10652 - Aadhaar not mandatory for availing subsidy, benefits: Centre - The Hindu

Aadhaar not mandatory for availing subsidy, benefits: Centre

PTI

NEW DELHI NOVEMBER 30, 2016 17:36 IST

Individuals without Aadhaar can offer alternate means of identification for availing government subsidies, benefits and services, the IT and Electronics Ministry has informed the Lok Sabha.

The government on Wednesday said it is strictly adhering to Supreme Court’s order that production of Aadhaar will not be a condition for citizens to obtain any benefit due to them.

Individuals without Aadhaar number can offer alternate means of identification for availing government subsidies, benefits and services, it added.

“Section 7 of the Aadhaar Act provides that if an Aadhaar number is not assigned to an individual, the individual shall be offered alternate and viable means of identification for delivery of the subsidy, benefit or service,” Minister of State for IT and Electronics P.P. Chaudhary informed the Lok Sabha.

The Supreme Court, in its interim order dated August 11, 2015, had directed that the production of Aadhaar will not be a condition for obtaining any benefits otherwise due to a citizen.

The apex court directed the government that Aadhaar will not be used for any purpose other than PDS scheme, kerosene and LPG subsidy, which was later extended to include schemes of MGNREGS, National Social Assistance Programme pensions (old age, widow and disability pensions), PMJDY and EPFO, through its interim order dated October 15, 2015.

Mr. Chaudhary added that the Supreme Court, through its October 15, 2015, had also ruled that the Aadhaar scheme is purely voluntary and cannot be made mandatory till the matter is finally decided by the Court.

The government had introduced the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Bill, 2016, in Parliament on March 3, 2016, and it was passed by the Parliament on March 16, 2016.

The Bill received the assent of the President on March 25, 2016 and has been published in the Official Gazette on March 26, 2016, as Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016.

10651 - Chandigarh becomes first UT for attaining Aadhaar saturation

Chandigarh becomes first UT for attaining Aadhaar saturation

PTI

November 30, 2016 | UPDATED 22:30 IST

Chandigarh, Nov (PTI) UT Chandigarh has achieved the distinction of being the first UT (without legislation) in the country to attain universal Aadhaar saturation.

As of now 11,15,817 residents of Chandigarh have acquired Aadhaar, said an official release.

According to the census 2011, the population of Chandigarh was at 10,54,686.

With this Chandigarh has become the first UT (without legislation) in the country to achieve 100 per cent Aadhaar Saturation. Delhi, Telangana, Haryana and Punjab are the other states in the country who have achieved 100 per cent Aadhaar saturation, it said.

V P Singh Badnore, the Governor of Punjab and Administrator UT, Chandigarh, has lauded the role and efforts put in by the administration led by Parimal Rai, IAS, Adviser to the Administrator, UT, Chandigarh and team of UIDAI led by Ram Subhag Singh, Deputy Director General, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), regional office (RO), Chandigarh for attaining this commendable feat in such a short span.

Chandigarh is also the first UT in the country to link birth certificate with Aadhaar. The programme was launched on August 2, 2016 by Badnore.

Health Department has procured tablets for successful implementation of Aadhaar Linked Birth Registration programme in Chandigarh. Every child born is given an Aadhaar number with birth certificate. The tablets have been deployed in all the government hospitals including PGI and in private hospitals also, it said.

Separate strategies were devised to cover the residents of different age groups. Enrollment Challenge Scheme was launched by UIDAI for enrolment of adult population. In this scheme, the resident could raise request for enrolment by registering online on web portal of UIDAI and residents were facilitated for their enrolment.

Special camps were setup in government and private colleges with the help of Department of Higher Education. PTI CHS BAL

This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.

10650 - Now, govt mulls making Aadhaar mandatory for cashless transactions - Hindu Businessline

Now, govt mulls making Aadhaar mandatory for cashless transactions

S RONENDRA SINGH

GoM discusses use of unique ID card on POS units

NEW DELHI, NOVEMBER 30:  

A core group of ministers, which has been tasked by the Prime Minister’s Office to promote cashless transactions, on Wednesday discussed the use of Aadhaar for such transactions.

The ministers included Minister of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and Law & Justice Ravi Shankar Prasad; HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar; and Minister of State for Power, Coal, New and Renewable Energy and Mines Piyush Goyal. The group felt that Point-of-Sale (PoS) machines should also be Aadhaar enabled.

Government sources told BusinessLine that the Ministers were of the opinion that Aadhaar will play an important role and also reduce the transaction time.

“Apart from making PoS Aadhaar-enabled (which many are already), Piyush Goyal was also of the opinion that Internet banking should also be Aadhaar enabled to formalise the cashless transactions all over the country,” a senior government official said.

The Ministers also discussed the need for public sector banks to make a concerted push towards digitalisation to compete with private banks. Private banks have been more proactive in popularising mobile wallets among their customers.

They have to come out of the PSU mode and think like private players – whether it comes to handling customers or working extra time – to give best services, was the opinion among the Ministers, said the official privy to the meeting adding that the GoMs will arrive at their decisions after discussions with officials.

GoM meetings

The GoMs have been meeting often over the last one week. According to another government official, Prasad had told his officials that, under the current circumstances, the time is ripe for Common Service Centres (under the MeitY) to promote cashless transactions because of their reach in rural and backward areas.

“He has directed all his officials to involve CSCs and make them operational and educate people on a war footing mode so that the centres can be utilised at maximum level,” said an official.

But experts say enabling Aadhaar for Internet banking, especially for personal banking, may lead to disagreements amonglenders and consumers.

“This may mean consumers have to buy a biometric device (whether it’s a smartphone or external device for personal computer) so that they can use their biometrics for authentication even while making transactions from home,” said an analyst requesting anonymity.

However, he also said that one has to wait and watch on what the government decides to do, as authenticity also has to be taken care as phishing and cyber crimes are also in the rise.

(This article was published on November 30, 2016)

10649 - Aadhaar not mandatory for availing subsidy, benefits: Centre - The Hindu

Aadhaar not mandatory for availing subsidy, benefits: Centre

PTI

NEW DELHI NOVEMBER 30, 2016 17:36 IST

The government on Wednesday said it is strictly adhering to Supreme Court’s order that production of Aadhaar will not be a condition for citizens to obtain any benefit due to them.

Individuals without Aadhaar number can offer alternate means of identification for availing government subsidies, benefits and services, it added.

“Section 7 of the Aadhaar Act provides that if an Aadhaar number is not assigned to an individual, the individual shall be offered alternate and viable means of identification for delivery of the subsidy, benefit or service,” Minister of State for IT and Electronics P.P. Chaudhary informed the Lok Sabha.

The Supreme Court, in its interim order dated August 11, 2015, had directed that the production of Aadhaar will not be a condition for obtaining any benefits otherwise due to a citizen.

The apex court directed the government that Aadhaar will not be used for any purpose other than PDS scheme, kerosene and LPG subsidy, which was later extended to include schemes of MGNREGS, National Social Assistance Programme pensions (old age, widow and disability pensions), PMJDY and EPFO, through its interim order dated October 15, 2015.

Mr. Chaudhary added that the Supreme Court, through its October 15, 2015, had also ruled that the Aadhaar scheme is purely voluntary and cannot be made mandatory till the matter is finally decided by the Court.

The government had introduced the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Bill, 2016, in Parliament on March 3, 2016, and it was passed by the Parliament on March 16, 2016.

The Bill received the assent of the President on March 25, 2016 and has been published in the Official Gazette on March 26, 2016, as Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016.

