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, March 9, 2017

10889 - Aadhaar Articles Dated 9th March 2017



No one to be deprived of benefits for lack of Aadhaar: Government
Economic Times
"The Government has reiterated that till Aadhaar number is assigned to any individual, the benefit will continue to be given based on alternate means ...
No One Will Be Deprived Of Benefits For Lack Of Aadhaar: Government - NDTV
Benefits won't be stopped for lack of Aadhaar, says Centre - Times of India
Aadhaar, midday meals and key questions in SC - The Indian Express


Aadhaar made must for free LPG connections too
Economic Times
NEW DELHI: Women of households below poverty line will need to enrol for Aadhaar by May 31 to be able to avail themselves of a free LPG ...
Aadhaar card now a must for poor women to get free LPG connection - The Indian Express
The government wants pregnant women to enroll in Aadhaar to get their social scheme benefits - Scroll.in


IDFC launches Aadhaar Pay, becomes the first to launch biometric based payment system
Economic Times
The bank aims to onboard anywhere between 50,000-75,000 merchant to the Aadhaar pay module in the next two years with a total target of touching ...
Aadhaar payments: How the government's new Android app works - Hindustan Times
Aadhaar Pay: New App Does Away With Transaction Fee, Debit, Credit Cards - NDTV
Aadhaar Pay Goes Live in India - findBIOMETRICS


Aadhaar payment: Forget debit and credit cards, now pay bills with your thumb
Hindustan Times
The government launched on Tuesday an Aadhaar card-linked payments system that will allow customers to ditch their debit and credit cards and pay ...





Congress slams govt move to link Aadhaar card with midday meal scheme
Hindustan Times
The Congress on Sunday criticised the NDA government's move to link midday meal scheme benefits with Aadhaar card, saying the decision should ...





Aadhaar may be getting a bit too big for its own good
Livemint
The Unique ID project, or Aadhaar, was supposed to solve this problem. Those of India's 1.3 billion residents who lacked documents would have their ...





No one will be deprived of benefits for lack of Aadhaar: Govt
Business Standard
The Centre today clarified that no benefit would be stopped for want of Aadhaar number and citizens can avail all the benefits of government schemes ...





UIDAI Seeks to Reassure Public of Security of Aadhaar After Misuse Discovery
findBIOMETRICS
Having launched criminal investigation against multiple organizations for misuse of Aadhaar a couple of weeks ago, the Unique Identification Authority ...

Aadhaar enrolment: UIDAI shows new way to disabled - Times of India
Aadhaar database fully safe and secure, no incident of misuse, says UIDAI - Firstpost


Why is government so desperate about Aadhaar that it'll let children go hungry?
DailyO
If the Supreme Court of India is anything to go by - and it is the highest jurisprudential body in the country – the unique identity (UID), or Aadhaar, is not ...
Mandatory Aadhaar for welfare is fine but govt should address privacy, connectivity issues first - Firstpost
Aadhaar should not be forced on people - Deccan Chronicle
Students Who Don't Have Aadhaar Will Be Enrolled By Their Schools - Outlook Indi


Aadhaar Compulsory for Bhopal Gas Victims and Rescued Bonded Labourers to Access ...
The Wire
Just days after it announced that Aadhaar will be compulsory for children to access the mid-day meal scheme, the government announced two more ...





Next, Aadhaar for kids in orphanages
The Indian Express
Aadhaar, Aadhaar orphans, orphanage Aadhaar, Maneka Gandhi aadhaar, Maneka Gandhi, Aadhaar “We have to give everyone an identity card ...





“Link Aadhaar number with bank accounts”
The Hindu
Account holders with banks have been asked to link their accounts with their Aadhaar number and also provide mobile phone number. Lead Bank ...





Opposition to take up Aadhaar battle in Parliament
Times of India
KOLKATA: After demonetisation, Aadhaar is going to be a rallying point for the opposition in Parliament when the session begins on March 9. Political ...





Why the State is wrong in linking Aadhaar to the mid-day meal scheme
Hindustan Times
Take for example, the central government's notification to make Aadhaar mandatory for receiving benefits of programmes such as mid-day meals, ...





Watch: Jean Drèze on Making Aadhaar Mandatory For Mid-Day Meals
The Wire
Watch: Jean Drèze on Making Aadhaar Mandatory For Mid-Day Meals ... The noted economist says the government notification making Aadhaar ...
CLICK ON TITLE TO SEE ORIGINAL ARTICLE - Posted by