PM clears roadmap for direct cash transfers from Jan 1

Expects finance ministry and UIDAI to work in close co-ordination to achieve expansion of the scheme across the country by April 2014

The UPA government today made its intentions clear of exploiting Aadhaar-based direct cash transfer system as a political plank in the impending Lok Sabha Polls, which is due in 2014.

Paving the way for implementation of direct cash transfer of government subsidies and entitlements to the beneficiaries in their bank accounts from January 1, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today cleared the timeline for implementation of the system through Aadhaar-based platform across the country at the first meeting of the National Committee on Direct Cash Transfers.

According to the roadmap for implementation of the system, the government is targeting to cover the whole country by April 1, 2014 or earlier.
Singh summed up the challenges before the government in implementing the move at the meeting, “This is a program in which the implementation capacity of our government will be tested. We must ensure at all times that there is no duplication of effort, and technology is used to the fullest for efficiency gains. The timelines we have set for ourselves are ambitious. Fifty one districts are to rollout from January next year and 18 States from April. And the rest of the country later in 2013”.
All ministries and departments engaged in transferring benefits to individual beneficiaries would be quickly moving to the electronic Direct Cash Transfer system, based on the Aadhaar-payment  platform.

The schemes have been identified to move to this system and roadmap with timelines are being prepared so that rollout is smooth and fast.

The roadmap for each scheme will follow a time-line under which, 51 pilot districts would be covered from 1 January 2013, 18 states from April 1, 2013 and remaining part of the country from April 1, 2014 or earlier.

The Unique Identification Authority (UIDAI) has set up a dedicated cell of technical experts to facilitate Aaadhaar enabled Direct Cash Transfers and help individual Ministries.

With this, department of financial services is helping in the movement to universal financial inclusion through individual bank accounts for all in line with the fixed roadmap.

Singh pointed out that the funds that were provisioned for direct benefits like pensions, scholarships and health-care benefits must reach the intended beneficiaries without delays and leakages.

“Apart from these direct benefits, the government also provides an amount of over 3 lakh crore Rupees in subsidies which too must reach the right people,” he added.

The Prime minister also called for a co-ordinated effort between the finance ministry and UIDAI to achieve this objective. “The twin pillars for the success of the system of Direct Cash Transfers that we have envisioned are the Aaadhaar Platform and Financial Inclusion. If either of these pillars is weak, it would endanger the success of the initiative. I would expect the Finance Ministry and the Unique Identification Authority to work in close coordination to achieve a collective goal,” he said.

Singh stressed that UIDAI must ensure that the coverage of Aadhaar was adequate as per the rollout plan and no one was left out.

He also urged the individual ministries to work in right earnest for implementation of the Direct Cash Transfers initiative.

“They will need to digitise their databases, most of which are with the States, and seed them with Aadhaar numbers. You will be provided help by both the Unique Identification Authority and the IT Ministry. But, you will in turn need to assist the States,” he added.

Prime minister Singh had earlier launched the nation-wide Aadhaar-based platform from Dudu, Rajasthan, in October, in the presence of UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.