10647 - Opposition protest, confusion runs supreme - dNA

Opposition protest, confusion runs supreme

Taxies parked at Netaji Subhas CHandra Bose International Airport during the Bharat Bandh called by Left parties, in Kolkata on Monday (PTI)

DNA CORRESPONDENT | Tue, 29 Nov 2016-08:00am , New Delhi , DNA

Taking advantage of confusion BJP members also hit the markets, launching 'Jan Abhaar Divas'

Amidst utter confusion, whether there is call for a 'Bharat Bandh' or 'Jan Aakrosh Divas', Opposition parties on Monday hit the streets across the country to protest against scrapping of high-value notes. While the Congress said that there is no call for a strike and call was only for protests, the Left parties enforced a 12-hour bandh in West Bengal. It was, however, not supported by the ruling Trinamool Congress which is most vocal against the note ban. Taking advantage of confusion, the ruling BJP members also hit the markets, launching 'Jan Abhaar Divas' – a day to express gratitude to people for ignoring strike. At many places, they offered sweets and flowers to traders, who had not closed shutters. Further Nitish Kumar's abstention robbed the 'nationwide protests' its strength.

The state-wide 12-hour strike called by the Left parties to protest demonetization failed to evoke much response in West Bengal. It evoked a partial response in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. In Bihar workers of RJD, Congress and Left parties disrupted train services at many places, but offices and schools registered normal attendance. In Kerala, the shutdown called by Kerala's ruling LDF on Monday was total. The protest affected the functioning of both the Houses of Karnataka Legislature, but the state remained normal.

In Delhi, Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad clarified that the Opposition parties had never called for any strike, as it would have caused inconvenience to people. "We had called for Jan Akrosh Divas and not Bharat Bandh," he said. He claimed that lakhs of angry and anguished people participated in the protests. West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee threatened to demonstrate outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence against demonetization, vowing to dislodge him from the seat of power if the scrapping of high value currency notes is not withdrawn. "The entire country is suffering. There is no money in banks, ATMS. So far 80 people have died due to the hardships caused by demonetization. But Narendra Modi is having a sound sleep and giving lectures on taking the country towards cashless economy," she told a rally in Kolkata.

Congress party chief spokesman Randeep Surjewala told a press conference that the ruling alliance was not able to fathom the pain and anger of 125 crore. More than 20,000 beating 'thalis' thronged a march organised by Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken in the evening from the Mandi House to Jantar Mantar. Surjewala released a list of rules and directives on demonetization changed 105 times in the last 19 days to point out how the entire country has left the country confused.

He said entire informal sector comprising of 90% of India is in deep distress. There are only 2.4 crore credit card holders and 9 crore debit card holders in and many these are held in multiples by one person. As per the RBI figures of June, 2016, there were 48 crore transactions worth Rs2293 crore through these cards. While mobile wallets have grown by 500%, after the demonetization, the amount transacted has been only Rs11,000 crore, a miniscule figure compared to the cash withdrawn, Surjiwala said.

In support

Notwithstanding, the Opposition protests, Nandan Nilekani, who was head of previous UPA government's Aadhaar project, supported the government's ban on high-value notes. He said while the credit for creating the Aadhaar system goes to the UPA government, Dr Manmohan Singh, he was grateful to PM Modi for taking it forward. "A lot will depend on the next three months. If they accelerate digitization... long-term, it will be a very good development," he said.

10646 - Why Nandan Nilekani is bullish on demonetisation; all you need to know - Financial Express

Why Nandan Nilekani is bullish on demonetisation; all you need to know

Nandan Nilekani is confident that demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will help India achieve in 3-6 months what it could have got done in 3-6 years

By: FE Online | Published: November 29, 2016 4:33 PM

Nandan Nilekani had unsuccessfully fought on Congress ticket in 2014 General Election. But, in a bipartisan manner, Nilekani credited both the UPA and Modi government for India’s march towards digitisation. (Source: Facebook)

Nandan Nilekani, former Chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India, is confident that demonetisation of old Rs 500 and Rs 1000 notes by Prime Minister Narendra Modi will help India achieve in 3-6 months what it could have done in 3-6 years in terms of the digitisation of Indian economy for financial services.

Nilekani, who was roped in as the chairman of UIDAI by the UPA government, has always batted for cashless transactions and digitisation of the Indian economy. He believes that the sudden “shock” of demonetisation announced by PM Modi on November 8, would leapfrog Indian Economy into a digitised cashless economy in the next 3-6 months.

“From my perspective, the shock to the system, I think, will give a big boost to digitisation. In the last seven years, the infrastructure for digital financial services — Aadhar, UPI the JAM infrastructure, USSD and micro-ATMs — have been laid down. What, I thought, would take 3-6 years to roll out, I now believe that, with the urgency of the matter, will happen in 3-6 months,” Nilekani said in an interview with NDTV on Monday.

Explaining his “theory” further, the co-founder of Infosys said that India is going to see a “massive acceleration of the digitisation of Indian economy for financial services” in the next 3-6 months.

For instance, he said India has about 1-1.5 million PoS (point of sale) machines installed in the last 30-40 years. The PoS machine allows card-based transactions. He said the number of PoS would “double or triple in the next 3-6 months.”

Similarly, there are about 130000 micro-ATMs, which allows people to do cashless transactions in rural areas. The number of micro-ATMS would also increase up to a million or more, he told the channel.

Talking about the pain caused to scores of people, especially the poor and daily wagers, who are still not part of the formal economy, Nilekani said, “There will definitely be some amount of short-term pain in the coming weeks. But you are going to see that this acceleration is going to benefit everybody.”‘

Despite the “pain”, he said, “you are going to see very high financial inclusion.”

When asked if India’s march towards becoming a cashless economy should have been incremental, Nilekani welcomed the demonetisation, saying India has all the infrastructure ready to transform into a cashless economy.

Nilekani had unsuccessfully fought on Congress ticket in 2014 General Election. But, in a bipartisan manner, he credited both the UPA and the Modi government for India’s rapid march towards digitisation.

He said the UPA government under PM Manmohan Singh created the Aadhaar system, but the credit for applying the Aadhaar system to so many schemes goes to PM Modi.

He further said the demonetisation and the subsequent digitisation efforts would transform India from a “data-poor to a data-rich” country. With more data on the financial transactions of citizens, it will be easy for the government to identify genuine beneficiaries of public welfare schemes.

10645 - ICICI Bank seeks to digitise 100 villages in 100 days - TNN

ICICI Bank seeks to digitise 100 villages in 100 days

TNN | Updated: Nov 29, 2016, 09.03 AM IST

MUMBAI: ICICI Bank on Monday said it will run a project to transform 100 villages across the country into digital villages in as many days. The project envisages enabling villagers to use digital channels for banking and payment transactions. 

ICICI Bank will open accounts for all and enable cashless payments to retail stores through messaging-based applications that can run on basic phones. "Besides creating a cashless payment system, we will provide vocational training and credit linkages to make villages digital," said Chanda Kochhar, MD & CEO, ICICI Bank. She added that the bank would draw from its experiences in Akodara village in Gujarat's Sabrakanta district where it ran a pilot project on digital villages. 

In the next 100 days, the bank will provide vocational training to 10,000 underprivileged villagers from largely agrarian states The announcement is part of the bank's continuing effort to provide a digital ecosystem across the country, including rural India, in the wake of demonetisation of high value currencies, Kochhar said. To provide mobile banking access to the underprivileged, the bank plans to use SMS and USSD banking solutions. USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) is a technology that enables communication between the mobile phone and the bank's servers in a manner similar to how a mobile user checks his balance talktime.

In the first phase, ICICI Bank will use tablet-based banking and Aadhaar-based e-KYC to help villagers open accounts without submitting physical documents. All adults in the villages will have savings accounts, which will be linked to Aadhaar to enable direct transfer of government benefits. There will be dedicated branches and ATMs of ICICI Bank to service these accounts and mobile banking will be available in regional languages. 

