To avoid misuse of the concession facilities offered by the Indian Railways, Aadhaar Card or UID card (Unique Identification) will be made compulsory from July 1, 2017 to avail any concession on railway tickets. The Aadhaar Card is a 12-digit unique identification number issued by the Central government for Indian citizens. This card is issued and managed by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). There are number of Railway rules that have been modified for putting off touts and discoursing all who have been yielding in black marketing of railway tickets.
As per this new rule, any person who wants to avail the concessions offered by the Ministry of Railways will have to provide their Aadhaar cards, starting July 1. There are more than 50 categories that get concessions on tickets including senior citizens, students, research scholars, teachers, doctor, nurse and patients among others.
The UIDAI records and verifies the details of every Indian citizen including biometric and demographic data before issuing the Aadhaar Card. The Aadhaar is an important document issued for establishing the unique identity of every single person. On March 27, the Supreme Court ordered that the government can use Aadhaar identification for its non-welfare schemes like opening of new bank accounts, filing of tax returns, verification of new and existing mobile phone numbers, etc.
