New Aadhaar Rules Cause Enrollment Issues for Overseas Citizens
New rules were introduced for people applying for Aadhaar, India’s unique identification number. These changes affect Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs) and Non-Resident Indians (NRIs). Now, anyone over 18 must prove that they have stayed in India for at least 182 days during the previous year to qualify for Aadhaar enrolment.
Overview of the New Rules
The new regulations require anyone wanting to enroll for Aadhaar to prove they have lived in India for the required 182 days. This rule applies to OCIs, foreign nationals, and other applicants. The goal is to ensure that only people with genuine residency in India get an Aadhaar number, helping to prevent fraudulent applications.
Verification Process
The verification of residency is now handled by Revenue officials, similar to how passport checks are done. This process involves stricter checks, which has slowed down the enrolment process. Many applications are delayed or even rejected as officials carefully verify whether applicants meet the new residency requirements.
Impact on Aadhaar Applications
Since the rule change, thousands of Aadhaar applications have been rejected, especially in cities like Bengaluru. Around 10,000 applications are still waiting for verification there. The new verification process is causing a backlog, as many applicants are unable to provide the necessary documents or prove they have lived in India long enough.
Challenges for OCIs and NRIs
While NRIs do not have to meet the 182-day residency requirement, they still face challenges during the verification process. For OCIs, especially those from countries like Nepal, issues have come up due to discrepancies in their documents. For example, some applicants have problems when the dates on their rental agreements don’t match their tax records.
Why were these Changes Made?
The government introduced these changes primarily for national security reasons. Since Aadhaar is widely used as a primary form of identification in India, the government wants to prevent fraudulent applications that could pose security risks. By tightening the rules, they aim to ensure that Aadhaar numbers are issued only to people with a legitimate connection to India.
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Month: Current Affairs - October, 2024
Category: India Nation & States Current Affairs
Yakesh
October 15, 2024 at 7:10 pmIndia is a unique country where rules keep changing. It rules over rather than serve people. To catch few people (whom they can not catch in any case), millions of people are put to inconvenience and discomfort denying them their rights. India treats its people with disrespect and maltreatment when it comes to government services.
Sita
October 15, 2024 at 11:10 pmTotally agree with this gentleman. It’s always the usage of a cannon to kill a fly 🤷🏻♂️
Matt Thomas
October 17, 2024 at 5:14 amYou are absolutely right!
Manga Mamtani
October 17, 2024 at 11:44 amAlthough it a neccessary and Utmost importance that any such document like Adhaar shouldn’t be issued without a serious and strict rules. It’s our mother country we want it to be safe. The only issue is 182 days of stay in India, if a OCI is married to a foreigner and children born overseas have OCI card, they can be made to go Indian embassy in that country and 100 issues can be raised to satisfy the eligibility is acceptable but children can not leave their jobs and stay in India to get this card. It’s not practical, please find a different way of verification or allow certain countries where Indian Govt can feel confident that a particular country is trust worthy and it has a fool proof system or if any other way but not 182 days of stay please
Yogesh Gupta
October 16, 2024 at 5:11 amI am an OCI living overseas. I file income tax returns every year for the interest I earn on bank deposits in India. I wanted to print my E-PAN card, but cannot do so, as the online government website makes it mandatory to enter Aadhar number. Without the Aadhar I cannot proceed. This is just one example of the difficulties we as NRIs and OCIs face on these online portals. I posted grievances on the site, but no solution provided yet.
Jatin
October 16, 2024 at 6:11 amMy guess is that the government is going to catch a few like they have caught the black money and Swiss account holders. The government does not have and cannot provide valid stats on fraudulent applications and yet will bring about rules they aim to ensure that Aadhaar numbers are issued only to people with a “legitimate connection” to India. Why was this not done right in the first place? Who does these rules actually serve by making it difficult for NRIs and OCI holders? Is anyone validating these uneducated politicians legitimacy?
Antony Maliakal
October 17, 2024 at 7:00 pmHi Sir,
I also looking for getting adhar card number for getting pan card and doing lots of stuffs as OCI holder. But the policy of staying of 182 days in India is not possible for most of the OCI holders. Then how we can get the adhar which is needed for doing anything in India. I don’t know who is making decisions like this. This is utter nonsense and the outcome will be bad like we will close all the contact from India or any chance to put money there or any investment. Is that government is looking for?