It's a win-win model: Nandan Nilekani

Interview with Chairman, UIDAI

The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) is now set to work with a renewed energy in providing Aadhar identification number to people, with the cabinet extending the authority’s mandate to enrol another 400 million people by June 2013. Chairman of UIDAI Nandan Nilekani spoke to Santosh Tiwari after the decision and said that the model cleared by the government created a win-win situation. Edited excerpts:

How would you react to the extension and also the model cleared by the cabinet committee, in which the UID and the national population register (NPR) work will be done in co-ordination?
It’s a win-win solution, which combines process attributes of both the NPR and the UIDAI, and with absolutely minimal duplication. This is something which will allow all of us to move forward.

What would be your strategy now to expedite work as you have said that work will again begin from April?
It will be a refreshed strategy. We will finish 200 million enrolments shortly, in February. So, we don’t want to start the next 400 million before April, and we will look at the entire technology and process, and everything. We will see what needs to be refined and what needs to be tweaked. That is what will be the refreshed strategy. We will do that and then we will do enrolments only from April.

The next stage is utilisation of Aadhaar numbers in various government schemes, especially cash subsidy disbursement programmes. Isn’t it? What is the preparation for that?
These are applications. In the next few months, applications will start rolling — NREGA payments, cash transfers and all. In all these schemes, we are partners with banks, state governments and with the rural development ministry. We are the partners. They will work and we will help them to make it really happen.

So, now you think that UIDAI has the capacity to add another 400 million people by June 2013 — the whole system is in place to do that?
Well, that is the intention. We do about 20 million enrolments a month. So, in less than 20 months we should complete 600 million enrolments as 200 million has already been done. So, six more months, I will say.