The central government is planning to accelerate Aadhaar enrolments in Jammu and Kashmir, especially the Kashmir Valley, after the bifurcation of the region into two Union Territories is completed on October 31, Hindustan Times reported. The process will be intensified “to ensure that benefits of welfare schemes”, such as the Ujjwala Yojana, reach all residents. MediaNama has reached out to UIDAI for comment and will update the article accordingly. According to the Aadhaar dashboard, Aadhaar saturation in the state stands at 78%, with the highest saturation in the districts of Punch (97%), Rajouri (95%), Kargil (79%), Kupwara (77%), Badgam (76%) and Leh (67%). For the other 16 districts in the state, Aadhaar data is not available. As per the Hindustan Times report, although Aadhaar enrolment has been happening in Jammu and Kashmir, certain areas, mainly in the Kashmir Valley, need special attention. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) is reportedly willing to open Common Services Centres (CSCs), which carry out Aadhaar enrolment, at panchayats in the state for this purpose. According to an official, CSCs “need no more than a week to launch it in the entire J&K”, HT reported. However, according to the Tribune, even after the abrogation of Article 370, Aadhaar is not considered a valid proof of identity in the state. It is invalid in state government departments, and with telecom operators. TRAI had reportedly started asking for other proofs of identity, except Aadhaar, in November 2018, even though the state had started accepting Aadhaar…