The bank plans to replicate the Akodara experiment where it introduced a measuring, tracking and payment solution for members of a milk cooperative society and its members for sale of milk. In the 100 villages, activities like payments to farmers from mandis and payment from farmers to labourers, among others, will be brought under digital payment ecosystem. The bank will also set up point of sale (PoS) machines at seed and fertiliser outlets for cashless transactions using RuPay cards.

In the second phase, villagers will be trained in income-generating activities like dairy, agriculture equipment repair, hand embroidery, dress designing and sandstone cutting, among others. These trainings will be of up to 30 days. Finally, the bank will provide credit to improve opportunities to earn a livelihood.

10644 - Those who oppose demonetisation must come to the help of those in cashless distress - Economic Times

Those who oppose demonetisation must come to the help of those in cashless distress

November 30, 2016, 12:03 AM IST T K Arun in Cursor | Economy, India | ET

Reducing the use of cash in the economy and attacking black money are wholesome goals. The Opposition’s criticism of demonetisation will carry no conviction, if it has nothing constructive to offer on how to achieve these goals. Akrosh does not cut it.

What can, however, is the Opposition parties mobilising volunteers to help ordinary people use their bank accounts to make payments. Anyone can, in principle, pay for vegetables or dal by transferring money from her own account to the vendor’s, clicking a few buttons on her phone — any old phone, it does not have to be a smartphone. The only requirement is that both the buyer and the seller must have bank accounts that are linked to their phone or Aadhaar. And they must know how to operate their accounts using a phone.

Stand With the Poor…

Demonetisation is not much of a challenge for those who live cosseted in an electronic banking ecosystem. The salaried classes who do not have unaccounted income and do not have to undertake a cash-intensive operation such as a wedding are unlikely to be majorly inconvenienced, except for having to pay their support staff with money they can spend. You can switch your shopping to big retailers that have card-swipe machines or you could explore the possibility of the small retailer accepting electronic transfers.

But if you are in Bettiah, Bihar, you will probably be unable to buy or sell anything without cash. The price of cauliflower in Bettiah’s mandi is reportedly down to Rs 1 a kilo, from Rs 20 BD (Before Demonetisation, what else?). The cauliflower grower is in distress. People who are unable to buy vegetables are in distress. Workers at the mandi are in distress. When distress is acute, the prime responsibility is to alleviate it, not try and score political points.

Another cash transaction because of lack of connectivity? Will fix it right now!

Suppose India were in the midst of a man-made famine of the kind Mao imposed on his country, with his order to finish off sparrows, compliance with which led to a population explosion among locusts that ate up the crops, resulting in mass starvation over 1959-61. What would the hungry masses appreciate more, the Opposition trying to organise soup kitchens or the Opposition staging protest marches in their name?

Right now, people in rural India are in distress. The Opposition cannot distribute cash. Cash has to be printed at the mint and distributed by the RBI across the country. While this proceeds apace, what people need is the means to make payments, in the absence of the usual medium of transaction: cash.

People can make use of the National Unified USSD Platform, created by the National Payments Corporation of India, to pay wages, and buy things using bank accounts. People just need to learn how.

USSD is a communication protocol used by telecommunication service providers to establish a two-way data connection between subscribers’ phones and designated computer servers. On any phone, if you dial *99# and press call, you get a basic banking menu. It begins with asking you to enter an identifier code for your bank. This is where you lose the typical villager.

…Not Just for Them

To transfer money from your account to another person’s using a phone anytime, any day, you need to know your bank’s code and must have generated two numbers: your mobile money identifier (MMID), a seven-digit number, and your four-digit Mobile Personal Identification Number (M-PIN). Armed with these, you are ready to send money, provided you know any of (a) the intended recipient’s MMID and phone number, (b) his account number and the Indian Financial System Code (IFSC) number of the bank/branch and (c) just his Aadhaar number.

Is it sensible to expect a barely literate/numerate villager to remember so many numbers? The only number he needs to remember is his four-digit M-PIN. Other numbers can be written down. A would-be recipient can always provide his own Aadhaar number to the payer.

If people do not have Aadhaar, they must be enrolled. Those still without bank accounts must be helped to open them. These accounts must be linked to their phone number and Aadhaar.

Then, they must be trained to use these resources already available in the system, to replace cash. Is helping the government achieve its goal the best way to oppose it? Reducing cash use is not a Modi-exclusive goal. The NPCI was set up in 2008, it started working in 2009. Aadhaar was envisaged and kicked off by the UPA. NUUP was fully functional before 2014. Now, when rural Indians are in dire straits, the goal should be to help them out.

If Opposition volunteers do not chip in, they can watch volunteers of the Sangh Parivar do the job and take credit for providing relief when people need it most.

How can the Opposition do its bit on black money? It can start collecting funds openly and disclose all of it, rather than just a fraction, as has been the practice so far. This would be a paradigm shift. But the country demands it. Whoever takes the lead will reap a big harvest.

DISCLAIMER : Views expressed above are the author's own.

10643 - Cashless, card-less for farmers, says Hairh

Cashless, card-less for farmers, says Hairh

STAFF REPORTER

Avadhani

SIDDIPET NOVEMBER 29, 2016 19:34 IST

Service opened at Siddipet, to be extended to State

: Irrigation Minister T. Harish Rao said card-less and cashless services will soon be extended to the farming community across the State.

This would make things easy for farmers while selling their produce and purchasing the required items without facing a problem for small change, said Mr. Harish Rao inaugurating the service at Siddipet Rythu Bazaar on Tuesday. The Marketing Department in association with the HDFC Bank will run the service. This is the second such facility in the State after Kukatpally Rythu Bazaar in Hyderabad.

“The customer has to bring their Aadhaar card and debit or credit card. They will be issued coupons for the purchase against their bank balance and after purchase they can submit the remaining coupons and get money back or the amount credited to their accounts,” said Mr. Harish Rao.

He called upon the farmers to make use of this service effectively and suggested all of them open bank accounts.

As part of promoting cashless transactions, the minister distributed debit cards to 36 farmers at the Rythu Bazaar provided by the Axis Bank.

“Money will be credited into the accounts of farmers after they sell paddy. Farmers coming to the yard should bring their Aadhaar cards to open new accounts,” said the minister. This facility was implemented on an experimental basis at Warangal, which produced good result and would be replicated at Gajwel market too, he observed.

District Collector P. Venkataram Reddy said that farmers should make a habit of carrying Aadhaar cards. The authorities would issue coupons to customers based on finger prints in the Aadhaar data and they could submit these coupons and get vegetables from farmers.

The cash would be credited into the farmers’ accounts once they submit the coupons.

10642 - Maharashtra govt to frame law making Aadhaar Card mandatory for state schemes - NYOOOZ

Maharashtra govt to frame law making Aadhaar Card mandatory for state schemes

• TOI Mumbai Tue,29 Nov 2016

MUMBAI: It will soon be mandatory to quote the Aadhaar card number to avail state government benefits under various schemes. The Maharashtra state cabinet on Tuesday approved a proposal to frame a law making it mandatory for the provision of Aadhaar card number for state schemes . The Bill will be placed before the legislature during the forthcoming winter session.Currently, the state government offers cash aid and grant under 161 different schemes. So far it has disbursed Rs 4,322 crore for the current year under these schemes.A state government press release pointed out that by making the Aadhaar Card mandatory for central government schemes, the Centre was able to weed out bogus beneficiaries an...

News Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/Maharashtra-govt-to-frame-law-making-Aadhaar-Card-mandatory-for-state-schemes/articleshow/55688916.cms

10641 - Soon Aadhaar will be must for welfare benefits - The Hindu

Soon Aadhaar will be must for welfare benefits

STAFF REPORTER

NOVEMBER 29, 2016 20:21 IST

MUMBAI: The State is in the process of introducing a bill, which will mandate Aadhaar as the only identity proof to receive financial benefits and subsidies from the government. The State Cabinet on Tuesday approved the proposal, and the bill will be presented in the winter session of the legislature in Nagpur.

