The government of India has proposed to make Aadhaar cards mandatory, in addition to a permanent account number (Pan) for filing income tax returns in the country. As per their estimates, so far, more than 1.11 billion Aadhaar cards have been issued. But less than five per cent of non-resident Indians (NRIs) have obtained these cards, according to a Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) official.
Every year, hundreds of thousands of NRI students appear for Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and other Indian curriculum examinations from GCC countries. Since India is planning to make the cards mandatory when appearing for these examinations, they will all be affected.
For new mobile phone connections and to keep existing mobile phones active, Aadhaar card is a must. It will also be mandatory for the issuance of new driving licenses very soon.
NRIs cannot apply for Aadhaar while they are abroad, because the applicant has to provide biometric details. They can apply for it when they visit India on holiday. Most of the NRIs from countries other than the Gulf, like the US, Canada, Australia, and Europe, do not visit India frequently, so applying for Aadhaar can be quite difficult for them.
I request the government of India to make the necessary arrangements to make it easy for people to apply for the Aadhar card in Indian Consulates all over the world.
The reader is the founder of an international brokerage house, based in Sharjah.
