Is Aadhaar Card Mandatory

People always have a question in their mind whether Aadhaar is mandatory or not from the very day it has been issued to them. There is a lot of ambiguity and courts in India have passed a number of judgements for and against the compulsion of Aadhar for availing many services and grants.

Identity proof has been made a mandatory requirement at many places such as railway booking, air travel, hotel booking, etc. Although there are various alternatives of showing the identity proof, but a card that has gained high importance recently is the Aadhar card because of the biometric and demographic data.

Like Passport or PAN, Aadhar is now used as an instrument of legitimacy at all private and public bodies, government organizations, banks, travel, education etc. It is used as a proof of identity as well as residence. But the primary concern that crosses everyone’s mind is whether an Aadhar card is mandatory for a gas connection, filing ITR, claiming EPF, ration card, passport or PAN Card application.

Is Aadhaar Mandatory?

In a ruling by the Supreme Court of India, the apex court has made it very clear that Aadhar card cannot be made mandatory as of now by the Government of India. In some cases, Government can make Aadhaar card mandatory like opening of the bank account, filing of IT returns, verification of mobile numbers and application of PAN number.

After various legal battles, Aadhar is being made compulsory for most of the government schemes to plug misuse of funds and corruption. Today a range of government schemes mandatorily need beneficiaries to furnish their Aadhar in order to authenticate their legitimacy. Most subsidies are disbursed directly into the bank account of beneficiaries linked with Aadhar.

Out of the Indian population of approximately 135 Crores, around 1.12 Billion Aadhar numbers have been issued. This means that although Aadhar has become an extremely important identity proof to possess, it has still not been issued for a number of people. They can still use PAN card, driving license or passport as a substitute for Aadhar card for photo identity or address proof.

The Aadhaar Card Project

The project of giving an identity to every resident in India was started by the Indian Government in co-ordination with UIDAI in March 2006. This card was launched by the Indian Government with an aim to establish a unique social identity for every Indian citizen. Hence this card, sometimes also referred to as UID card, was issued by UIDAI under the project called Aadhaar. This card can be used universally at all places in India and is an all-purpose card. As per the reports, 1.12 Billion Aadhar cards have been already issued to the residents of India.

Reasons to Apply for an Aadhaar Card

• It is a universally accepted identity proof and is a single document that can work as address proof, identity proof and age proof.
• Aadhar is mandatory for LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) subsidy connection or booking if you want to get direct benefits under the DBT scheme.
• Aadhar is mandatory for many admission applications such as NEET, university admissions, etc.
• Aadhaar is compulsory for PDS schemes to avail subsidy on ration and kerosene.
• Aadhaar is mandatory for Pensioners.
• Aadhar is mandatory for opening savings bank accounts. You can apply for a savings account online at Paisabazaar.
• Aadhar is mandatory for mobile and internet connections.
• Aadhar card has been made compulsory for the registration of deaths. It will help the UIDAI to deactivate the Aadhaar and prevent its misuse.
• Aadhar card made compulsory for EPF withdrawal, transfer and other uses.
• Aadhar card has been made mandatory for passport applications or renewal.
• It is also mandatory for NRI or their bank accounts.
• Right now, Aadhaar is not mandatory for registering marriages, but it can be provided as a proof of identity.

Places Where Aadhaar Has Been Made Mandatory

Aadhar card is a mandatory requirement at a number of places and for a number of applications. Some of these are mentioned below:

• Iron Ore or Limestone workers need Aadhar Card for availing house subsidy.
• This card is mandatory to avail supplementary nutrition program.
• Aadhaar is mandatory for all the farmers who want to take crop insurance benefits and for people who are eligible for subsidized food grains.
• Aadhaar is also mandatory to undertake training under Integrated Child Development Services in the Ministry of Women and Child Development.
• It has also been made mandatory to earn benefits under Grih Kalyan Kendra scheme.
• Aadhaar has also been made mandatory for financial support under the National Mission for Empowerment of Women.
• This is also mandatory for e-panchayat training benefits and for all the students who wish to avail central scholarships at college level.
• Soil Health Card scheme and Soil Health management scheme now requires Aadhaar as a mandatory document.
• If you wish to take supplementary meals at creches, you require Aadhar card mandatorily.
• All the maternity benefit program as well as Integrated Child Protection Scheme requires Aadhar card.
• For women candidates looking to avail vocational training, loans and other schemes, Aadhaar has been made mandatory.
• Aadhaar is also mandatory for disabled children between the age group 6-14 who are eligible for benefits under the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan.
• Linking Aadhaar with bank accounts, Money can be transferred using aadhar number.
• Victim of the Bhopal Gas Tragedy need Aadhar card to apply for compensation from the government.
• The most recent announcement was of the Aadhar card being made mandatory for salaried professional to file Income Tax return.
• Every citizen who wants to apply for a fresh PAN card now must hold a valid Aadhar card as a pre-requisite.

As you can see, there are countless places and numerous application processes which cannot be completed without a valid Aadhaar Card.

A Safe and Secure Card

One of the reasons why Aadhar card finds huge application and widespread acceptance is the fact that the UID number is unique across India. Moreover, this is a biometric document which requires your finger prints for activation, thus making it absolutely unique. This document can only be detected and read through compatible technological devices and machines.

Thus, considering the number of benefits and uses of Aadhar card, it makes sense for you to apply for this card immediately if you have not done it so far. This is not only useful for your safety and identity purpose but will also enable faster and efficient processing of various applications.