Nilekani thinks up way to make UIDs pay

In charge of one of India's most ambitious projects – providing a unique identification number to every citizen - Nandan Nilekani, chairman of the Unique Identification Authority of India, is thinking innovatively as usual.

The former Infosys boss on Tuesday suggested a way in which the project could earn revenue for the government. ''Let's say there is a bank or a mobile company which is opening a new account. Normally they use a KYC (know your customer) process and spend about Rs100-200 crore. If we are able to reduce this cost (through the UID) then it's reasonable they pay us something for that. So we will monetise this for agencies that use it for commercial purpose,'' said Nilekani.

Briefing Kerala government officials in Thiruvanathapuram on the preparations for issuing UID numbers to over 600 million citizens in the next four years, Nilekani said the first lot of numbers would be issued in the next 12-18 months.

The project aims to eventually cover all of India's population f over 1.2 billion, and is estimated to cost Rs150,000 crore. The Planning Commission has already allocated Rs120 for the project.

Nilekani told the meeting attended by chief secretary Neela Gangadharan and others that the unique numbers would not replace existing ID cards, but could be used for availing benefits of various welfare schemes being taken up by the government for the poor.

There would be a one-time registration fee of Rs30 to Rs40 for the identification number, he said, adding who would bear the cost was a political decision to be taken later.
The Unique Identification number would be made mandatory over a period of time, he said, adding that it would help target resources and benefits better, and prove immensely beneficial, particularly to the poor.