[Reader-list] Personal Identification coding by the office of the Registrar General of India

[Taha Mehmood]

Dear All,

With the scheme of things taking shape slowly, the scene now is as follows.

There will be a distribution of smart cards for some sectors of
population, while for other sectors a unique identification will be
distributed first, which would be perhaps followed by a smart card.
There isn't much information available on the net on these issues,
therefore we do not know, for sure how the government of India is
planning to take it forward.

However, we do know, that drafts proposals are being finalized  to
format personal identification information. This process is underway
at the Offices of the Registrar General of India.

I have recently come across two documents in this regard which I
wanted to share with you all.

The first document pertains to a format of generic data elements.
These generic data elements represent the nodes of information which
will be harvested from individuals/citizens across the country.
Therefore I think it is important to all of us on this list who will
fall under its purview.

I have uploaded this document here-

http://docs.google.com/gview?a=v&pid=gmail&attid=0.1&thid=1230457d5aed45af&mt=application%2Fpdf&pli=1

Please do have a look.

The other document relates to the codification of personal
identification information. This document which, I believe, was still
in draft stages, at the time of publication, is all of eighty nine
pages long was prepared by a Expert Committee on Metadata and data
standards reporting to RGI in June 2009. This document clearly maps
out how the information so collected will be coded in a database.

This document could be accessed here-

http://docs.google.com/gview?a=v&pid=gmail&attid=0.1&thid=123045be2e268f4c&mt=application%2Fpdf

I most strongly believe that, the important aspects regarding the
subsequent actions of the Government of India with respect to
harvesting of personal information, which needs to be reflected upon,
by one and all, on this list and elsewhere,  must include the
following set of questions-

1. How is this information going to be garnered?
2. What is the process for collection, collation, classification and
storage of personal data?
3. What role will private vendors play in this process?
4. How much of public money will be required for this process?
5. How will this process be phased? How will responsibility of data
collection and storage disbursed?
6. Are there any plans/ideas of trading this information to market
players in near or far future?
7.  What all government departments will have access to this information?
8. What all government departments have expressed a willingness to
share data on private individuals?
9. How will issues related to obsolescence of technology be dealt? Is
there a policy in place now?
10. Why there seems to be a thrust by the office of UIDAI to include
private vendors? Why are various governments departments thought to be
incompetent, to carry out this task?

Warm regards

Taha