To combat corruption, the Indian government has decided to go in for the unique identification or ‘Aadhaar’ format to plug loopholes both at the worksite as well as at the time of disbursement of money
In another step towards ensuring transparency and accountability in implementation of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS), the Union government has decided to convert all 10 crore beneficiaries of the rural job scheme to the unique identification (UID) format in 18 months.
An agreement between the rural development ministry and the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) was signed just weeks away from the kick-off of the ambitious numbering process for all Indian residents. “We hope to start the rollout in three to four months,” said Urban Development Minister C P Joshi, whose ministry is in charge of the most expensive welfare scheme in India’s history.
The ministry aims to plug most loopholes by using UID verification both at the worksite as well as at the time of disbursement of money. Joshi said use of a biometric database linked with other ICT (Information, Communication and Technology) tools would help check the fudging of NREGA records. Exact implementation, however, would be decided by the state governments, he said, pointing to various examples across the country.
States like Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat and Bihar have already rolled out various fingerprint-based verification systems for implementation of the scheme. For example, Bihar has issued 3 lakh smart cards with the impressions of all 10 fingers and the iris of beneficiaries planted on the cards. The smart card is used to check the identity of the beneficiary.
To prevent the problem of fictitious dams, culverts and roads being constructed by panchayat authorities, Andhra Pradesh has issued handheld devices to work coordinators who have to take a picture of the construction and upload it on to a central database.
The UID programme, or Aadhaar, aims to provide every resident with a unique identification number that can serve as proof of identity for everything from opening a bank account to receiving government subsidy to getting grain and other products from ration shops.
According to the memorandum, MGNREGS workers, all of whom must have an Aadhaar number, will have to verify themselves against the UID data on a location-aware device at the worksite. To prevent money from being misappropriated by local government officials, benefits will be released only upon biometric verification of the recipient. Getting a UID will also give the beneficiary a bank account to receive his dues.
The Aadhaar project is all set to start rolling out in the coming weeks, said UIDAI head Nandan Nilekani. “We have entered into agreements with 10 banks, LIC (the Life Insurance Corporation of India), all the states. All the tests have been done. All the registrars are ready to roll out,” he said.
Nilekani has a target of issuing 10 crore Aadhaar numbers by March 2011. He is expected to add another 60 crore Indians to the list by March 2014.
Source: DNA, August 22, 2010
Press Information Bureau, August 20, 2010
http://business.rediff.com , August 2010