Govt call on Aadhaar’s mandatory status for air travel after SC ruling

A PILOT PROJECT TO ASSESS THE VIABILITY AND CONVENIENCE OF USING AADHAAR IS ALREADY UNDER WAY AT HYDERABAD AND BANGALORE AIRPORTS

The government will wait for the Supreme Court’s ruling on Aadhaar to decide if the 12-digit biometric authentication can be made mandatory for flying in India.

The top court’s recent ruling making privacy a “guaranteed fundamental right” is likely to test the validity of Aadhaar, which the government has been pushing for wide use but has had to face opposition from critics and activists who fear possible data breach and point out privacy concerns.

Officials said a pilot project is already under way at Bangalore and Hyderabad airports to assess the viability and convenience of the project.

“The pilot projects are going on for some time. Given that a Supreme Court bench will start hearing the challenges against Aadhaar from November, there is no point in notifying the rule immediately,” said a government official who did not wish to be identified.

Officials said mandating Aadhaar and biometric authentication will make it easier for airlines in resolving several security issues. Airlines will also be able to easily detect passengers in the no-fly list.

Some private airlines said Aadhaar could take care of several problems.

“Otherwise, scanning through millions of air travellers every day makes it a tedious process for the airlines. There could be so many people with the same name that could often lead to confusion,” said a source at a private airline.

Availability of Aadhaar will also help curb human trafficking. “All identity proofs are allowed at airports from driving license to passport. Biometric authentication with the Aadhaar number will streamline the process of security checks,” added the source at the private airline.

But those who have legally challenged the government’s move to make Aadhaar a primary identity proof for the citizens are against linking the 12-digit number with air travel.

“This is a way for the government and tax authorities to track air travel by Indians. This a breach of privacy and, if notified, we will challenge it,” said an activist who is part of the group of petitioners against Aadhaar. The activist did not want to be named.

“Seeding Aadhaar with air travel will lead to disruption and exclusion. We have seen this happen wherever biometric authentication has been made mandatory. Apart from the concerns of surveillance, it has also hampered the delivery of the service,” said Anjali Bhardwaj, co-convenor of National Campaign for People’s Right to Information.