30.3.15

Aadhaar enrolments


Aadhaar numbers assigned to adult residents in 13 of the country's 36 states and Union territories have exceeded their respective population as per 2011 census figures. Not only this, the overall Aadhaar coverage in Delhi and Telangana is already more than their population.
Unusual as it seems, experts claim this anomaly between the census figures and Aadhaar numbers assigned in the states is not abnormal.Apart from attributing it to the increase in population since 2011 and migration of residents in between states, they also allege that certain “gaps“ in census enumeration may have left scope for errors in the population data.
While Aadhaar coverage among the Delhi's 18-plus age group is the highest at 127.6% of their 2011 headcount, other states reflecting this trend are undivided Andhra Pradesh (113.7%), Himachal Pradesh (112.5%), Sikkim (109.2%), Punjab (109.1%), Kerala (108.6%), Lakshadweep (108%), Jharkhand (107.1%), Chandigarh (106.9%), Goa (106.8%), Puducherry (106.8%), Tripura (103.8%) and Haryana (103.5%).
Incidentally , in Delhi and Telangana, Aadhaar numbers allotted so far stand at 105.9% and 102.9% of their 2011 census population.Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), which administers the scheme, has so far assigned 786 million numbers. While 642 million numbers were generated in 24 statesUTs assigned to UIDAI, around 144 million Aadhaar numbers were assigned in the 12 states being handled by Registrar General of India. UIDAI officials discount the possibility of any errors in Aadhaar enrolment, claiming that the data collected by them is foolproof as it contains biometrics that are unique to each resident.
The census authorities, on the other hand, insist that its enumeration exercise is time-tested and based on a elaborate house-to-house verification of the residents.
UIDAI states are ahead of RGI states in terms of Aadhaar enrolment, with the UIDAI having covered over 80% population across 14 states.

No comments: