India UID elicits global attention

This three minute CNN video the accompanying article does a really good job of explaining the status quo that makes UID necessary by talking with real people who struggle to get by in a modern world without a legitimate ID.

Creating ripples across the world (DNA - India)

Sources said interest in knowing more about UIDAI and its implementation has been expressed by a number of foreign diplomats, including those from the United States and other European and Western nations.

“UIDAI is the single largest IT project of its kind to have ever been executed by any country. This fact itself raises innumerable questions, the biggest being how we were handling it,” a senior UIDAI official, said.

Currently, the world’s largest biometric database is with the US-Visit programme, which has data of about 100 million people. US-Visit is short for United States Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology.

With the census and UID, India is attempting something never before attempted. The stakes couldn't be higher. The risks to (and rewards for) India's national self-confidence and the future of its citizens are huge.

And creating ripples at home (Khaleej Times)

...[T]he government should focus on changing these harsh realities. To begin with, it must streamline delivery systems, weed out ineffective programmes and prioritise self-selection schemes such as rural job guarantee scheme. These initiatives can be supplemented with intelligent use of technology, particularly biometric information-based Unique Identification cards, for better targeting 
the benefits.

UIDAI gets first complaint of misuse of personal data (The Economic Times)

"The contact centre of UIDAI is handling the grievances and complaints of all stakeholders. They have not received any specific complaint related to privacy concerns while collecting individual data. However, a complaint regarding misuse of address proof was received," the authority said in reply to an RTI query.

See also:
Indian Govt. plans to go biometric with census (March 25, 2010 - our first post on the subject)
7 things to know about India's UID (May 11, 2011)
India UID: It's About People (August 31, 2011)

All posts on India