Schools, offices may soon have UID centres…..Bhavika Jain
Speeding Up BMC is awaiting state’s nod to open registration centres in private places
Speeding Up BMC is awaiting state’s nod to open registration centres in private places
In order to boost the poor performance in registering people for the unique identification card (UID) project, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has proposed to set up additional UID centres in private societies, educational institutions, railway stations and in corporate offices.
The proposal has been sent to the state government on Saturday. In the last six months, only 22.60% of the citys population, which amounts to 30 lakh, has been registered.
Currently, there are 144 registration centres and 14 multi-registration agencies involved in the process.
The most frequent complaints of people regarding the process of UID registration is that it is very time consuming and mismanaged. With this proposal, we are trying to simplify the procedure and cover maximum ground, said a civic official.
The state government is spearheading the UID project, but the BMC is the implementing agency for the city. The project is the brain child of technocrat Nandan Nilekani, and the card will ensure that citizens get access to all the schemes of the government and local bodies.
The official deadline to complete the registration process is 2012, but considering the current pace, it is most likely to get an extension. However, in spite of the low registration percentage, the state government gave the BMC a cash award of Rs35,000 a fortnight ago for the highest number of registrations in the state.
We have asked the centres to run from 7am to 11pm so that the office-going crowd can also be covered. The documents needed for enrollment will be put up on the notice board of the building so that residents can keep them ready, said the official.
The proposal says that a nominal fee will be charged for the usage of municipal property to set up centres, while those in societies and other private premises will be free.
The UID card will attain greater significance in the coming years as the entire interface with the government will require the card for validation of identity as it will give the citizen a unique number.