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, June 1, 2010

175 - UID Round-Up: All The News on AADHAAR : For IT, Against It ? By Siddarth Raman

UID Round-Up: All The News on AADHAAR : For IT, Against It?



It’s been quite a while since we wrote about the latest developments on the UID front. The Unique Identification project might just be the biggest changer in the way we lead our lives.
Recently, the UIDAI (Unique ID Authority of India), lead by ex-IT Czar Nandan Nilekani, was renamed Aadhaar. It also has a new logo, the halo of the Sun bearing the imprint of a thumb. In the words of Mr. Nilekani : “We wanted a name that had a national appeal, could be recognised across the country and resonate in different languages, besides being easy to remember and speak. Aadhaar is a door to open all other doors.”
While initially there people assumed that there would be one major IT vendor, who’d take care of all the tech requirements (we’d also blogged about biggies like Microsoft, Google among several Indian companies showing interest), new reports confirm that the UIDAI has split the project into many small ones and distributed them to speed up work. No single IT contracat is likely to cross Rs. 30 crore.
A few notable contracts:
Ernst & Young bagged the consulting partner for 7.05 crore. MindTree outbid Accenture to secure a Rs. 19 crore contract for the development of the core software application. What is remarkable is that MindTree outbid Accenture by 71 crores. Business Standard interviewed the head of a global IT and consulting firm who commented that for most companies, bagging a single UID contract was a certificate that would ensure their future participation in other government contracts. This, by extension explains why companies would bid as low as conceivable, which in turn helps the nation.
The scale of this project is huge. Mr Nilekani has commented “Funds are not an issue” as the 13th Financial Commission plans to allot 3,000 crores over the next 5 years. The entire project is estimated to offer over Rs. 15,000 crores in terms of opportunity to the IT and hardware industry (for biometric implementation)
A recent interview with the Economic Times, Nandan Nilkenai spoke about how the UID will overcome the fundamental obstacle of a lack of identity, especially for the masses.
Though nowadays a lot of procedures like procuring a driver’s license or passport have simplified, there are still a lot of issues people face when it comes to original documents and/or police verifications. The 12-digit UID hopes to give access to better resources like education, health and financial services.
A few other noteworthy points from the interview :
  • 600 million Aadhaar numbers will be issued over the next four and a half years.
  • Banks will credit Rs. 100 directly to those who are not financially included, thereby ensuring that everyone has a bank account number
  • NGOs will be involved for social outreach
The entire interview is here.
While earlier, there was speculation regarding whether identification would be done via finger printing or iris scans, the verdict is out. It’s both!
The cabinet recently allowed use of Biometrics. The reason for using Iris scans as well as Fingerprints is that children below 15 yrs don’t have fully developed prints (there is also an issue with labourers and others who might have got their prints erased due to extensive application of pressure).
The ongoing national census will collect demographic data for the project. Of course, any biometrics procured will have to be updated regularly.
Now, Government Kiosks, which are already being setup to offer digitized government services, will also be used to aid in data collection for the UID projet. Companies like NIIT and Educomp all ready vying contracts for training employees who’ll be responsible for collecting data.
The UID is a major overhaul to India’s current system. Like any major change, it brings with itself a ray of hope, and huge clouds of doubt.
I read this nice piece in the Economic Timesa on how the UID could benefit the town of Nalanda. But, while Mr. Nilekani talks of briding the rich-poor divide in India, there is quite a lot of opposition to the idea.
There is in fact, a website setup for Citizens against UID. Their major arguments against the project:
  1. It’s techno-racketing which will profit the IT industry and the biometrics industry.
  2. It costs crores when 400 million Indian citizens live below the poverty line
  3. The appointment of the person in charge was not transparent.
  4. It violates the privacy of the individual
  5. The project and its goals might be heavily influenced by private players looking at profits.
Of course, like we’ve commented before, the misuse of this number has great consequences, especially a person’s entire identity depends on it. However, as far as I understand, the UID will only “aid” identification, it will not be the only identity of the citizen.
Any opinions, readers?
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