Aadhaar Biometric ID to soon be issued along with birth certificates in all Indian states

(NDTV.com) – Aadhaar enrollment for newborns along with birth certificates is expected to be available in all states in the next few months, expanding beyond 16 states currently offering the facility, government sources told Press Trust of India.

At present, 16 states have Aadhaar Linked Birth Registration. The process began more than one year ago, with various states getting added over time.

Work is on in remaining states and Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) — the government agency that issues Aadhaar numbers — expects that over the next few months all states will be able to offer the facility, bringing added convenience to new parents.

For children up to 5 years, no biometrics is captured. Their UID is processed on the basis of demographic information and facial photograph linked with the UID of their parents. Hence, biometric update is required (ten fingers, iris and facial photograph) once the child turns 5 and 15.

More than 1,000 state and central government schemes today leverage Aadhaar for identification and authentication of beneficiaries, transfer of benefits, and ensuring de-duplication. Of these, nearly 650 schemes are of state governments and 315 central government-run schemes — all of which use Aadhaar ecosystem and its biometric authentication. Read Full Article >