UIDAI generates a billion (100 crore) Aadhaars A Historic Moment for India

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) generated the 100^thcrore Aadhaar on April 4, 2016, touching the landmark in a span of five-and-a-half years since the first Aadhaar was issued in 2010. This comes just a few days after a historic legislation Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits, and Services) Act 2016 has been notified by the Government.

Aadhaar coverage now is at 93 percent among people above the age of 18 (as per projected population figures of 2015).

As on date, in thirteen states and union territories (UTs) Aadhaar saturation has crossed 90 percent, while in thirteen other statues and UTs it is between 75-90 percent.

Aadhaar crossing the 100-crore mark is indeed a momentous occasion. This along with the recently notified Aadhaar Act will give a boost to the Government’s initiative of bringing a systemic change in the way services, subsidies and benefits will be directly delivered to the deserving masses.

Aadhaar Achievements

• More than 100 crore people  have Aadhaar
• 73.96 Crores (93%) of adults in India have Aadhaar
• 22.25 Crore (67%) Children of age 5-18 Years have Aadhaar
• 2.30 Crore (20%) Children of Age 0- <5 years have Aadhaar
• Every day more than 5-7 lakhs people get enrolled for Aadhaar.
• Aadhaar is now the largest online digital identity platform in the world.

Aadhaar Benefits

• DBTL (Pahal) – estimated savings of Rs 14,672 cr.
• PDS – estimated savings of Rs 2,346 cr. across 4 states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Puducherry and Delhi
• Scholarship – estimated savings of Rs 276 cr. across 3 states of Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Punjab
• Pensions (NSAP) – estimated savings of Rs 66 cr. across 3 states of Jharkhand, Chandigarh and Puducherry

Aadhaar Usage

• 25.48 cr. Bank accounts linked with unique Aadhaars
• Over 12.28 cr (71%)LPG connections linked with Aadhaar
• Over 11.39 crore (45%) ration cards linked with Aadhaar
• Over 5.90 cr. (60%) NREGA Cards linked with Aadhaar

Aadhaar Authentication

• Over 150.6 cr. authentication transactions done by UIDAI
• Over 8.4 cr. e-KYC transactions done at UIDAI
• UIDAI authenticates over 40 lakh auth transactions per day

UIDAI today has a capacity of generating and dispatching over 15 lakh Aadhaars every day and has 37,304 enrolment stations spread across the country, manned by 3,76,543 certified operators.

Aadhaar applications and seeding too have seen impressive growth in the past two years. The number of transactions using Aadhaar Authentication has risen to 150.6 crore as on March 31, 2016, compared to 8.82 crore on May 31, 2014. The number of e-KYC transactions has gone up to 8.4 crore as on March 31, 2016 as against 2.7 lakh transaction on May 31, 2014.

Aadhaar Payment Bridge (APB) has been developed which enables disbursal of benefits /other payments directly to the beneficiary through his Aadhaar number without requiring his bank details. has shown considerable growth in the past two years.  Today more than 23 crore people have linked their bank accounts to their Aadhaars on the Aadhaar Payment Bridge. Total number of transactions on the APB was logged at 94.71 crore worth Rs. 28,363 crore, a handsome rise compared to the data on May 31, 2014:7.13 crore APB transactions worth Rs. 4,474 crore.

Another important achievement in the past two years is the growth seen in the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AEPS). AEPS is a mechanism through which a beneficiary in a remote village, without having access to a bank branch is able to withdraw or deposit money at his doorstep by giving his Aadhaar and fingerprint on a micro-ATM.  Total number of AEPS transactions has gone up to 10.76 crore as on March 31, 2016, as against 46 lakh logged on May 31, 2014.

Government of India has provided fresh impetus to the UIDAI by linking Aadhaar to various schemes and initiatives, including the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY), MGNREGS, Pensions, Scholarships, DBTL, UAN (EPFO), PDS, Passports, Attendance system in government offices, etc. A comparison of the status of Aadhaar seeding as on 31^st May 2014 and March 31, 2016 in the following table clearly shows the direction and resolve of the Government to leverage Aadhaar for the benefit of people.