The central government wants to know the details of a particular person on 8 different topics while the state government has asked for 15
By Yentha
On Sep 29, 2011
On Sep 29, 2011
'Aadhaar' registration work in progress
Trivandrum: Yentha had earlier reported the controversy (Controversy Shrouds ‘Aadhaar’ Project) regarding the collection of data for Aadhaar between the state government and the post office which is an agency of the central government.
The government has already started distributing forms and collecting photographs from citizens for ‘Aadhaar’ (Unique Identity Number) project which has been initiated by the central government and is being carried out through the postal agency. It has also the backing of the state government, which distributes forms through various sources like ‘Akshaya.’ But, apparently there seems to be confusion between the data collected by the state government and that collected by the central government.
While speaking to Yentha, an official from State department explained, “Both the state and central governments are equal partners in the project. While the central government wants to know the details of a particular person on 8 different topics, the state government has asked for 15. The extra data is being collected by the state government as part of the department integration plan and the questions naturally vary with each department. The information thus collected would prove to be a valuable asset for the state government when it comes to implementing aid and subsidies to the BPL (below poverty line) families.”
While the explanation seems to fit, the question still remains whether a person living well below the poverty line, who applies for Aadhaar using the form from the post office, which does not contain relevant questions, is eligible for the aid or subsidy.
When Yentha contacted the postal department to clarify it, we were informed that while the central government has prepared the form on a KYR (Know Your Resident) basis, the state government has prepared it as ‘KYRPlus’. The business development officials of the postal department had this to say to Yentha: “We are functioning according to the guide lines set for us by the central government. The forms that we distribute, has both KYR and KYRPlus in it. Information specified for a particular department would be collected through KYRPlus and it will vary with the department of concern.”
The government has already started distributing forms and collecting photographs from citizens for ‘Aadhaar’ (Unique Identity Number) project which has been initiated by the central government and is being carried out through the postal agency. It has also the backing of the state government, which distributes forms through various sources like ‘Akshaya.’ But, apparently there seems to be confusion between the data collected by the state government and that collected by the central government.
While speaking to Yentha, an official from State department explained, “Both the state and central governments are equal partners in the project. While the central government wants to know the details of a particular person on 8 different topics, the state government has asked for 15. The extra data is being collected by the state government as part of the department integration plan and the questions naturally vary with each department. The information thus collected would prove to be a valuable asset for the state government when it comes to implementing aid and subsidies to the BPL (below poverty line) families.”
While the explanation seems to fit, the question still remains whether a person living well below the poverty line, who applies for Aadhaar using the form from the post office, which does not contain relevant questions, is eligible for the aid or subsidy.
When Yentha contacted the postal department to clarify it, we were informed that while the central government has prepared the form on a KYR (Know Your Resident) basis, the state government has prepared it as ‘KYRPlus’. The business development officials of the postal department had this to say to Yentha: “We are functioning according to the guide lines set for us by the central government. The forms that we distribute, has both KYR and KYRPlus in it. Information specified for a particular department would be collected through KYRPlus and it will vary with the department of concern.”
Yentha pointed this contradictory factor to the attention of Aadhaar officials and made further investigation about the development of this contradiction. We first approached Keltron, which developed software for Kerala UID database collection. Identity Card Project, General Manager Nandhini said, “Keltron has also been doing work for Aadhaar. We are concentrating on the urban areas of Kerala. At present we are working in Ernakulam, Pathanamthitta, Kollam, Alappuzha and Trivandrum districts and a totalof 2 lakh people have registered through our centres. We have requested the Postal Department to share the Software. We have discussed this matter in our meeting also.”
We also contacted State Department coordinator Rajeevan to know how much effective their efforts have been. He said, “We intervened in the matter and told the postal department to use the data base of Kerala. We had also given them the software training for it.”
However, postal officials say that they have not taken the decision to include the details that the state government wants. The official said, “We are only getting Rs.50 from Central Government for the UID of one person. Two agencies are doing the work for us. We are paying Rs. 35 for this agency and the remaining Rs 15 is the profit of Postal department. In this we have to meet the salary of the staff also. Then how is it possible for us to print additional data that the state government wants? If we insist, they will demand more money for it.”
All these details prove that Aadhaar work is progressing in Kerala along with this controversy. Somehow a person who has taken Aadhaar already has to face this dilemma.
We also contacted State Department coordinator Rajeevan to know how much effective their efforts have been. He said, “We intervened in the matter and told the postal department to use the data base of Kerala. We had also given them the software training for it.”
However, postal officials say that they have not taken the decision to include the details that the state government wants. The official said, “We are only getting Rs.50 from Central Government for the UID of one person. Two agencies are doing the work for us. We are paying Rs. 35 for this agency and the remaining Rs 15 is the profit of Postal department. In this we have to meet the salary of the staff also. Then how is it possible for us to print additional data that the state government wants? If we insist, they will demand more money for it.”
All these details prove that Aadhaar work is progressing in Kerala along with this controversy. Somehow a person who has taken Aadhaar already has to face this dilemma.