According to the government, around 10.96 crore people have registered for Aadhaar, which is approximately 92 per cent. “We have almost completed registration of the entire adult population. Our next steps will be the registration of those in the 0-18 age group,” said an official.

The government has around 161 schemes and the funds approved for these run into around Rs. 4,322 crore. “If we opt for the direct benefit transfer (DBT) mode, we can minimise the fraud beneficiaries,” said the official. According to an estimate, the Centre’s decision to make Aadhaar mandatory for the financial benefits has helped save Rs. 36,500 crore.

In another decision, the government sanctioned the DBT policy for transferring funds directly to the accounts of the beneficiaries. As per the earlier policy, the government used to provide fodder, farm tools, pesticides, seeds, power pumps and textbooks to the beneficiaries.

“This decision will ensure that the government benefits are delivered on time and directly. No government departments will now engage in buying goods,” said Finance Minister Sudhir Munguntiwar.

10641 - Upstox launches e-Aadhaar account opening service - TNN

Upstox launches e-Aadhaar account opening service

M Allirajan | TNN | Nov 29, 2016, 08.18 PM IST

e-Aadhaar KYC is a huge step towards lowering the barriers for opening a trading account.

COIMBATORE: Upstox, a leading online brokerage firm, has launched an e-Aadhaar account opening service, aimed at delivering "utmost convenience and quick paperless facility" to its traders without compromising on quality. With this, Upstox has claimed that it has become India's first online low-cost brokerage firm to introduce such service for its customers. 

"With the new electronic KYC (Know Your Customer) process, Upstox eliminates the chance of a signature mismatch that prevents your application from being rejected," it said. "Through the fast account opening using the e-Aadhaar technology, traders can save their precious time and prevent the hassle of filling and printing paper forms," Upstox said. 

"e-Aadhaar KYC is a huge step towards lowering the barriers for opening a trading account. Not only is it paperless, but it significantly reduces the amount of work and time required to get one started in investing and trading," Upstox co-founder and director Raghu Kumar said. 

"This move to e-Aadhaar technology on the part of Upstox is a step forward in making trading available and affordable for all," he stated. Upstox said it strongly emphasises on safety and security of trader's information.

"Once an applicant enters Aadhaar card details, the trading software verifies applicant's identity by sending a One Time Password (OTP) to Aadhaar-registered email address or phone number. This helps create efficiency in the account opening process by eliminating physical paperwork," Upstox said. 

"Instead of printing and signing a physical copy of the form and sending a courier to the Upstox office, applicants can simply upload their documents online," it said. "In-person verification is also done via web-video technology, thus keeping trader's information secure and protected with Upstox," the brokerage stated.

"With e-Aadhaar Upstox account opening technology, the trader can start placing trades faster and experience the trading platform within minutes," it said. 

10640 - Aadhaar for PDS: HC orders notice to government

Aadhaar for PDS: HC orders notice to government

Bengaluru: Nov 25, 2016, DHNS

The Karnataka High Court on Thursday ordered issuance of notice to the state government in a public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the Aadhaar-based biometric coupon system for below poverty line (BPL) card holders.

The petitioners, Rajeshwari and nine others from Bedarakeri village and other parts of Shivamogga district, contended that the system is causing inconvenience to certain category of BPL card holders.

A division bench of Chief Justice Subhro Kamal Mukherjee and Justice R B Budihal issued notices to the Secretary Department of Food and Civil Supplies, Deputy Commissioner of Shivamogga district and Deputy Director of Food and Civil Supplies. The matter was adjourned to two weeks. 

The petitioners claimed that the centres authorised by the department have been collecting Rs 30 per person for biometric coupons, whereas they are supposed to provide it free of cost. Besides, fair price shops and centres which distribute foodgrain and kerosene, have been providing them on unit basis. This means, foodgrains and kerosene are allotted per person according to the entry in the BPL card. 

The petitioners claimed that this rule has resulted in a lot of hardship and agony for certain BPL card holders. The petitioners have sought for quashing of the July 21, 2016 order of the state government making Aadhaar-based biometric coupon system mandatory for BPL card holders.

DH News Service

10639 - Demonetisation: Using Aadhar to exchange cash? State purpose on photocopy to prevent misuse, says UIDAI - First Post

Demonetisation: Using Aadhar to exchange cash? State purpose on photocopy to prevent misuse, says UIDAI

New Delhi: With Aadhaar is being used widely by people in the wake of the demonetisation exercise, Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has cautioned the public to clearly indicate the purpose of providing photocopies of their Aadhaar letter to prevent misuse of the same.

"Photocopies of the Aadhaar letter are being submitted by the general public to banks. We urge them to clearly indicate the purpose for which they are submitting the same along with the date and time. This actually is a good practice whenever they submit photocopies of documents," UIDAI Chief Executive Officer Ajay Bhushan Pandey said in a statement.

He, however, noted that since Aadhaar is a digitally verifiable identity and can be authenticated anytime and anywhere, the chances of its misuse are limited.

Following the decision to make old Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 bank notes invalid, the government has allowed citizens to get currency of up to Rs 4,500 per person changed in cash from bank branches and post offices.

Along with filling the specified form, citizens are also required to provide a proof of identity that includes Aadhaar, PAN card or voter ID card.

UIDAI has also launched a revamped version of its toll-free helpline number — 1947 — to help residents get quick access to information about Aadhaar.

The helpline will be available 24x7 throughout the year on VRS mode, while call centre agents will be available from 0700 HRS to 2300 HRS (Monday to Saturday). On Sundays, agents will answer calls from 0800 HRS to 1700 HRS, it added.

On an average, the helpline number handles about 1.5 lakh calls per day.

"Our toll-free helpline 1947, which has been revamped to handle more incoming calls, brings Aadhaar closer to everyone. It can be accessed through mobile or landline and will be especially beneficial in these times when the Aadhaar number is being increasingly used in the banking sector to identify individuals," Pandey said.

The helpline will among other things, enable residents to locate an Aadhaar Enrolment Centre, know generation status of an Aadhaar number (after enrolment) and help retrieve Aadhaar details of any person who has lost his/her Aadhaar or hasn't received it through post.

First Published On : Nov 16, 2016 23:10 IST

10638 - Now, Aadhaar to track faculty attendance in medical colleges - TNN

Now, Aadhaar to track faculty attendance in medical colleges

Prabeerkumar Sikdar | TNN | Nov 24, 2016, 09.23 AM IST

HYDERABAD: A new circular issued by the Medical Council of India (MCI) has left staffers at around two dozen private and government medical colleges in the state rattled. In the circular, MCI has directed all faculty members of these colleges to register with their Aadhaar card details to facilitate the installation of biometric fingerprint attendance machines in their respective colleges.

The order is certain to hit both government as well as private medical colleges. In the case of government colleges, faculty members often leave before the official 4 pm deadline to attend to their lucrative private practices, sources said. The new measure will immediately bring down the absentee count in these institutions, they said. However, the order will have the strongest impact on private medical colleges as 30-40% of their fa culty comprise either `ghost teachers' (they remain only on paper) or guest faculty hired to teach medicos on certain days of the week, sources added.

"Once the Aadhaar card details of faculty members are linked to the biometric attendance devices, the system of ghost medical faculty in private medical colleges will automatically be wiped out," said Dr K Ramesh Reddy , member, Medical Council of India (MCI). Warning doctors, who allow private colleges to use their names as `ghost faculty', of serious consequences, Dr Reddy said that such instances can be easily tracked down by the MCI now. "Such lapses will be treated as unethical acts and the MCI, as punishment, can debar such doctors from practising," he added.

