Adhaar Enrollment Target Missed in Assam

STAFF REPORTER

GUWAHATI: Assam has missed its target for ADHAAR enrollment of the projected population in the State. So far, the ADHAAR enrollment in Assam is around 38 per cent.

GAD (General Administration Department) is the nodal department for AADHAAR enrollment exercise in the State. According to official sources, GAD had the target of December 31, 2020 for AADHAAR enrollment of a projected population of 3.30 crore. However, till December 3, 2020, only 1.31 crore people were enrolled, and it was just 37.04 per cent of the projected 3.30 crore population in the State.

The State has been lagging behind in ADHAAR enrollment; and such a delay has generated some sort of restlessness among the residents since ADHAAR number is mandatory for almost all the Central government schemes and various other purposes, nowadays.

Taking advantage of the urgency of ADHAAR, an unscrupulous section in the State has been duping gullible ADHAAR applicants by issuing them duplicate ADHAAR cards. Issuance of duplicate ADHAAR cards in the State came to light with the police busting such rackets, leading to arrests in the recent past.

According to sources, the State lags behind in ADHAAR enrollment because of paucity of the number of biometric collection machines and the fewer number of enrollment centres in operation, besides the lack of adequate number of vendors engaged for the purpose.

In October 2020, the GAD instructed the Deputy Commissioners (DCs) to engage more suitable vendors in addition to the existing ones so as to speed up the enrollment process. Initially, six vendors were empanelled for AADHAAR enrollment exercise in the State.

According to official sources, till October 2020, only 1,247 biometric collection machines were in use across the State that needed around 7,000 such machines to meet to the target. And the State missed the target.

Even now, the queues in front of ADHAAR enrollment centres in the State are serpentine, dissuading many applicants from going for the enrollment process.

ADHAAR enrollment works have been going on in the State under the 'Unique Identification Authority of India' (UIDAI).

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