Four years from now, more than half of Indian residents will be able to verify their identity using a cell phone, said Nandan Nilekani, chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).
“We will be issuing a number to every Indian resident. These numbers will be stored
in one central database,” Nilekani said on Saturday, speaking at the 67th Foundation Day ceremony of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research.
“We propose to offer mobile phone authentication of identity against this database.”
Authorities who want to confirm a resident’s identity will be able to take the resident’s fingerprint, send it via mobile phone to the database, and receive a confirmation of the resident’s identity, the ex-Infosys chief said.
Under this plan, residents would not need to carry paper proofs of identity.
“With this number and nationally available online authentication, you can go from one part of the country to another and get yourself verified wherever you are,” Nilekani said.
The plan will enhance the efficiency of flagship government programmes like NREGA and PDS, said Nilekani. Banks, insurers and passport offices will also benefit.