The new system was welcomed by Telangana Junior Doctors' Association state president Dr G Srinivas, who said that it would specially help medicos pursuing clinical courses in government medical colleges. "Many a times, undergraduate medicos face challenges as their faculty for clinical subjects like general medicine, general surgery , obstetrics and paediatrics leave the teaching hospital before 2 pm, even though they are supposed to be there till 4 pm.But the new system can prevent such practices," said Dr Srinivas.

When contacted, an office bearer of Telangana Private Medical Colleges' Association (TPMCA), on condition of anonymity , said that most of them will now face difficulty in recruiting full-time faculty as those on roll either as guest faculty or ghost faculty may not agree to share their Aadhaar card details under the new system.

10637 - Here is what you will gain by linking Aadhaar number with UAN - Financial Express

Here is what you will gain by linking Aadhaar number with UAN

The ministry of labour and employment has set timelines to ensure 100% Aadhaar seeding in Universal Account Number (UAN) database of Employees' Provident Fund (EPF) by end of December this year. Here are the benefits of seeding Aadhaar number in UAN

By: FE Bureau | Published: November 23, 2016 6:32 AM

The Aadhaar number issued by UIDAI is one of the important KYCs being seeded to extend a number of services to the member. (Source: IE)

The ministry of labour and employment has set timelines to ensure 100% Aadhaar seeding in Universal Account Number (UAN) database of Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) by end of December this year. Here are the benefits of seeding Aadhaar number in UAN:

The Aadhaar number issued by UIDAI is one of the important KYCs being seeded to extend a number of services to the member.

UAN links all multiple member ident-ification numbers into a single number. The member is required to provide the same on joining new establishment.

The EPF has made it mandatory to provide Aadhaar card as KYC document while applying for the scheme.

Linking Aadhaar details with UAN is a safe and trusted mode of verifying the details of each employee efficiently.

Seeding of Aadhaar with UAN works as proof of identity and proof of address and reduces the duplicacy of accounts.

With UAN, employees can have online access to his provident fund account.

After logging into the account by UAN and password, user can update KYC with Aadhaar details and submit a scanned copy of the card.

For transfer of money from PF account to the bank account, Aadhaar number is a necessary document to verify and validate the identity of the employee.

On verification of Aadhaar and PAN, money from PF account is transferred into employee’s savings account.

At present, for 7.95 crore UAN issued by EPFO only 1.82 crore Aadhaar numbers of members have been uploaded and only 1.5 crore Aadhaar numbers of members have been digitally verified by employers.

10636 - EPFO to seed Aadhaar in 81 million PF accounts by 31 December - Live Mint

Last Modified: Tue, Nov 29 2016. 05 07 AM IST

EPFO to seed Aadhaar in 81 million PF accounts by 31 December

The labour ministry has directed the EPFO to finish Aadhaar seeding on all EPF accounts in a time-bound manner

EPFO, which functions under the labour ministry, has written to all it’s over 120 regional offices to make sure that the Aadhaar seeding happens on time. Photo: Ramesh Pathania/Mint

New Delhi: The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) will mandatorily seed all 81 million provident fund (PF) accounts with Aadhaar by 31 December to make its online transactions smoother and help track an employee if he/she switches jobs.

The move comes after Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the functioning of EPFO sometime ago and asked it to become more user-friendly and make its online interface more robust.

Though a Herculean task, the labour ministry has directed the EPFO to finish Aadhaar seeding on all EPF accounts in a time-bound manner.

EPFO, which functions under the labour ministry, has written to all it’s over 120 regional offices to make sure that the Aadhaar seeding happens on time.

Mint has seen a copy of the internal circular issued by the EPFO headquarters to its regional offices.

“It is noted that under the implemented universal account number (UAN) programme, the seeding of Aadhaar number in the UAN database of EPF members is very low. It needs to be emphasized that to identify the member across different employments, the UAN database of members has to be seeded with KYC (know your customer) details,” the circular said.

“At PRAGATI meeting ...it was pointed that seeding of Aadhaar number in the UAN database of EPF members is very low …subsequently the ministry of labour and employment has set the timeline to ensure 100% Aadhaar seeding in beneficiary database by 31/12/2016,” the circular added.

Pragati meeting is a brainchild of PM Modi to directly oversee the progress of different departments and interact with top bureaucrats to get an update on specific project implementation. UAN is a permanent number issued by EPFO to all EPF subscribers that help PF number portability. Like a bank account it makes EPF accounts permanent and employees are free to retain the account number throughout their work life.

As of 26 November, EPFO has issued 81.13 million UANs to organized sector employees via their employers but only 19.67 million Aadhaar numbers were uploaded by employers. Of the total Aadhaar uploaded only 16 million are KYC compliant, meaning the employers have verified these Aadhaar numbers of their employees who are contributing to EPF every month.

“Aadhaar is an important KYC for UAN but somehow companies have not come forward to upload this on the UAN database. This is clearly a case of employers’ apathy and what the EPFO is trying now is to rectify this so that its online transactions become smoother,” said a labour ministry official who declined to be named.

The officer said besides improving its users interface, it shall help identify an employee across his or her different employments and ease service delivery like payment of pension, reduction in withdrawal process hassles, and other such benefits.

“We have less than 2 crore Aadhaar numbers uploaded of the total 8.1 crore UANs issued. Companies over the next one month have to come forward and upload the Aadhaar number of their employees and approve them online. The 31 December deadline is tough task but we have pressed all our offices for the job,” said official.

“While people blame EPFO for bad or late service, they forget that companies often don’t do what is required of them. If a company cannot upload the KYC details like Aadhaar number, PAN and bank account details of their employees on EPFO website who is to be blamed and how do you expect EPFO to provide service. Can you do for buying an insurance or mutual fund…if you are prompt there why not in case of EPF accounts,” the official asked.

And it’s not an inaccurate complaint. Of the total 81 million UANs issued to EPF subscribers, employers have uploaded just 38.47 million bank accounts. It means more than 50% of the EPF subscribers accounts do not have a bank account linked increasing fear that whether an employee can get access to his retirement savings when he or she needs most without running after the employer.

EPFO manages over Rs8.5 trillion retirement corpus of its subscribers. It invests 90% in debt and 10% in equity instruments and gives return based on its investment returns. In 2015-16, it gave 8.8% interest rate to its subscribers. For 2016-17, it is yet to announce the rate of interest.

Prashant K. Nanda

10635 - Man raises alarm as he spots 2 Aadhaar cards with same details, different pics -

Man raises alarm as he spots 2 Aadhaar cards with same details, different pics

Chittaranjan Tembhekar | TNN | Nov 28, 2016, 06.37 AM IST

MUMBAI: Even as the government is all set to link all your financial transactions and movable and immovable property details with your Aadhaar card, yet another incident in Mumbai of 'forged' cards raises doubt over safety of such a move. 

However, Aadhaar administration said such cases did not pose any danger to safety of personal data and assets. 

A week ago, Shrinivas Pandian, owner of a daily provisions shop in Saki Naka, was in for a surprise when a sanitary worker along the Asalpha metro station gave him two Aadhaar cards which he found abandoned on the footpath. 

Shrinivas, who initially decided to submit them in the police station, was shocked to see that all the details on both the cards, except the photographs and dates of birth, were same. 

"I decided to highlight this on Citizen Reporter so that both the police as well as the Aadhaar administration look into the issue," he said. Several other cities have also reported such cases in the past. 

TOI's Citizen Reporter team later contacted officials of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UDAI) and produced the photographs of the cards which Pandian uploaded on the portal. The officials immediately took note and found from their records that one of the cards was digitally altered. 

A senior official said it was a clear case of duplication by adopting fradulent methods, but added that any such forgery does not corrupt the original data secure with the UDAI. "The personal data for every such record is also linked to a person's fingerprints as well as the iris scan, which are unique in nature and hence there is no question of misuse," he said.

