Aadhaar order leaves officials baffled

The Supreme Court’s order striking down the government’s move to link Aadhaar card to the ration card and other facilities has caught the district officials off guard and the public in confusion.

District administrations, particularly in Dharwad, Mysore and Tumkur districts, where a high percentage of Aadhaar cards have been distributed to citizens, are now left wondering on whether to link the card to ration cards in the three districts as announced by food and civil supplies minister Dinesh Gundurao four days ago.

The officials in the three district have already implemented the Direct Benefit Transfer for LPG (DBTL) scheme on a pilot basis, and were in the process of linking ration cards with Aadhaar.

Ironically, 10% of LPG consumers in the three district are yet to be issued the Aadhaar cards, and have to pay commercial rates for cylinder refills from October 1.

The order has also led to confusion among people and officials of Chikballapur, Gulbarga, Belgaum, Bangalore Rural, Bagalkot, Chikmagalur, Dakshin Kannada, Kodagu, Bellary, Mandya, Kolar, Ramnagar and Chamraj Nagar districts, where DBTL is being implemented in second phase.Dharwad DC Sameer Shukla said he can comment on the implications of the apex court only after going through the judgement.

Writer on legal issues Uma Mahesh Vaidya described the order as judicial overreach.