Vishal Srivastav

Aadhaar

Central Railway

Vikas Bhalerao

Application dateline

Theturmoil may have reached an end with the Supreme Court extending the deadline for its linkage to various services till March 31, 2018, but a 53-year-old railway guard’s heartbeat gets pacier with each passing day.Nabisahab Karimsahab Humnabad, deployed in Central Railway’s Pune division, has applied for obtaining his Unique Identification Number (UID), popularly known as Aadhaar, for as many as seven times since 2011. Till date, he has only collected receipts.His biggest trouble is the deadline that is approaching thick and fast. Every time he makes a call, he hears the Aadhaar obligatory messages as dialler tones. He has already received a verbal warning from the bank from where he draws his salary.On May 5, 2011, at 3.05 pm, it was Nabisahab’s maiden attempt for Aadhaar along with his wife and two children. In a month’s time, his family received their UIDs but he didn’t.He spoke with the Aadhaar customer service from where he was told that he would receive the card soon. Several months passed, but the railway official didn’t hear about the whereabouts of his Aadhaar. Having waited patiently, he again applied on March 19, 2013, but his stars ditched him again. Since May 2011, Nabisahab has already applied seven times with his last attempt being July 19, 2017. Each time he has gone through the entire process, which includes getting the biometrics done.In the process, he spent thousands of rupees too. After having approached the Aadhaar centres for a number of times and getting nothing, he once called a service provider at his home that charged him Rs 3,000 for the visit. However, despite all the efforts, he didn’t get anything.In the last seven years, Nabisahab has approached the helpline for more than ten times and every time he has been told that there are technical issues with his application and that he would soon receive his Aadhaar card. “I have been applying for Aadhaar card since May 2011, but have not got it as yet. I have already made a number of applications but to no avail. I have even written to the senior officials but there has been no heed paid to my agony,” says a distraught Nabisahab while explaining his irony to Mirror.He says that when he asks the customer service representative about the loopholes in his application, he gets only one answer. “Whenever I call them, I am told that there is a technical issue and that my application is under manual data check and will be cleared by the end of the year. This is a straight line that I have been listening to since the inception of my troubles. I have submitted all the valid proofs for identity and address verification and all my biometrics parameters have also been ticked as cleared. I do not understand why I am being denied what I would say is my constitutional right as a citizen of this country,” theofficial, residing in Daund with his family, said.He added that he doesn’t want to complain against anyone but just wants his Aadhaar card soon. “I would be the happiest man on the planet the day I would get it. I don’t want to complain against anyone I just want what is constitutionally mine.”However, with the deadline approaching, his heart takes a beating every single day he wakes up. “I have already been asked by the bank I receive my salary in that if I do not submit my Aadhaar details, I won’t be getting my salary. Also, my phone numbers would be blocked and forget about what would happen to the 150benefits that I may avail after getting the Aadhaar,” says Nabisahab.This would probably be first such case in the history of Aadhaar where an applicant has waited for the UID for seven long years and has still not received. During all these applications, there were seven different enrolment agencies approached., assistant nodal officer at collector’s office for Aadhaar, said the issue would be dealt with utmost importance and redressed as soon as possible. “There were some issues with the Aadhaar applications of some citizens but I have a belief it should not have happened. We would look into this at personal level. I would contact the person concerned and have a look at his latest application. It is really sad to know that he has applied for so many times but hasn’t received a proper response yet,” Bhalerao told Mirror.May 5,2011at 3.05 pmMarch 3,2013 at 5.25 pmOctober 17,2015 at 5.03 pmMarch 15,2016 at 3.21pmJune 16,2016 at 2.22 pmMay 28, 2017 at 8.25 pmJuly 7, 2017 at 4.33 pm