UID project picks up pace

Do not be surprised if you are asked to furnish information under more than eight mandatory heads — demographic and biometric — when you go for registration under the Unique Identification (UID) number project in Himachal Pradesh. The state has tapped the UID project at its initial stage and combined it with its own food and civil supplies department project aimed for better delivery of services in future.

Along with the eight mandatory questions under the UID project — name,residence,date of birth,photo,all 10 finger prints and iris image — the citizens will now also be asked to provide information about their status on ration cards,PAN cards,LPG connection and bank accounts. This additional information would be used exclusively by the state government for future planning and eliminating duplication in delivery of services by the food and civil supplies and consumer affairs department. The department is the nodal agency for monitoring the UID project in Himachal.

Director,Food and Civil Supplies,and Registrar,UID project in Himachal,C Paul Rasu said the UID project had picked up good pace in Himachal. “The project started from Dharamsala in Kangra district and Una about 15 days ago. At Dharamsala,the enrolments have crossed 1,500,which is a good rate given the fact that registration under the project is voluntary. We have combined our own survey with the UID project as we are expecting that a large population will come for the registration voluntarily and the data can come handy for eliminating duplication,” said Rasu.

Within January,the private companies shortlised for the UID project — GnG,IL&FS,Wipro and I-Grandi — will be able to cover most of the 12 districts of Himachal.