In the midst of achievement like India's first time entry in  top 100 of World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business global rankings, followed by Moody's up-gradation in ratings, the government is set to pursue another connectivity vision through its 12-digit biometric Aadhaar code. 

COMMERCIAL BREAK
SCROLL TO CONTINUE READING

Many official sources said in Times of India report that goverment plans to link one billion unique Aadhaar numbers with one billion bank accounts and one billion mibiles. 

Reportedly, as per these officials such vision is followed by the success of demonetisation in bringing about a  substantial Rs 6 lakh crore reduction in value of high value notes that would have been in circulation and a rising trend of bank accounts and digital payments. 

However, no official target dates are mentioned but the government looks confidence in achieving the "1 plus 1 plus 1" figure in India - considering it as a big step towards expanding the financial and digital mainstream, added the report. 

On November 03, the centre in an affidavit has already extended the deadline for linking existing bank accounts to March 31, 2017. 

The affidavit stated that existing bank accounts will not be made non-operational for not linking with Aadhaar. It added for existing account holders, the deadline for Aadhaar based verification is being extended to March 31 and no coercive action will be taken till then. 

As far as opening new bank accounts are concerned, Aadhaar or enrolment ID must be given as proof of identity.

If you have submitted your Aadhaar details to bank, there are chances of getting it misplaced by the bank in hurry. However, you don't need to worry as you can check it in just few clicks:
1. Go to UIDAI website www.uidai.gov.in
2. Go to Aadhaar Services tab
3. Click "Check Aadhaar & bank Account Linking Status"
4. Enter your Aadhaar Number and the security number given in the box. This will generate an OTP. 
5. Enter the OTP received on your registered mobile number. 
6. The box will appear showing your Status with a tick mark. 

Meanwhile, last week, the Supreme Court refused to entertain a plea challenging the linking of mobile numbers with Aadhaar, saying several similar petitions were already pending before it.

Due date for linking this 12-digit biometric with mobile phones has been fixed on February 06, 2018. 

Moreover, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) on November 02, tweeted saying, “No need to give finger prints to local sim card retailer for your mobile verification.” It added, that from December 01, 2017, you can do it from comfort of your home through OTP received on mobile number registered with Aadhaar.

For subscribers, there are three new methods introduced by government to link the SIM with Aadhaar. They are: OTP-or One-Time Password-based linking, app-based linking and Aadhaar linking via an IVRS facility.