Aadhaar aimed at "inclusion" of marginalised sections: SC

The Supreme Court Wednesday said the aim behind launching of the Aadhaar scheme was "inclusion" of the marginalised section of society and the project cannot be crucified on the possibility of failure in authentication.

The top court said it was conscious of the probability of failure in Aadhar's authentication process and it would be appropriate if a suitable provision was made in the regulations for establishing an identity by alternate means in such situations.

Referring to the submission of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) which claimed that biometric accuracy of Aadhaar was 99.76 per cent, the court said if the project is shelved, 99.76 per cent beneficiaries are going to suffer which would lead to their exclusion.

"The Authority has claimed that biometric accuracy is 99.76 per cent and the petitioners have also proceeded on that basis. In this scenario, if the Aadhaar project is shelved, 99.76 per cent beneficiaries are going to suffer. Would it not lead to their exclusion?