India plans to launch National ID card scheme

[Saddle Bronc 124]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8119070.stm

India to launch 'ID card' scheme

The Indian government has begun moves to provide a Unique Identification (UID) number to its citizens, the central government has announced.

It has appointed Infosys Technologies co-chairman Nandan Nilekani as head of a new body to determine how the scheme will be implemented.

The project will mean that all Indian adults will have to carry what is in effect an identity card.

It was a key commitment in the election manifesto of the Congress party.

In its manifesto, Congress said it may be possible to provide every Indian adult with a card after the publication of the national population register in 2011.

fancy term for census, which is notorious for much undercounting (and guesstimation in difficult areas)

The BBC's Soutik Biswas in Delhi says that the scheme - which is being implemented by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) - is being done primarily to provide better security in the country, especially in the wake of recent militant attacks.

Our correspondent says that another aim of the multi-million dollar scheme is to ensure that food handouts and employment opportunities for poorer people are more fair. It is also hoped that the card will help tackle identity theft and fraud.

This will fail miserably, as officials can be bribed...

Mr Nilekani will be the chairman of UIDAI and will have a place in the Indian cabinet. He has resigned his membership of Infosys Board of Directors following his appointment.

Experts say the scheme is likely to take several years to implement.

[Chica Yeyé 41]

Why does everyone get up in arms about national IDs? I don't see the biggie. And noooo, I am not being mean, I am honestly curious.

[almaty 19]

Why does everyone get up in arms about national IDs? I don't see the biggie. And noooo, I am not being mean, I am honestly curious.

it is in the Bible.,.revelations......national id card=

[mawilson 2,133]

Why does everyone get up in arms about national IDs? I don't see the biggie. And noooo, I am not being mean, I am honestly curious.

The principle is that you are a sovereign citizen and you do not live by "government permission".

A government is (or should be) the servant of the people, not its master. Privacy and freedom

are yours by right and we only give governments permission to curtail these freedoms in very

limited and important circumstances. It is not a proper function of government to engage in blanket

surveillance of law-abiding citizens; or to instigate systems of compulsory identification; or to

open a file on each citizen; or to criminalise citizens who refuse to comply.

Most people see cards as unthreatening - they carry a wallet or purse full of them already. They

simply cannot see that another "harmless piece of plastic" is anything sinister. They are right in

a way - it’s the database which is the danger, not the card. The dangers are having a file held

on each citizen with ever increasing amounts of personal data being added and an increasing

army of "authorised users" having access to such data.

No2ID

[Peikko 1,575]

We do pay a price for this 'freedom'. Some people don't like the bill until they see what it could have been and then it's too late.

[SMOKE 1,426]

Most people see cards as unthreatening - they carry a wallet or purse full of them already. They

simply cannot see that another "harmless piece of plastic" is anything sinister. They are right in

a way - it’s the database which is the danger, not the card. The dangers are having a file held

on each citizen with ever increasing amounts of personal data being added and an increasing

army of "authorised users" having access to such data.

No2ID

everytime i hear that arguement, i want to slap the piss out of the idiot that says it. then ask them 2 maybe 3 questions. 'have you ever heard of the IRS or Social Security'? 'do you think access to a national id database would be any less restricted'? 'why mr. saprano'?

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

At least in the UK the argument presented was of a single unified database that consolidated information from what are currently separate databases. In essence - one card grants instant access to every aspect of your life.

Brilliant for Identity Theft.

[mawilson 2,133]

Most people see cards as unthreatening - they carry a wallet or purse full of them already. They

simply cannot see that another "harmless piece of plastic" is anything sinister. They are right in

a way - it’s the database which is the danger, not the card. The dangers are having a file held

on each citizen with ever increasing amounts of personal data being added and an increasing

army of "authorised users" having access to such data.

No2ID

everytime i hear that arguement, i want to slap the piss out of the idiot that says it. then ask them 2 maybe 3 questions. 'have you ever heard of the IRS or Social Security'? 'do you think access to a national id database would be any less restricted'? 'why mr. saprano'?

Do you know how many people have had their identities stolen by criminals who somehow gained access to their Social Security numbers?

