."

Jay Stanley, who studies threats to privacy at the American Civil Liberties Union, said many companies had tried to use technology "to find terrorist plots in an ocean of information about everyday activities."

2701 - Fake enrolments in Aadhaar Phase-I spark security fear


Express news service : New Delhi, Tue Aug 14 2012, 02:41 hrs

Delhi government officials have detected a large number of fraudulent enrolments in the first phase of Aadhaar that ended in February after registering 1.3 crore people in the city.
Officials in the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) said on Monday many people got themselves enrolled without providing their biometric identification. The “biometric exception” clause is essentially meant for rarest-of-the-rare cases, say, for people with high degree of physical disabilities, they said.
“We are going to take this up with the UIDAI. It is a major security threat. A rigorous protocol needs to be followed for enrolling individuals under this clause,” Principal Secretary (Revenue) Vijay Dev said.
Another security threat, which even the Union Home Ministry is concerned about, has been non-verification of the residential and other addresses provided by those who got enrolled in the first phase, Dev said.
“To complete the enrolment process for the remaining population, verification of address has been made mandatory. We have learnt that the UIDAI would make alternative arrangements to deliver the UID cards and letters. Several letters have returned undelivered in Phase-I. There have been cases of letters being found in dustbins,” he said.
The UIDAI has asked the Postal department to redirect letters to a changed address if the person has formally informed the post office about it.
Deputy Director General of UIDAI’s Delhi zone Sujata Chaturvedi admitted that the irregularities in the biometric clause have been detected and “the guilty officials were penalised”.
“For Phase-II, we will deploy retired government officials as verification agents to look at the documents at all centres. We didn’t do that in Phase-I. We are streamlining this process across all the states and Union Territories to be covered over the next 18 months in Phase-II. There is no security threat,” Chaturvedi said.
Officials said they would try to prevent fraudulent enrolments when Phase-II of Aadhaar is launched this week to register 40 lakh people in the city.
In the National Capital Territory of Delhi, a total of 1,30,60,329 enrolments were done till February against a targeted population of 1,67,53,235.
UIDAI officials said 1,14,18,763 letters have been generated, of which 1,03,12,792 were delivered.


2700 - Aadhaar Bill to be delayed further


A. M. JIGEESH


NEW DELHI, AUG. 14: 
The Nandan Nilekani-led Unique Identity Number (UID) initiative has run up against a political wall.
In the face of near unanimous opposition from political parties, the National Identification Authority Bill, the legislation for establishing the National Identification Authority of India for issuing unique identification (Aadhaar) numbers, will be delayed further in Parliament.
The Government has decided not to bring the Bill in the Monsoon session of Parliament as the Cabinet Committee on “Unique Identification Authority of India related issues” is yet to take a final view on the Bill.
Playing down the reported reservations earlier raised by the Finance Ministry, the Home Ministry and the Planning Commission on Aadhaar, Government sources claimed the Bill is stuck due to “technical” reasons. The Cabinet Committee was recently reconstituted with Sushilkumar Shinde taking over the Home portfolio.
Sources added that the committee, chaired by the Prime Minister, is yet to take a view on the Finance standing committee report on the Bill.
“The Bill will not be tabled in the Monsoon session of Parliament,” a senior Government functionary told Business Line. He said the Government will try to evolve a consensus on the Bill before tabling it again in Parliament. “We will carefully study the report of the standing committee. The UPA is committed to implement the Aadhaar scheme,” he added.
He also indicated that the Government is “not sure” of getting the Bill passed in Rajya Sabha.
The Opposition has slammed the “delay” in tabling the Bill in parliament. “We don’t understand why the Government is delaying the tabling of the Bill. The Standing Committee has rejected the Bill. The Government, rather than bringing an amended version of the Bill to Parliament, is circumventing the House and implementing the scheme merrily without the approval of Parliament,” senior BJP MP Justice M Rama Jois said.
The Finance Standing Committee, headed by senior BJP MP Yashwant Sinha, had recommended that the Government should reconsider the Aadhaar scheme and introduce a new Bill.
The report had said that the Government did not conduct any feasibility study evaluating financial implications and prevention of identity theft before approving of the scheme.
The report had also pointed out that there are differences among various departments on implementing the scheme.
jigeesh.am@thehindu.co.in


