JOIN USEconomic Survey 2022-23: Benefits of Aadhaar program
The government launched the Economic Survey 2022-2023 on Tuesday, which highlighted the benefits of Aadhaar in the management of the economy.
Aadhaar, a 12-digit unique identification number, was launched in 2009 to replace the disentangled web of multiple IDs and secure the social contract between the State and the Citizen.
Since then, 135.2 crore Aadhaar has been generated and 71.1 crore Aadhaar cards have been updated.
The government has used Aadhaar to deliver benefits under 318 Central schemes and over 720 state DBT schemes. Over 75.3 crore residents have linked Aadhaar with ration cards to avail ration and 27.9 crore residents have linked Aadhaar with cooking gas connections for LPG subsidies.
Apart from providing benefits under several schemes, Aadhaar has become a part of the daily lives of citizens.
When Aaadhaar is linked to the bank account of an individual, it becomes the ‘Financial Address’. The number is enough to transfer payments to an individual’s bank account without needing additional information like a bank account, IFSC Code, and bank branch details.
Aadhaar Enabled Payment Systems (AEPS) help in basic banking functions like withdrawal, cash deposit, and transfer of funds by using Aadhaar. This facility helped people during the Covid-19 pandemic.
JAM (Jan-Dhan, Aadhaar, and Mobile) trinity, combined with DBT, helped bring marginalised sections of society into the formal financial system, the survey stated.
Aadhaar has also played a key role in implementing the One Nation One Ration Card (ONORC) Scheme. Aadhaar was also key in the Co-WIN portal development and management during Covid-19.