28 NOV, 2010, 04.33AM IST,
SHANTANU NANDAN SHARMA, ET BUREAU
For Nandan Nilekani , the chairman of Unique Identification Authority of India , the challenge now is not just to roll out one lakh or more Aadhaar numbers a day, but to create an ecosystem for players to build applications on top of this identity infrastructure. Now, Nilekani has been negotiating with the Reserve Bank of India to allow banks to treat Aadhaar number as the only document for opening an account. In a free-wheeling interview with Shantanu Nandan Sharma, Nilekani talks about life after Aadhaar when a villager would be able to use a micro-ATM in his locality, or a migrant from Bihar would be able to flash out his number in Mumbai as an identity proof. Excerpts:
You will issue only a number and not a card. That means even after I get my UID number, I will have to carry separate ID proofs?
Nilekani : Whether it’s a passport, a ration card or a PAN card—each one of these has a purpose. Whether they will continue to remain as it is, or merge in the future, it’s a matter of future direction. Fundamentally, what we are giving is an identity infrastructure.
What does the number mean for a citizen?
Nilekani : Broadly, Aadhaar, as it is called, addresses several things. It addresses the issue of inclusion. It’s most important because we have hundreds of millions of Indians who don’t have an acknowledged existence by states. And if you don’t have acknowledged existence, you can’t avail of many public and other services. You can’t rent a house, you can’t get a job. In a way, identity is the foundation for life in some sense. First, it gives a chance to a large part of people who are not in the banking system to be a part of the system.
Second, it addresses the problem of migration. India is already a migrant country. We have 120 million migrant population. And the migration is going to go up in the next 20 years. We can give them a portable identity which they can carry with them and authenticate wherever they are.
What does a migrant do now?
Nilekani : Either he has no identity or even if he has one, say a ration card, the moment he moves out of his area, it does not have any validity. The ration card is a state document, not a national document. What Aadhaar does is that you get a number in one part of the country, and it is valid in all parts of the country. It gives you national portability. Ours is a nationally verifiable identity infrastructure. So it makes identity portable like a mobile phone makes communication portable.
Also, it provides a platform for innovation. The way we have made this architecture, it allows new innovators to build new services on the top of it. Therefore, it can be a platform for delivery.
What’s the road map ahead?
Nilekani : We launched it on September 29, now we have already crossed 100,000 in seven states so far. We are sending the users a letter, and that itself sometime will be a proof of their identity. And we are providing online authentication all over India.
You will issue only a number and not a card. That means even after I get my UID number, I will have to carry separate ID proofs?
Nilekani : Whether it’s a passport, a ration card or a PAN card—each one of these has a purpose. Whether they will continue to remain as it is, or merge in the future, it’s a matter of future direction. Fundamentally, what we are giving is an identity infrastructure.
What does the number mean for a citizen?
Nilekani : Broadly, Aadhaar, as it is called, addresses several things. It addresses the issue of inclusion. It’s most important because we have hundreds of millions of Indians who don’t have an acknowledged existence by states. And if you don’t have acknowledged existence, you can’t avail of many public and other services. You can’t rent a house, you can’t get a job. In a way, identity is the foundation for life in some sense. First, it gives a chance to a large part of people who are not in the banking system to be a part of the system.
Second, it addresses the problem of migration. India is already a migrant country. We have 120 million migrant population. And the migration is going to go up in the next 20 years. We can give them a portable identity which they can carry with them and authenticate wherever they are.
What does a migrant do now?
Nilekani : Either he has no identity or even if he has one, say a ration card, the moment he moves out of his area, it does not have any validity. The ration card is a state document, not a national document. What Aadhaar does is that you get a number in one part of the country, and it is valid in all parts of the country. It gives you national portability. Ours is a nationally verifiable identity infrastructure. So it makes identity portable like a mobile phone makes communication portable.
Also, it provides a platform for innovation. The way we have made this architecture, it allows new innovators to build new services on the top of it. Therefore, it can be a platform for delivery.
What’s the road map ahead?
Nilekani : We launched it on September 29, now we have already crossed 100,000 in seven states so far. We are sending the users a letter, and that itself sometime will be a proof of their identity. And we are providing online authentication all over India.