[SMOKE 1,426]

Most people see cards as unthreatening - they carry a wallet or purse full of them already. They

simply cannot see that another "harmless piece of plastic" is anything sinister. They are right in

a way - it’s the database which is the danger, not the card. The dangers are having a file held

on each citizen with ever increasing amounts of personal data being added and an increasing

army of "authorised users" having access to such data.

No2ID

everytime i hear that arguement, i want to slap the piss out of the idiot that says it. then ask them 2 maybe 3 questions. 'have you ever heard of the IRS or Social Security'? 'do you think access to a national id database would be any less restricted'? 'why mr. saprano'?

Do you know how many people have had their identities stolen by criminals who somehow gained access to their Social Security numbers?

generally speaking that is how they steal someone's id.

do you how many get the #s from the SS or IRS database & not out of a dumpster or someone clicking the wrong link on their email?....i don't. but, i'm betting the dumpster behind the mall & email scams are much more fertile hunting ground.

[mawilson 2,133]

Most people see cards as unthreatening - they carry a wallet or purse full of them already. They

simply cannot see that another "harmless piece of plastic" is anything sinister. They are right in

a way - it’s the database which is the danger, not the card. The dangers are having a file held

on each citizen with ever increasing amounts of personal data being added and an increasing

army of "authorised users" having access to such data.

No2ID

everytime i hear that arguement, i want to slap the piss out of the idiot that says it. then ask them 2 maybe 3 questions. 'have you ever heard of the IRS or Social Security'? 'do you think access to a national id database would be any less restricted'? 'why mr. saprano'?

Do you know how many people have had their identities stolen by criminals who somehow gained access to their Social Security numbers?

generally speaking that is how they steal someone's id.

do you how many get the #s from the SS or IRS database & not out of a dumpster or someone clicking the wrong link on their email?....i don't. but, i'm betting the dumpster behind the mall & email scams are much more fertile hunting ground.

Agreed; however the IRS concerns itself with collecting taxes and not much else. A "national ID"

database can potentially be used to collect and store all sorts of data on citizens - there are no

clear boundaries.

[SMOKE 1,426]

i understand the 'no boundaries' issue. but, everyone here has given the USCIS the authority to do it. i have yet to hear of any issues coming from that database.

Edited June 25, 2009 by SMOKE

[chri'stina 190]

I'm not from India myself or an expert on India, but my first reaction is: If they take forever to give people necessary documents and give them the run around and require bribes for normal services, how do they intend to give every adult in India IDs in any reasonable timeframe??? Interesting, and a little laughable to me only because I don't know how they are going to do it.

[trinket 30]

To OP, I have been issued a card from Govt. of India other than my voter card and from what I have seen in these recent years, you have to have some kind of identification with you while you are travelling, let it be for buying train tickets or getting a hotel room, even cheap hotels for Rs 300 a day needs to put down your id. You also need id to go to a cyber cafe these days.

I don't mind keeping an id with me all the time and showing it if it needed to be, but I can see how others might think about it. And also the kind of country India is, it is pretty easy to forge ids. I just hope this new scheme/plan works through.

[mawilson 2,133]

i understand the 'no boundaries' issue. but, everyone here has given the USCIS the authority to do it. i have yet to hear of any issues coming from that database.

I thought the biographical information form requirement for the US citizen was a little bit over the top -

it's really none of their business.

It sort of makes sense to require that foreign nationals disclose everything if they want to live here.

I'm not from India myself or an expert on India, but my first reaction is: If they take forever to give people necessary documents and give them the run around and require bribes for normal services, how do they intend to give every adult in India IDs in any reasonable timeframe??? Interesting, and a little laughable to me only because I don't know how they are going to do it.

It won't be free either - what a great way to collect 10-20 billion dollars.

[Saddle Bronc 124]

I'm not from India myself or an expert on India, but my first reaction is: If they take forever to give people necessary documents and give them the run around and require bribes for normal services, how do they intend to give every adult in India IDs in any reasonable timeframe??? Interesting, and a little laughable to me only because I don't know how they are going to do it.

more or less echoing the points I added