Call for better regulations on Aadhaar governance and privacy

India’s Aadhaar programme, introduced as a voluntary identification system, has increasingly become mandatory through its linkage with welfare schemes and essential services, raising serious concerns about consent and exclusion. While framed as a tool for inclusion, the system’s technological and procedural complexities often marginalise those it claims to empower, particularly the poor, elderly, and digitally excluded. The article highlights persistent risks around data privacy, surveillance, and repeated instances of data leaks, alongside weak accountability mechanisms. It argues that inclusion achieved through coercion undermines democratic principles and calls for stronger safeguards, transparent governance, and genuinely voluntary, rights-respecting approaches to digital identification.

Continue reading: https://www.siasat.com/aadhaar-data-collection-through-false-promise-of-inclusion-3292723/