Aadhaar Enrolment Drive to Begin in Assam From October, Nearly 3.16 Crore Residents to Receive UIDAI Cards

Guwahati, Sept 23: Four years after the Aadhaar process was stuck in logjam in Assam, the state government has decided to resume the enrollment for UIDAI cards. An estimated 3.16 crore legal residents of the state are expected to be issued the unique identity card.

Aadhaar enrolment was last carried out in the state in 2014 as a pilot project in Golaghat, Nagaon and Sonitpur districts, where collectively 24.1 lakh citizens were issued the UIDAI cards. The process was suspended by the then state government fearing that the illegal immigrants may avail the biometric identity number and misuse it to claim citizenship. Aadhaar Smart Card Mandatory? UIDAI Confirms There Is No Such Concept, Warns People.

In May this, the Centre clarified that Aadhaar would not form the basis of citizenship. The card will be used only for identification purpose.

Following the clarification from the central government, Assam decided to resume the Aadhaar enrolment process in coordination with the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).

The state government has issued work order to 6 shortlisted firms, who have been selected for the Aadhaar enrolment process. A total of 1,241 centres have been designated across the state.

The enrolment will be free of cost, said the general administration department (GAD), adding that the UIDAI form would be provided to applicants at the centre. The same could be downloaded from the UIDAI website and directly submitted at the local centres.

The GAD has appointed Deputy Commissioners as the enrolment authority in their respective districts. The DCs are mandated to ensure the process is being completed smoothly without any foul play.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 23, 2018 11:49 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).