The cards, which are numbered 416405252907, bear the name Bhajjan Hari Ram Gautam and an address from Uttar Pradesh's Rampur in Shravasti, but show different photographs and dates of birth.

While the photoshopped version of the card has a photo of a youth, the original version has the photo of a child with a slogan of UDAI written below in Marathi.

According to UDAI officials, for any misuse of data collected under Aadhaar, a threeyear imprisonment is prescribed as per UDAI law.

10634 - Aadhaar cards being issued to children in homes: State tells High Court - The Hindu

Aadhaar cards being issued to children in homes: State tells High Court

SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

MADURAI: NOVEMBER 29, 2016 01:43 IST

The Social Defence Department has informed the Madras High Court Bench here that it had taken steps to issue Aadhaar cards by photographing 32,772 children and obtaining biometric details of 27,554 of the 32,903 inmates of 594 childcare homes. These included children housed in 236 unauthorised institutions in 13 districts under the territorial jurisdiction of the Bench.

In an affidavit filed before Justices S. Nagamuthu and M.V. Muralidaran, Deputy Director of Social Defence S. Thanasekarapandian said arrangements had been taken to provide Aadhaar cards to all children above six years in the homes. A majority of them had already been subjected to iris and fingerprint scanning.

As for shifting children lodged in unauthorised homes to other authorised homes or uniting them with their families after ascertaining their parentage through DNA tests was concerned, the official said moving them immediately would hamper their education.

There were 348 registered childcare homes and 246 unregistered homes in Dindigul, Kanniyakumari, Karur, Madurai, Pudukottai, Ramanathapuram, Sivaganga, Thanjavur, Theni, Tirunelveli, Thoothukudi, Tiruchi and Virudhunagar districts as on November 11, when the High Court took note of the issue seriously and called for a report.

As many as 135 childcare institutions applied for registration between November 11 and 24 to the District Child Protection Units (DCPU) concerned. Of them, 62 proposals were forwarded to the Director of Social Defence who, in turn, passed orders according sanction for registering 37 institutions up to November 20.

“Action is being undertaken to accord sanction for the remaining 25 institutions. Scrutiny of the remaining 73 applications is being undertaken by the DCPUs concerned for forwarding the same to the Director of Social Defence,” the Deputy Director said, adding 103 illegal childcare homes had not applied for registration.

Six illegal childcare homes were closed down between November 12 and 24 and two others had given an undertaking to surrender all children in their custody pending registration of those homes. The official further claimed that out of 236 missing children, 220 had been united with their families under ‘Operation Muskaan.’

Similarly, out of 14 missing children hailing from other States, 12 had been united with their families. “Details of children in all homes have been uploaded on the child tracking website www.trackthemissingchild.

gov.in,” he claimed.

As for the court’s direction to consider the possibility of creation of a DNA bank with blood samples of missing children as well as their complainants in child missing cases to ascertain the parentage of inmates of child care homes, the Deputy Director said that steps were taken to prepare a blueprint for the creation of such a system.

“It requires the coordinated effort between the Social Welfare Department, Medical and Health Department, Law Department and others. Since various departments are involved in the preparation of the proposal, I humbly plead to accord us a workable time limit to prepare a detailed proposal and submit the same before this honourable court,” the officer said.

10633 - Local bodies to collect Aadhaar details for payment of social security pension - TNN

Local bodies to collect Aadhaar details for payment of social security pension

Aswin J Kumar | TNN | Nov 28, 2016, 04.44 PM IST

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Aadhaar numbers of pensioners will be collected as part of streamlining payment of social security pension in the state. The state government has issued a set of guidelines for the registration of Aadhaar for the pensioners under the social security pension scheme and welfare fund board pensions. 

Information Kerala mission has been directed to publish the list of pensioners who are not having Aadhaar numbers. Local governments, Kudumbasree workers and Akshaya centres have been jointly asked to work for Aadhaar registration of the beneficiaries on a time-bound basis. IT mission will issue instructions to the Akshaya kendras to enroll the pensioners on a priority basis.

Local governments have been directed to take necessary steps for Aadhaar registration arrangements on a campaign mode and to ensure complete enrolment. The chairpersons of the local government and chairpersons of the welfare standing committee are jointly entrusted to take appropriate steps to complete the Aadhaar enrolment of pensioners in a time-bound manner.

10632 - With only 33% seeding completed by banks, deadline for linking Aadhaar with MNREGA to be missed- Economic Times

With only 33% seeding completed by banks, deadline for linking Aadhaar with MNREGA to be missed

By Aman Sharma, ET Bureau | Updated: Nov 26, 2016, 09.41 AM IST

While the government completed only 78% seeding of Aadhaar into its NREGA online database so far, only 33% of seeding target has been achieved by banks.

NEW DELHI: Amidst the demonetization exercise and government's push to transition from cash-to-digital, the deadline fixed by the Prime Minister for Aadhaar-based cashless payments to nearly 11 Cr workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGA), will be missed. 

The Centre fixed a December 31 deadline for all electronic payments under NREGA to transition to an Aadhaar-based and authenticated payment system. But bank accounts of only 33% workers, Rs 3.57 Cr to be precise, could be made Aadhaar-Based Payment (APB) enabled by November 22. 

Big states like Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Gujarat reported just 9%, 10% and 16% compliance respectively in terms of bank accounts. Overall, only 3% and 8% of total NREGA payments in Bihar and UP respectively are presently on Aadhaar-based platform. 

"The workers have to come to the bank and fill a consent form to link their Aadhaar to account...banks held workshops but results aren't as desired. It will take more time than anticipated," a senior government official told ET, highlighting the banking challenge in rural India. 

Currently, all NREGA payments are made into bank accounts of 10.88 Cr workers through electronic mode. Earlier this year, the Centre decided Aadhaar numbers of all workers would be seeded by the government into the NREGA online database and their bank accounts linked with the same so that the electronic payments are Aadhaar-authenticated to cut on frauds and impersonation. The recently-enacted Aadhaar Act mandates this. 

While the government completed only 78% seeding of Aadhaar into its NREGA online database so far, only 33% of seeding target has been achieved by banks. "Banks insisted they need consent from NREGA workers to make their account Aadhaar-enabled. It is a challenge to get NREGA workers to banks...and banks are presently busy in demonetization exercise," an official said. 

The problem is acute in UP and Bihar as well as BJP-ruled states like Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh besides West Bengal. In UP, out of 1.06 Cr NREGA workers, the government has been able to seed Aadhaar numbers of 78% of them (83.4 lakh) in the NREGA online database but conversion to Aadhaar-based payments has been made for only 8% bank accounts (7.8 lakh). 

So far, consent of only 26.8 lakh workers have been taken by banks for Aadhaar-based payments. Likewise in Bihar, out of 45 lakh NREGA workers, Aadhaar numbers of only 13 lakh stand seeded in NREGA database and only 1.43 lakh bank accounts are Aadhaar-enabled. "States have to take up speedy conversion of bank accounts of NREGA workers into ABP enabled accounts with utmost importance," the Centre has said in a recent missive. 

Nearly 1/3rd of NREGA bank accounts are in postal banks - which are still to be configured fully on the Core Banking Solution - delaying the seeding further. In the other major subsidy scheme of LPG Pahal, which is essentially urban-based, the Centre has been able to achieve nearly 80% of bank accounts being made Aadhaar-payment based. This figure stands at almost 95% for cash transfer of food subsidy scheme - again in certain urban areas of the country so far. "NREGA is a different cup of tea, given the banking challenges in rural sector," an official says. 