2699 - Govt likely to use Aadhar to cut SSA flab - Indian Express


urabhi : New Delhi, Tue Aug 14 2012, 00:56 hrs

A Rs 2,000 crore saving made by Maharashtra government using Aadhar-based identification to cut down on bogus student enrollments has made government mandarins in Delhi optimistic that they can now cut down funds for welfare programmes while improving the delivery mechanism.
To do this, the Centre is also planning to get all students registered under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan to be provided an Aadhar-based identity. The revamped programme could be rolled out in the next academic year, said top government officials involved with the expenditure plans.
“We are holding discussions with the ministry of human resource development. Using UID will help weed out fake students from the SSA,” a senior finance ministry official told The Indian Express. Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan costs the Centre about Rs 25,515 crore each year and about the same from the states to universalise elementary expenditure but like most expenditure programme is riddled with leakages.
The move is a bunch of measures that have begun to show results in the delivery of government programmes. As a result, the Centre can confidently keep the funding for major programmes that cost it Rs 5,21,025 crore in 2012-13 almost constant but make the spend far more effective.
For instance, an equally effective pilot project on Aadhar-linked cash transfer in Alwar, Rajasthan, has also made the officers excited as it provides a key breakthrough in oil subsidy. By providing cash transfers to the target population instead of making them line up in ration shops, the district has seen a significant drop in the sales of the product. Sales dropped by 79 per cent in December 2011 against the same month a year ago in the district. After the drive was intensified, kerosene sales have turned into a trickle in the area. It is turning out that almost 100 per cent of the ration card holders in the district for subsidised kerosene were fake. “This shows that using Aadhar-enabled transfers helped stop fake sales,” the official pointed out.
The numbers are just what the Centre needed to bring its expenditure budget under control to rein in the fiscal deficit.
In the current fiscal for instance the government faces an oil subsidy bill of Rs 32,765 crore just for the first quarter from the public sector oil marketing companies but has no money to pay them now.
The Maharashtra pilot study has revealed that use of biometrics to identify genuine students could save the state over 5 per cent of its annual plan expenditure. These are big numbers that have made other states sit up too.
From 2013-14, in Maharashtra, Aadhar numbers will be a must for teachers and students as a pre-condition for a school to get grants in aids. Simultaneously the state government has also announced that thanks to this initiative, it will shut down 2,500 schools that had fudged the number of students enrolled with it.

Plugging leakages
* Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan costs the Centre about Rs 25,515 crore each year and about the same from the states, but like most expenditure programme is riddled with leakages
* A Rs 2,000 crore saving made by Maharashtra government using Aadhar-based identification to cut down on bogus student enrollments has made the Centre optimistic
* Revamped programme could be rolled out in the next academic year


2698 - Maharashtra's Aadhaar model of linking govt data to be replicated

Sanjay Jog / Mumbai Aug 14, 2012, 00:28 IST

The Maharashtra government on Monday got a boost from Unique Identification Authority chief Nandan Nilekani, who said the state's model of linking UID data with citizen-related data compiled by various departments would be replicated across the country. Multiple departments “have data in silos which do not talk to each other” and linking this data with UID would bring in an integrated view and help governments to provide better service to citizens, believes Nilekani.
Besides, the UID Authority says the state's registration pace for UID enrolment is well ahead of others. About 40.7 million residents were enrolled in the first phase and the government wants to list 80 per cent of the state's population of 110 million by March 2013.

Nilekani, during a meeting with state chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and bureaucrats of various departments, wanted use of the UID for opening no-frill bank accounts, with beneficiaries of various government schemes getting payment through UID-linked bank accounts.

A senior official from the state information technology department told Business Standard the central government has selected Mumbai city, Mumbai suburban, Pune, Wardha, Amravati and Nandurbar for such financial inclusion. The government briefed Nilekani about various initiatives in this regard. For instance, in Padgha village of Thane district, with a population below 12,000, the government has conducted a pilot project to make payments directly into bank accounts by only specifying the Aadhaar number.
Further, a pilot is underway to make payments through multiple banks by only specifying the Aadhaar number. About 1,400 Aadhaar-linked bank accounts have been opened so far through Bank of India in Colaba, south Mumbai.

