Block level Aadhar enrolment centres in eight Odisha DBT districts soon

DBTL rolled out in three districts from January 1

The Directorate of Census Operations (DCO), Odisha, which is carrying out the enrolment process for 'Aadhar' in the state will open permanent enrolment centres in all block offices of selected eight districts for rolling out of direct benefit transfer (DBT) schemes.

These centres will enrol the people who have not been left out of the process. A decision to this effect was taken at the sixth UID implementation committee meeting held recently.

The districts where the DBT and direct benefit transfer for LPG (DBTL) will be rolled out are Khurda, Puri, Cuttack, Bolangir, Balasore, Bhadrak and Sundergarh.

Meanwhile, the DBTL has been rolled out in Bhadrak, Balasore and Sundergarh districts from today.

The opening of permanent enrolment centres will cost about Rs 53.64 lakh, which will be funded out of the 13th Finance Commission grant already available with Odisha computer application centre.

"You are requested to kindly go ahead with opening of Centre in all block offices of eight DBT districts by end of December as per the decision taken in sixth UID implementation committee meeting of December 16", Debendra Prasad Das, additional secretary, state IT department, wrote to the director, census operations (Odisha).

The biometric enrolment in the state stood at 64.52 per cent as on December 10. About 36.92 lakh biometric enrolments have been rejected out of 2.74 crore people enrolled in the state.

The state has a target to enrol 3.83 crore people (all those above five years of age) for Aadhar. The DCO has engaged public sector Electronics Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) for collection of biometric data. ECIL has sublet the job to five vendors in different areas of the state.

In all the selected districts, the Aadhar generation rate was below 70 per cent. While this is 62 per cent in Bolangir, the same is 67 per cent in Puri, 60 per cent in Cuttack, 40 per cent in Sonepur, 64 per cent in Khurda, 54 per cent in Balasore, 46 per cent in Bhadrak and 31 per cent in Sundergarh. It may be noted that slow rate of generation of Aadhar numbers in Odisha has led to delay in rolling out of (DBTL). There was hue and cry among the general masses after the Union government through an advertisement on November 1 announced to roll out DBTL in Cuttack, Puri, Bolangir and Khurdha districts. Many felt they would not be able to take advantage of the scheme as they did not possess Aadhar cards.