The New Indian Express 05.08.2010
3 crore smart cards to be issued in state
HYDERABAD:" The first phase of the ambitious Unique Identity Authority of India (UIDAI) programme will be rolled out in the state this month. As part of the programme, known as Aadhar, about three crore smart cards equipped with a 12-digit unique number, address and relevant identification details will be issued in the state.
Andhra Pradesh is the first state, where the project is being rolled out full-fledged as part of phase one.
The government has earmarked Rs 6,374 crore and is expected to provide 60 crore cards throughout the country.
"We have identified seven districts and Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation to be covered within AP as part of first phase of the project. We are targeting to reach saturation level covering everyone below and above the poverty line," said V S Bhaskar, IAS, deputy director general, UIDAI.
The authority has already commissioned Proof of Concept (PoC), a pre-pilot programme, in the state covering 25,000 respondents in two districts early this year.
Addressing the special session on UID at the three-day conference on e-INDIA2010, he said there were several challenges in implementing the project including quality of fingerprints, maintaining and securing the database besides logistics. ``One has to overcome other challenges such as bandwidth, collecting and sending the information from remote areas, interoperability,'' he explained.
Meanwhile, a high-level security group within the UIDAI was working on a document to assess the risks associated with the project implementation and its rollout.
"The exercise involving creation of a database encompassing biometric identities of 120 crore people, we are creating a honey pot that could attract attacks. We need to protect the system against attempts to deny services,'' said Srikanth Nadhamuni, head, technology, UIDAI.