2697 - Maharashtra govt to make UID number compulsory for students - DNA

Published: Monday, Aug 13, 2012, 22:53 IST 
By DNA Correspondent | Agency: DNA

State government has decided to make the UID number compulsory for the government grants for the students and teachers from aided schools from the next academic year. The housing schemes like SRA also have been announced to be linked with the UID soon.
Maharashtra, which has been second after Andhra Pradesh in the enrolment, has planned certain features that the central government has vowed to adopt. The state information and technology department is launchingfinancial inclusion scheme in the six districts (including Mumbai and Mumbai suburbs) where the bank accounts will be directly linked to the UID.The beneficiaries of governmentgrants, such as wages on NREGS, pensions to the senior citizens, will get the amounts credited to their accounts.
To facilitate No Frill bank accounts, as anounced by the central government in its budget this year, the UID facilities will be made available at the bank branches. “However, for certain schemes it will be made compulsory and the school education grant is one of them. Unless the UID numbers of the students and the teachers are not provided, no grant will be given to the aided schools. The school education department has been informed to be prepared for the same,” said an official from IT Department.
Nandan Nilekani, chairmanof the Unique Identification Authority of India had a review meeting with chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and key officials from the state government at Sahyadri Guest house on Monday. Nilekani, who expressed satisfaction over the state performance told the state officials that the self-seeding of the information on the UID will be adopted by the authority for the national enrolment.
Through self-seeding facility, the UID card holder is allowed to update information related to the other utilities including his ration card, LPG number by sending an SMS.
State government has enrolled 4.07 crore citizens for the UID, of them 3.44 crore cards have already been issued. The government has stepped up the drive by setting up 1100 machines across the state. Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan said that linking the UID with the bank accounts will help the government bringing transparency in the government scheme.


2696 - IDENTITY CRISIS - Hindu



Several months ago, someone came to record my details for the National Population Register. Then on July 28 she came again and said that I should go to a certain place within a couple of days to have my biometric data recorded. She gave me a piece of paper which said this was “mandatory” in view of such-and-such Act and so-and-so Rules.
On July 30, after I had had photographs taken of my face, irises and fingertips, I was given a paper called an “Acknowledgement/Resident Copy”. This bore at its top the logo of AADHAAR and the words “Unique Identification Authority of India”. There is no trace of “National Population Register”, the outfit to which I thought I was going.
Does everyone now work for Nandan Nilekani? What is the need for false pretences? And is this business not against the law?
Mukul Dube,
Delhi.

2695 - India’s enduring problem with malnutrition


11 August 2012 Last updated at 02:34 GMT
By Andrew North
BBC News, Madhya Pradesh


Deshraj reaches out for his mother's breast as she balances him on her knees, sitting outside her low, mud-walled home.
The little boy cries, but with no strength.
Deshraj is two years old but barely larger than a newborn and crazed by hunger.
His hair is patchy, his eyes are sunken and his legs like twigs - he is so weak he can't even walk.
But his mother turns him away; she has nothing left to give.
"We can't get him to eat bread," she says in an irritated tone, clearly annoyed at being asked questions, and walks away.
Deshraj is one of millions of Indian children suffering severe malnutrition, an enduring problem Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has called a "national shame".
Continue reading the main story
Start Quote
Sometimes the mothers don't know how best to look after their children”
Health worker

Yet despite supposedly spending billions of rupees on poverty and food-relief programmes - and during a period of sustained economic growth - the government has made only a dent in the problem.
It is estimated that one in four of the world's malnourished children is in India, more even than in sub-Saharan Africa.
Weakened by hunger, they are more vulnerable to disease, with tens of thousands dying every year. Millions more will be physically and mentally stunted for life because they don't get enough to eat in their crucial early years.

'Hunger belt'

India has fallen in child development rankings, putting it behind poorer countries such as neighbouring Bangladesh or the Democratic Republic of Congo, according to a new study by the Save the Children charity.
So when UK Prime Minister David Cameron hosts a summit this weekend on child malnutrition worldwide, India is one of the countries of greatest concern.
Yet this is hardly a new problem. India has been arguing over what to do about hunger and the poverty that underpins it for years - while its farms produce ever more food.

The feeding centre in Markheda village is empty apart from a few sacks of emergency food

On paper there is already a multi-billion dollar network in place to look after children like Deshraj.