10631 - Don’t waste the crisis; leverage Aadhaar for cashless inclusion - New Indian Express

Don’t waste the crisis; leverage Aadhaar for cashless inclusion

By Shankkar Aiyar  |   Published: 27th November 2016 04:00 AM  | 

Don’t_Waste

The debate on demonetisation, aka delegalisation of high-value currency notes, and the ensuing impact on the economy will continue for some time now—between definitions of near term, medium term and long term and between what constitutes pain and what is recognised as gain. What is undeniable is the opportunity the cash crisis offers for the establishment to reboot its thinking and strategy.

Last week, this column (Cash Crisis: Who to Blame Can Wait, What Must be Done Cannot! http://bit.ly/2grllTH) presented a few thoughts on what must be done—PDS quota to the poor on credit, allowing farmers to use old notes, roping in retailers as outlets for cash disbursal—and there has been movement on this front. Much more needs to be done to mitigate disruption and to reboot growth.

India’s transformation and many revolutions have arrived in the wake of crises. This is one crisis that must not be wasted. The biggest threat to transformation is incrementalism and the creation of committees. The first consequence of any crisis is conversations of a binary nature within the administration. Typically, it is stranded between “oh it has not worked” and “oh this just cannot be done”.  The inescapable fact is that India fares poorly on financial inclusion—and this is most visible in the disruption in the economy. From farms to factories to families cash, is the reigning currency of the economy.

To appreciate the curvature of the political economy, consider the data points. India’s population of 1,311 million is served by 1.34 lakh bank branches. Two thirds of India lives in 5.9 lakh villages, which are served by 50,000 branches. Take the largest states. Uttar Pradesh with 150 million persons in 97,942 villages has 7,370 “rural” branches. Bihar, with over 90 million persons in 39,015 villages, has 3,037 “rural” branches. Considering that over 800 million people live in rural India, the ratio denies, or at least delays, access to the financial inclusion.

India is poised at the gateway of a revolution in financial inclusion. There have been two silent revolutions since the creation of UIDAI under Nandan Nilekani—the registration of residents under Aadhaar and the installation of payment gateways that afford India the opportunity to leapfrog over historic handicaps and spur financial inclusion.

To appreciate the opportunity, consider this. India has a billion persons registered under the unique identification of Aadhaar. India has a billion persons with mobile phones.

The country is ready with a dynamic financial transaction architecture in the Unified Payments Interface—an interoperable mobile first payment system, a uniquely Indian achievement under the National Payments Corporation Limited. The need is to work out a plan to bring the three pieces—Aadhaar registrations, mobile users and network and the payment gateways—into play.

Ideally, Aadhaar should be rendered a bank in the Cloud. Very simply, the 12-digit identity number can be converted into an account number vested in Aadhaar Bank in the Cloud. Here is how it could work. Using the Aadhaar number, a person should be able to deposit cash at a bank or a post office or a retailer to deposit his cash, and the credit gets recorded in his account in Aadhaar Bank in the Cloud. Similarly, outflows or payments get reflected in the Aadhaar account. The simplest analogy is the roaming arrangement enjoyed by one SIM card across telecom networks. The creation of Aadhaar Bank in the Cloud demands political will and could be subjected to questions on technology and regulatory issues.

Progress on digitisation of inclusion need not be detained by navigation of regulatory wrangles. Aadhaar is not just an identity number; it can be a financial address of a person and can propel conversion of the cash economy to a less-cash economy. The supply-demand mismatch in cash affords a window of opportunity. For starters, the government could promote the use of Aadhaar-based digital transactions—via Aadhaar-linked accounts and creation of new instruments like Aadhaar-linked pre-paid RuPay cards.

The existing architecture allows for both Internet-based and non-Internet-based transactions via the unstructured supplementary data service (USSD) using GSM channels. The system can be developed in tiers. It is estimated that there are over 350 million smartphone users. These persons can use Internet-based apps to access UPI. The 300 million users of feature phones can transact using the USSD services.

Using Aadhaar, the person should also be able to access cash from the account from any disbursal point—whether bank ATMs, payment banks, post offices’ hand-held systems or retailers like grocery shops, petrol pumps, seed/fertiliser outlets. The architecture of UPI is built for person to person, person to merchant and person to government transfers. Indeed, Aadhaar is already on the inter-operable payments gateway—Aadhaar-Enabled-Payment System (AEPS).

AEPS allows balance enquiry, cash withdrawal, cash deposit, Aadhaar to Aadhaar funds transfer. The Aadhaar bridge systems allow direct cash transfers of LPG subsidies, pensions, MGNREGA payments, scholarships, state government welfare schemes and can be leveraged to be ready even for, say, transfers like universal basic income.  

There will be the usual rant about the poor and their ability to use technology, but remember over eight of 10 persons use prepaid recharge coupons, migrants working abroad leave parents with pre-paid cash cards and agri labourers in Himachal and Punjab send home money via mobile transfers.

The creation of Aadhaar Bank will enable those hitherto excluded from the system into the fold and bring the value of public savings into the real economy. The imperative is to learn from history to make India future ready.

A quarter of a century ago, Indians waited years for a telephone connection, thanks to poor policy, costs and last-mile connectivity issues. In the 90s, India opened up the sector; technology brought with it the facility to skip the landline cycle and young entrepreneurs created the infrastructure.

The mobile revolution, though, had to await political will—Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s quest to connect India with Bharat.In 2016, India is poised at a similar intersection. By bringing Aadhaar, mobiles and the payment gateways into play, India can leapfrog into the future.
 

shankkar.aiyar@gmail.com

10630 - Usha Ramanathan offers the most radical hypothesis of the note ban yet - Catch News

Usha Ramanathan offers the most radical hypothesis of the note ban yet

SUHAS MUNSHI

@suhasmunshi | First published: 22 November 2016, 0:35 IS

This may be the most radical hypothesis of government's demonetisation policy offered yet. The proposition, which explains the origins and future of the currency ban, sounds like the script of a sci-fi movie. Somewhere in it, is a group of a few people trying to control the fate of billions of Indians.

And black money doesn't figure anywhere in it.

Noted expert on law, poverty and human rights, and an active critic of the Aadhar policy for last several years - Usha Ramanathan - says that in order to understand demonetisation one has to go back to the founding of Aadhar and the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) programme.

It is all about data. Lots of it. Specific data of millions of Indians. Now suppose this huge repository of data, accessible to the makers of UIDAI programme, was to be used to create an application - like Unified Payment Interface - that made money transfer very easy.

Also read - Agenda driving Modi govt's demonetisation move is clear: activist Bezwada Wilson

It would allow instant transfer of money from bank to individual, individual to individual and government to individuals. Such a bold move, made on such a large scale, would not only force the economy to go 'cashless' or 'paperless', it would also in time make banks redundant.

And if, just then, there were to be a severe cash crunch in this economy, it would only catalyse the move to such an application.

But this would also give you reasons to fear for your personal data being compromised and monetised on a mass scale.

In this interview with Catch, Ramanathan asks us to suppose a scenario like this and claims that we haven't even begun to realise the biggest problem with the demonetisation scheme.

At the face of it, demonetisation seems to be a big positive for several reasons. But there are many things that we don't know about it.

We still don't have any explanation by the government about why this was done. Why 86% of the cash flow couldn't have been phased out strategically. Something as big as this should have gone through the Parliament.

There is no indication of who advised the prime minister about this. On the political front, we only have opposition and justification.

The government has been converting all services to cash transfers at a time when the banking system in India isn't ready. When successive governments' apathy has destroyed the postal service in the country. When inflation is under control and the value of Rupee isn't sliding down.

At such a moment, to suck out 86% of the cash flow in one go doesn't make sense.

But if you begin to look at the whole thing in context of the UIDAI project, demonetisation begins making sense.

How does the UIDAI project connect with this?

To understand what demonetisation is about, you first have to understand what the big technological fight in the world right now is about. It is about data. New Fintech (Financial technology) firms are fighting to acquire specific data of individuals; to use it to market their products among other things.

