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

Tuesday, May 31, 2016

10058 - ODING ON THE OVERDRAFT - Mumbai Mirror


By Ajit Ranade, Mumbai Mirror | May 28, 2016, 12.00 AM IST


The PM's scheme to reach the poor by giving them bank access was a great idea, but giving them unsecured loans may not be.

Two years ago, on India's independence day, prime minister Modi announced an ambitious financial inclusion scheme. It was officially launched as the Pradhan Mantri Jana Dhan Yojana (JDY), with the explicit aim of reaching the unbanked population. The PM exhorted banks to reach out to the last person without an account in the remotest part of the country. Such was the missionary zeal of bankers, that in just a few months more than 100 million such accounts were opened. The pace set a Guinness World Record. There is a website which tracks these accounts, and as of May 11, 2016 it reported 218 million accounts. This achievement is simply outstanding.

Now cue to the Economic Survey this year. This is the official annual report card of the Indian economy tabled in Parliament by the Finance Minister. This year's Survey talked about spreading JAM across the economy. No, the finance minister did not suddenly think of the whole country as a slice of bread! JAM is a trinity of J - Jan Dhan Yojana, A - Aadhaar card or the universal ID number and M - mobile phone. The Survey argued that India's poor can be better accessed and served by using the technology of these three platforms, eventually graduated to cashless transactions.

The direct benefit transfer of cooking gas subsidy is an example of JAM in action. Here's how it works - your bank account and cooking gas connection are linked to your Aadhaar number. You pay full price for the gas cylinder at the shop, which eliminates the black markets in cylinders. Your subsidy amount is credited directly to your bank account. The JAM model is being applied to many other schemes such as old age and widow pensions, and disability payments. It is possible that even ration cards, and food subsidies under the Public Distribution System will become JAM enabled i.e. you pay full price for the food grain and the subsidy is deposited in your account.

There are many critics of JAM, and the loudest in the chorus are those worried about the "Big Brother" aspect that JAM can come parcelled with - when registering for an Aadhaar card, you submit biometric data. Linking your bank and biometric data to centrally administered schemes gives the government significant access into your personal life.

Others worry that the JAM can't extend far enough because there are very few physical bank branches in remote areas. How will people access money in their accounts, if there's no ATM nearby? The government's hope is that lakhs of business correspondents will spring up (like the village kirana store) who will be the extension counters of the banks they represent. The viability of expanding banking reach through agents is still untested.

Meanwhile the 218 million accounts of JDY have already got about Rs 37,000 crores of balance. The Prime Minister in his monthly radio address hinted that these account holders will get an overdraft facility along with a credit and debit card. Which means they can spend more money than they have in their account. When will they repay? Not clear. Will the account always be in overdraft mode, i.e. showing a negative balance?

Now think about this. If of our 218 million new account holders, even 100 million decided to draw an overdraft of Rs 5,000 each, that would amount to total bank credit of Rs 50,000 crores. Since this credit is being extended without any other paperwork, or collateral, is this not like a loan mela?

The amount of Rs 5,000 per account may seem small, and similar to loans given out by microfinance institutions (MFI). But MFI borrowers have an almost 100 percent repayment record, since they are organised as self-help groups, or as joint liability borrowers. One default can black list the entire group, hence there is great repayment discipline. The only way that the MFI model fails is when it is politicised, and borrowers sense loan waivers (as happened in the undivided Andhra Pradesh in 2009).

The recent suggestion of blanket overdraft for Jan Dhan account holders, if not thought through carefully, can easily become another loan mela with huge potential losses for banks. Then the JAM will taste bitter.