The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is planning to set up permanent centres at mandal level to help people register their names and details to get an Aadhar (the 12-digit unique identity) number.

Temporary centres

“In the first phase, we have set up temporary centres to enrol for the national project. We will soon establish permanent centres in order to let newcomers to join the registry and get numbers. There will be additions and deletions as we go along hence we felt the need for such centres,” M.V.S. Rami Reddy, Deputy Director-General (UIDAI, Andhra Pradesh), said.

He was talking to reporters on the sidelines of a public-private initiative where the UIDAI named Vodafone as Authentication User Agency and Authentication Service Agency here on Wednesday. Andhra Pradesh accounts for 25 per cent of all the Aadhar enrolments in the country.

“Making amendments to the cards is very easy. You can do that by writing to us or by making those changes online,” Rami Reddy said.

He said the State stood in the forefront when it came to issuing Aadhar numbers. “Of the total population of 8.6 crore in the State, we could enrol 5.2 crore so far, achieving a coverage of 67 per cent. We have issued 4.8 crore cards so far. We will be covering the remaining three crore people by the end of March 2013,” he said.

Pilot project

He said the pilot started by the Civil Supplies Department in the State have started showing results. “They launched pilots in east Godavari and Hyderabad districts. In East Godavari, the officials could save Rs 2.5 crore by streamlining ration deliveries. They have launched a similar pilot in Hyderabad on September 1,” he said.

“If one district could save Rs 2.5 crore in just one department, imagine the scope for savings and reduction of inefficiencies across all the country,” he added.

>kurmanath.kanchi@thehindu.co.in

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