Fintechs are willing to give you their services without charges, if only you give them information about yourself.

Acquiring specific data of millions of people, which is what happened through Aadhar programme, across the country, is like acquiring a goldmine. Now if you can get all these people online, you create for yourself an invaluable asset.

Once you do that, you can build a platform [or an API] for people to create apps, giving them a share of your data. Apps that could have access to one billion people. Imagine the potential worth of such data!

This gives rise to big businesses and forces the economy towards a 'cashless' economy, or an economy with less cash.

This system allows you to transfer money not from bank account to bank account, but from Aadhar number to Aadhar number. All it would require your Aadhar number, a bank account, say a Jan Dhan account and a mobile number.

Banks, as we understand them become redundant. You wouldn't need to visit any bank. Everything becomes virtual, like Paytm. You wouldn't know where Paytm office is nor would you have to visit it, unlike banks where physical presence is required sometimes.

So what's wrong in a virtual banking system? Wouldn't it be easy to manage every financial transaction through your phone instead of dealing in cash and signing forms?

Look closer at the method with which this new world of economy is being introduced. First Aadhar was a voluntary exercise, then it was made compulsory. Aadhar was not mandatory to avail government offered services, now it is.

Fears of your personal data being compromised was quite real in case of Aadhar, in this case there will be additional fears of your financial data being sold and monetised by others will be as real.

In a similar fashion the state is using all its power and coercive forces to lead us in this specific direction. And this is not the only problem with it.

The same fears that arose that the time of Aadhar, get multiplied several times over if private companies like National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which is a company registered under companies act, not RBI, get their hands on your private financial data.

And if they make it mandatory that all financial transactions be done through apps based on their interface - Unified Payment Interface (UPI).

Look up the names of people behind all these ventures - UIDAI, NPCI, UPI etc - and you'll realise that they are the same group of people. The same group of people, a while back, talked about it taking just 100 individuals to change the system. They are trying to do this now - deciding the fate of this country.

What is worse still is that a large part of the population is not covered through regular banking. They have no access to either banks or internet. If the government decides to send benefits of schemes such as - MGNREGA, pensions, scholarships, Public Distribution System - through such an electronic interface, a lot of people are going to be left out.

Are any other economists or experts in this field who share your ideas?

I don't think so and I can't believe nobody is looking in this direction.

According to you Aadhar has been followed by Unified Payment Interface. What do you think will follow it?

Health. They will go for health sector next.

Edited by Aleesha Matharu

10629 - Dejargoned: Bulk and recurring payments in banking - - Live Mint

Last Modified: Tue, Nov 22 2016. 08 46 AM IST

Dejargoned: Bulk and recurring payments in banking

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) offers multiple options for these bulk and repititive payments

Vivina Visvanathan

All of us have made and received payments to and from our bank accounts: be it receiving salary at the end of the month, or paying the utility bills. The salary sent by your employer to you and your colleagues is a bulk payment and your utility bill payments that go out of your account every month are recurring payments.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) offers multiple options for these bulk and repititive payments. Here is a look at some of the options.

ECS

ECS was introduced in the early 1990s. There are two options—ECS credit and debit.

ECS credit facilitates one-to-many payments such as dividend and salary, whereas ECS debit facilitates many-to-one payments such as utility and systematic investment plan (SIP) payment.

ECS has reduced the banks’ customers dependence on paper cheques. The ECS facility itself has undergone many changes. It started as a local to a regional system and is now a national system. To use this service, say for SIP payments, you have to first inform the bank. ECS can also be used to transfer funds to non-resident external (NRE) and non-resident ordinary (NRO) accounts. There is no transaction limit for ECS. The banks originating this transaction are required to pay a nominal charge of 25 paise per transaction to the clearing house and the destination bank. For consumers, there is no charge for this.

NACH

NACH was introduced in December 2012 by the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), an arm of the central bank that handles retail payments. It is a centralised system for bulk and repetitive payments. ECS is slowly being subsumed by NACH.

For instance, mutual funds started using this service for SIPs from May 2016, replacing ECS. To use NACH, you will have to fill up an NACH form.

Once NPCI gets your mandate, it sends the information electronically to your bank. The bank verifies your details, confirms it to NPCI and then the service is activated. As the process is computerised and works on scanned images of the cheque truncation system, the activation should happen faster. Its format is similar to the cheque truncation system.

APBS

APBS was launched in February 2013 by the NPCI. It is used for bulk and repetitive government benefits and subsidy payments. NPCI is responsible for managing this system.

It facilitates operations from Aadhaar-seeded bank accounts, using the biometric authentication. APBS uses Aadhaar number as the central key for electronically channelising the government subsidies and benefits in the Aadhaar-enabled bank accounts.

APBS, as of now, being used by the government departments and agencies for transfer of benefits and subsidies under the direct benefit transfer scheme. The implementation of APBS has led to the conversion of a large number of physical transactions such as cash and cheque to electronic payment transactions.

Vivina Vishwanathan

10628 - In Ambala, Aadhaar 'disconnects' 1.16L families from ration = TNN

In Ambala, Aadhaar 'disconnects' 1.16L families from ration

TNN | Updated: Nov 21, 2016, 06.04 AM IST

AMBALA: Failure of biometric system for ration disbursement at government fair price shops in Ambala has led to resentment among people and they protested in various colonies of the city on Sunday. 

The ambitious scheme to sell ration at fair price shops through Aadhaar linked internet access system was launched in Haryana from November 1 under which the beneficiary can avail ration at government fair price shops after authentication of their thumb impression. This was done to stop misuse of ration.

In Ambala, 1.16 lakh households are without ration due to technical failure as hardly any beneficiary's thumb impression matched with the biometric data in various fair price shops. The harassed people protested at ward number 5, Babyal, Mahesh Nagar, Vashisht Nagar and Dayal Bagh of cantonment.

"We are failing to understand why the system did not work properly. We have intimated the higher authorities strongly recommending to streamline things," said district food supply officer of Ambala. 

According to the departmental sources, fingerprint of not even a single family member matched at ward number 5, Babyal and Dayal Bagh. Notably, fingerprint was taken from five members of each family.

"We got nothing except harassment. The system proved 100% flop," said Saroj from Babyal. "People are really facing hardships. This is worrisome that in most of the cases, thumb impression of not even a single family member matched. We are talking to the authorities to ease the situation," said Rajan Guglani, municipal councilor.

10627 - Aadhaar card compulsory for JEE Main 2017 - DNA

Aadhaar card compulsory for JEE Main 2017

DNA CORRESPONDENT | Mon, 21 Nov 2016-02:14pm , DNA 

In pursuance of a Ministry of Human Resource Development notification, the fifth Joint Entrance Examination (Main) in 2017 will be conducted on April 2, 2017 (Sunday) by the JEE Apex Board for admission to Undergraduate Engineering Programmes in NITs, IITs and other Centrally Funded Technical Institutions. However, this time Aadhar card details have been made compulsory for aspirants who wish to appear for the exam.

According to the notification issued on November 10, 2016, all candidates who are Indian citizens should possess an Aadhaar card issued by UIDAI with their correct details. At the time of filling the application form for JEE (Main) 2017, the candidates will have to enter their Aadhaar number, name, date of birth and gender, which will be validated with UIDAI’s data.

In case, these particulars do not match, the candidate will not be able to fill the application form of JEE (Main) 2017. Therefore, the candidates are advised to ensure that their Aadhaar card has correct details of their name, date of birth and gender as per school records. If there is some mismatch in these details, the candidates should immediately get it corrected in Aadhaar data or school records, as the case may be.

Aspiring candidates have to apply online only through the JEE (Main) website www.jeemain.nic.in. The online application process will start from December 1, 2016, onwards. The last date for application is January 2, 2017, and the fee can be paid till January 3, 2017.