AADHAAR RELATED ARTICLES: 3223 - Aadhaar loses data, many to enrol again

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

Thursday, April 11, 2013

3223 - Aadhaar loses data, many to enrol again

Aadhaar loses data, many to enrol again

DC | L. Venkat Ram Reddy | 08th Apr 2013

Hyderabad: If you have enrolled for an Aadhaar card two years ago and have not received the card yet, you have to apply all over again.

Officials of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) in Hyderabad admitted that the data pertaining to applicants who enrolled in the first phase in 2011 and prior to April 2012, has been lost and cannot be traced now.

Nearly two lakh people in the city enrolled two years ago but have not received the cards and have been told to enrol again.

“Several technical problems cropped up initially in the Aadhaar enrolment process in 2011. The data entry operators appointed by the enrolment agencies weren’t trained properly. They made erroneous entries. Besides, there was a tussle between the data entry operators and the agencies over payment in the beginning. Several data entry operators, thus, left the agencies midway without handing over the Aadhaar enrolment data. It isn’t possible to trace that data now,” said a senior official, exposing the shoddy, not to say dangerous, manner in which Aadhaar has been implemented.

Applicants have to re-enrol for aadhaar cards

Applicants have to re-enrol if their status on the e-aadhaar website says “rejected” or if it shows “not found” or if the enrolment is done prior to April 1, 2012, and the status shows “cannot be process due to technical reasons.” Shockingly, 14 lakh entries that were made across the state were ‘erroneous’ due to technical problems that cropped up during the collection of biometric details at the time of enrolment. Of them, seven lakh cases were ‘rectified’ but the officials are clueless on how to proceed in the case of the remaining seven lakh cases.

“We have referred the issue to the state government. In all likelihood, these seven lakh people have to re-enrol as the data cannot be traced or corrected at this stage,” the official said. No one has any idea what will happen to all the data collected that is out there somewhere and could be open to misuse.

Even though the implementation has been so scandalously poor, the April 15 deadline for Aadhaar-LPG linkage in the city still holds. Those who have not got their cards and whose data has been ‘lost’ are panic stricken and for no fault of theirs. The government has cleverly linked the Aadhaar to the one commodity no one can do without in an attempt to force citizens to get the card/number.

The serpentine queues outside enrolment centres make it unlikely that these subscribers will get their cards in time. “I have enrolled for Aadhaar card in March 2012. Whenever I check my status on the website it shows ‘Your aadhaar number is under generation, please check back after few days.’ This information is seen daily since over a year. I am confused whether to re-enrol or wait till the number is generated. I have also complained to UIDAI officials but there was no response till now,” said P. Bhavani Prasad, a resident of Nallakunta.