Yesterday, social media rumors began circulating that 50 crore or almost 50% of all mobile connections in India are at risk, due to Aadhaar KYC.
Several mainstream media shared this news, because it had a logic behind it – Supreme Court has ordered all telecom operators and private companies to delete Aadhaar data of users.
Now, once Aadhaar data is deleted, then the telcom operator won’t have any KYC of the user, and this means disconnection.
Panic began to set in, as mobile users all across the nation began to question the future.
After the outcry, both DoT and UIDAI had to come out, and issue clarifications.
Besides, leading telecom lobby COAI also stepped in, and said that due to the change in KYC model, services won’t be disruppted. However, for that, an alternative KYC needs to be shared.
Govt. of India: No Mobile Will Be Disconnected Due To KYC Issue
Crores of new mobile connections have been issued, solely based on Aadhaar KYC, and if the telecom companies are required to delete this Aadhaar data, then some inconvenience will happen.
However, Govt. of India has assured that no mobile connection will be disconnected.
A senior DoT official said, “We will ensure that customers services are not affected. Whatever arrangements are put in place it will facilitate a smooth transition from the current regime to the Supreme Court-compliant regime.”
At the same time, Govt. has admitted that 25-30 crore mobile users can face some inconvenience, as a new round of KYC will have to be done. This means submitting new documents as verification, other than Aadhaar.
Alternative KYC At The Time Of Issuing New SIM
On Wednesday and Thursday, representatives of the telecom industry, and the Department of Telecom held meetings to chalk out alternatives of Aadhaar-KYC while issuing new SIM cards.
A proposal has been mooted, wherein a new app will be created, for SIM sellers.
At the time of issuing new SIM, this app will embed the customer enrollment form, along with time-stamped, and a geo-tagged photograph of the customer, along with any identity proof such as PAN Card, Voter ID Card, Passport etc.
Although Aadhaar is a valid ID proof, the ise of Aadhaar as KYC will be avoided, as well as storage of Aadhaar data will be avoided, as per Supreme Court ruling.
More details are awaited on this regard.
COAI: Aadhaar Can Be Deleted With Alternative KYC
Meanwhile telecom players’ lobby COAI has assured that Aadhaar details linked with any user can be deleted, by providing an alternative KYC.
COAI Director General Rajan S Mathews said, “Telecom players had a meeting with the Department of Telecom and they have been clarified that customers willing to get their Aadhaar details deleted from telecom operator data base should be allowed to do so against valid identity and address proof,”
COAI has also assured that during the transition from Aadhaar to non-Aadhaar KYC, no mobile number will be disconnected, and services won’t be hampered.
Now, it would be interesting to observe how a smooth transition takes place, and how soon can it be done.
We will keep you updated, as more details come in.