But too often, corruption and mismanagement mean it doesn't work.
Deep in the so-called "hunger belt" of central India, Deshraj's village, Markheda, has a government-subsidised food shop funded by the Public Distribution System (PDS).

It entitles every family living below the official poverty line to 35kg of grain or rice a month.

His extreme case is known too: he has been identified as one of 19 "dangerously malnourished" children in the village, making him eligible for emergency help from the local "nutrition rehabilitation centre" in the nearby town of Shivpuri.
But here it gets even more complicated.

"His family won't agree to send him," complains one of the health workers who suddenly arrive in the village while the BBC is there.
It is true that Deshraj's mother does not appear overly concerned about his condition. Like most people here, she's illiterate and doesn't seem to understand many of the questions she is asked before walking away.
Continue reading the main story
Start Quote
"I can't remember when we last saw someone from the government here”
Markheda villager
"Sometimes the mothers don't know how best to look after their children," says the health worker.
There are other boys and girls in this settlement of about 600 families who appear in better, although far from perfect, health.

Bottom rung
But it's questionable too how committed the local authorities are to helping remote villages like this.
Markheda's residents are all tribals, on the bottom rung of India's complicated social ladder and largely out of sight. No one would find this place by accident, a half-hour drive through scrub and forest from the nearest road.
Villagers say the government PDS store is usually closed. It just happens to be open when the BBC visits, but inside it is empty apart from a few small sacks of emergency food left in one corner.
"I can't remember when we last saw someone from the government here," says one villager.
And Om Prakash, the government team leader, admits they came to the village because "we wanted to see what you were doing".
In another hut, Dineshi and her husband Brijmohan are still mourning their four-year-old son, Kalua, who died a few weeks ago.

Brijmohan's four-year-old son died due to lack of medical care
"He got sick and stopped eating," says Brijmohan.
"We'd taken him to the doctor once before but we couldn't afford to go again and he got weaker and weaker."
There is no doctor nearby, and they have no transport. The family's only income is from selling baskets Brijmohan makes from tree saplings.
Blades of light pierce the gloom through holes in the thatched roof, catching their three-month-old son Mukesh as his mother Dineshi rocks him in a small hammock to relieve the thick summer heat.
He is still being breast-fed: the problems for children usually begin after six months, once they should start on solids.
The family gets food from the government PDS store, but sometimes "there's not enough, or it's bad quality".
"We're often hungry," Brijmohan says.
But there are plenty of people committed to tackling the problem.
At the nutrition rehabilitation centre in Shivpuri, Dr Raj Kumar is checking on a two-year-old girl called Anjini, brought in about a week earlier weighing just 3.8kg.
Many children are born heavier than that. Anjini has also picked up TB and pneumonia - common conditions among malnourished kids.
She is still in a dire state, barely able to lift her stick-thin limbs, but with constant feeding at the centre she has put on weight.
Dr Kumar says she will survive, but "she will be stunted for life".

'Left to rot'
Under pressure, India's ruling coalition introduced a Food Security bill last year, supposed to enshrine the right to food for all. But no one is betting on when it will be passed amid the country's current political deadlock.
And some critics say there is still not enough political will to tackle the hunger problem.
Other more free-market oriented voices argue that the whole approach of subsidising food and providing guarantees is wrong, simply creating a dependency culture.

India has had yet another record harvest
What is really needed, suggests Arti Tivari from the nutrition centre, is for existing programmes to be "implemented properly and for people to do their jobs properly" - a polite way of saying that graft and corruption still infect the system.
It is a simple fact that no Indian child needs to go hungry.
A short drive from the nutrition centre is a massive grain warehouse, sacks of wheat piled nearly to the ceiling - part of a network of government food stores across the country.
For years now, India has been producing more food than it needs. Yet every year large quantities simply rot in these warehouses.
The situation is much better than a decade ago, insists government minister Sachin Pilot, whose portfolio is officially telecoms but who has become closely involved in food policy.
But he admits "it's unacceptable having so many children with pot bellies and stick legs".
India still has a very young population, and politicians often talk of this future "demographic dividend".
But there will not be much of a dividend if so many Indian children continue to be held back and stunted in their first years of life.