Agencies

Aadhaar, the identity number initially meant to ensure the transfer of benefits to actual beneficiaries, saw a rapid expansion in usage over the past few years before the Supreme Court called a halt. Legislation aimed at ensuring that it regains a more expansive role is currently pending approval.It had come to be regarded as a means of bringing millions into the banking system, expanding mobile connectivity and boosting digital transactions. All SIM cards, PAN cards, bank accounts and even digital wallet accounts were to be linked to Aadhaar However, the Supreme Court ruled in September 2018 that Aadhaar authentication can only be used for government-funded programmes, while striking down the use of the unique ID by private entities. Petitioners had expressed concerns over privacy and security of data as a wide range of entities insisted on Aadhaar authentication.Following this, the government introduced a Bill in Parliament that allowed offline verification of Aadhaar and its voluntary use to authenticate identity to enroll for services among other things. The Lok Sabha passed it on January 4 and it awaits approval in the Upper House. The government says it has saved over `90,000 crore since the inception of Aadhaar-based direct benefit transfers.“For a digital economy, we need identity authentication. Aadhaar is the best we have,” said Hemant M Joshi, technology, media and telecom leader at Deloitte India. “It boosted digital economy and helped easier onboarding of customers.”But critics fear privacy will be compromised for corporate benefit.“Instead of honouring the SC’s verdict, the government is bringing these amendments to give access to private companies again. This is a very serious matter. The benefits will accrue to companies at the cost of compromising citizen’s data and informational privacy,” said Reetika Khera, an economist and social scientist at IIM Ahmedabad.The telecom industry backs the use of Aadhaar for authentication, “The government has power to mandate use of Aadhaar for critical applications. We think SIM card authentication is an essential part of strengthening national security,” said Rajan Mathews, director general, Cellular Operators Association of India.