AADHAAR RELATED ARTICLES: 11984 - Villagers fume over non-payment of wages in Eluru of Andhra Pradesh

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

Wednesday, September 6, 2017

11984 - Villagers fume over non-payment of wages in Eluru of Andhra Pradesh - Indian Express

Villagers fume over non-payment of wages in Eluru of Andhra Pradesh

By Express News Service | Published: 03rd September 2017 08:20 AM |

NREGA work in progress in Srikakulam even though many of the workers haven’t got their wages for the last few months | Express

ELURU: The Centre’s apathy has dealt a big blow to the workers of National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (NREGS) in West Godavari district. As the funds from the Centre have not been released to the district, the workers are almost starving for the last few months.The Centre has introduced NREGS to provide 100 days work to the poor labourer in the villages in a year when they have no other work. This scheme was implemented in the district and the State government engaged several daily labours in de-silting drinking water tanks, canals, and construction works of roads in rural areas during the summer season when they do not have work.

The scheme has been handed over to the District Water Management Agency (DWAMA). The DWAMA has identified 6.50 lakh people as daily labour in the district. The DWAMA has to pay `197 per day. However, on an average, the DWAMA officials paid `140 to the labour. So far, 4 lakh labours were there for the NREGS works. The payment is calculated on the quantity of work done by the labour. During the 2016-17 financial year, the government released `192 crore to the labours. However, from July this year, the Centre did not release the funds under NREGS. About 18,000 labours of NREGS who have bank accounts did not link up the Aadhaar numbers. These labours were to receive `1.36 crore from the government and this amount has been stopped due to non-linkage of Aadhaar to the accounts.

The Government has directly credited the wages to the labours who have linked their accounts to Aadhaar in the district. The wages have been stopped to the workers for the last three months i.e., June, July and August and about `15 crore have to be credited to the labours account. Earlier during start of the NREGS, a private organisation SINO paid the wages to the labourers directly in cash. Later, after some time, the workers were asked to open postal savings accounts. The labours get their pay-in-slip at the post office and get the cash whenever they completed their work. After that, the government asked the officials to open bank accounts for every NREGS worker in the district. The NREGS workers who opened the accounts are in a state confusion as to when their wages will be credited. Whether the amount has been credited is unknown and when they ask banks, they do not get a reply.

P Nagaiah, a daily labour of Komadavole village, said that over the last few months he is doing NREGS works. “I am totally in confusion over my wages. Whether the amount was credited in the bank or not I have no idea. Even I tried to ask the bank officials about my wages. They are scolding me whenever I ask,” he said. He said earlier, “We got the amounts through post offices and regularly received the money.” He requested officials to implement the post office account scheme again for their wages.

M Prabhakar Rao of Chataparru said, “I did the work daily and fully. I got only `80 to `100 per day for the work. The officials have not paid the full amount of `197. I have no alternative as there is no work outside except the NREGS. But I did not receive the wages over the last three months. How do we eke out our livelihood if the government does not pay the wages”, he asked.The DWAMA Project Director Mullapudi Venkata Ramana said that `15 crore has to to be paid to the workers as wages. The Centre has to release the funds and it will be paid within two or three days. This amount will directly be deposited in the accounts of the workers of NREGS. About 6 lakh workers are engaged in NREGS works.

Wage woes hound workers, dues mount to L54 crore
Kakinada: The National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) work has come to grinding halt in East Godavari district due to non-payment of wages worth H54 crore. The work of NREGA came to a halt in the district in June 2017. Official sources said that over 15.16 lakh NREGA cards had been issued in the district of which 8.6 lakh cards were individual employment cards. During the year, 17,629 cards had been issued so far under NREGA. Officials informed that 130 lakh work days had been provided during the year.

From December 2016 to May 2017, the Centre had granted Rs 231 crore as against the actual payment due which was at H285 crore, sources said. An NREGA worker, Dasari Veera Raghavaiah of G Vennavaram village, said that no work had been given under NREGA since June 2017. DWMA Project Director T Rajakumari said that pending funds would be released by two or three days. As soon as funds received, arrears would be disbursed. She said that NREGA work is being carried out in the district and 40,000 workers were working at various places.