MillenniumPost
Delhi

Hit by pandemic, change in Aadhaar updation policy hits thousands of helpless citizens in city

New Delhi/Noida: In yet another blow to the country's poor amid the global pandemic, over three months after Aadhaar Seva Kendras were allowed to reopen, changes in updation services policies have resulted in thousands of residents trying their best to get an appointment for Aadhaar-related work at one of the authorised UIDAI centres, which in Delhi and Noida are now seeing large crowds with most people unaware

of the process and putting

each other at a higher risk of infection as COVID-19 protocols go for a toss.

Millennium Post visited some of these Kendras and found people, either seeking to enroll for a new Aadhaar Card or owing to an updation or technical error in the ID, waiting for their turns while jostling and openly flouting social distancing norms.

Outside a center in Mohan Estate, applicants, on the one hand, said that the reason behind the ruckus was confusion over the online mode of seeking appointment, which, according to them, was allowed even offline or on a walk-in basis. Most of them were seen being turned away by officials.

On the other hand, at an Aadhaar updation centre in Noida's Sector-19, an official said that address changes can be done directly by the card-holder online but all other updation services such as changing mobile numbers, updating dates of birth, names, etc. would have to be done offline at one of the Unique Identification Authority of India centres, for which an appointment has to be sought online in light of the pandemic.

Among the people turned away at the Mohan Estate centre was Priyanka, who had come to update her ID, but she wasn't aware of the switch to the online mode of getting appointments. "Now I will have to go back and find someone who can book an appointment for me," she said.

Nazim Saifi (age 22) from Noida's Sector-22 wanted to get his picture changed and his mobile number updated since his Aadhar was made when he was 14. "My previous phone got stolen many months ago, so I have no way to receive any notification or OTP on that number. I had come here thinking it will be easier to get the changes made at an official center, but they have only given me a token saying I should visit again on October 26," he said.

Meanwhile, Rahul, who had come to update his 1-year-old son's name in his Aadhaar Card, said that although the safety measures inside the center were up to the mark, the staff members told them due to some technical errors, they will have to apply at a different center. "We will now have to find another cyber café and book an appointment as we don't have a PC at home," Rahul said.

As a result of this policy tweak in getting Aadhaar-related work done, thousands of poorer residents in Delhi, who do not have access to the Internet or have a mobile internet device visit centres every day in the hopes of getting their identification document updated with the correct details.

In addition to the trouble that people are facing due to the new rules, outdated websites are also a problem for residents looking to find their nearest Aadhaar Seva Kendra.

For instance, in Noida, five Aadhar enrollment centres are listed on the UIDAI website but visitors said that they could not figure out how to find the ones that are functional. The Noida Sector-24 post office (Indiapost) is listed as a permanent enrolment center but is currently inactive. Whereas the Sector-19 post office (Indiapost head office) is the largest enrolment centre in Noida but is not listed on the website.

However, at an Aadhaar centre in Okhla, Supervisor Ankit Walia said that they have put up a QR scanning code outside the gate where one can set an online appointment. At the center, equipped with a disinfection tunnel, footfall was sparse while employees claimed that things were going smoothly.

At the HDFC Bank's Kalkaji Branch, an employee said the Aadhaar facility caters to around 30 persons during rush hours while offline services have been completely disbanded. Meanwhile, at a Post Office nearby, a designated Aadhaar Kendra, one of the employees said that the facility remains shut.

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