[Reader-list] Is terrorism growing because we lack a UID? - 133

[Jeebesh]

The uses of the "poor" are many. It seems that a huge corporate and  
state conglomeration has come together to enter into a project of  
gigantic scale. It will be interesting to see who will get the main  
share of the 1.5 lakh crore. This looks like a huge "stimulus" package  
for some industries.

1.5 lakh crore in social spending would have altered the health and  
education environment for ever. But spending in the name of the "poor"  
can definitely benefit many.


On 30-Jun-09, at 6:01 PM, anupam chakravartty wrote:

> Identity cards are also needed for social security, then why are these
> diamond workers not given these cards, while they are planning to  
> give the
> ID cards to coastal fish farmers.
>
> http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/social-security-net-can-do-little-for-diamond-workers/423365/
>
>
> On 6/30/09, anupam chakravartty <c.anupam at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> For diamond workers in Surat, however this Unique I D card remains a
>> suggestion. Is it because the government has to give the benefits?
>>
>>
>> http://www.indianexpress.com/news/icard-for-diamond-workers-remains-a-suggest/459760/
>>
>> thanks anupam
>>
>>
>> On 6/30/09, Taha Mehmood <2tahamehmood at googlemail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> Dear All
>>>
>>> This is perhaps the first instance of reasoned questioning of the  
>>> UID
>>> program by media organization. The questions related to UID asked in
>>> the article below reflect a healthy skepticism not only about the
>>> purported benefits of such a scheme but also about the its
>>> foundational logic.
>>>
>>> I.5 Lakh crore- is the sum of money which will be transferred in the
>>> name of protecting this nation from ' illegal immigrants' and
>>> 'providing benefits' to the poorest to the poor. When most of the
>>> Indians live undocumented lives, one wonders how would this exercise
>>> be carried out? One also thinks why some prominent members of the
>>> main-stream media is in awe of Nandan Nilekeni Saheb. We recently  
>>> saw
>>> Rajdeep Sardesai of CNN-IBN showering praise to Nilekeni Saheb's
>>> vision for India which includes a national identity card.
>>>
>>> Regards
>>>
>>> Taha
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>>
>>> http://news.in.msn.com/columns/article.aspx?cp-documentid=3065458
>>>
>>> Is terrorism growing because we lack a UID?
>>>
>>> To establish my nationality as an India, I do have multiple ID cards
>>> issued by various government agencies like the election identity  
>>> card,
>>> driving license, passport, PAN and what not. But the UPA-II  
>>> government
>>> feels these cards are not enough and I, like all other citizens of  
>>> the
>>> country, must possess one more card, that's the Unique
>>> Identification(UID) card.
>>>
>>> The government seeks to achieve three-fold objectives by issuing the
>>> UID cards: 1. Enhance national security; 2. Check illegal  
>>> immigration,
>>> particularly from Bangladesh; 3.Ensure that the benefits of  
>>> government
>>> welfare schemes reach the targeted sections. Regarding the first
>>> objective, government thinks that UID will ensure identification of
>>> terrorists and thus curb the menace. But is cross-border terrorism
>>> growing just because we don't have a UID?
>>>
>>> The failure of the intelligence machinery in India, absence of a
>>> well-trained anti-terror force, lack of aggressiveness in India's
>>> policy towards Pakistan and, above all, the overt support received  
>>> by
>>> terror outfits from the Pakistani regime are some of the reasons why
>>> terrorism is growing? All these factors were as clear as daylight in
>>> the recent Mumbai attacks. How can UID curb terrorism if these  
>>> factors
>>> are not addressed by the government?
>>>
>>> About illegal immigration, the successive Central governments have
>>> been culpably indifferent to this problem, so much so most  
>>> Bengladeshi
>>> immigrants in Delhi and Kolkata have managed to get even ration  
>>> cards
>>> and electoral identity cards! In some constituencies, the illegal
>>> immigrant voters are said to be so strong as to determine the winner
>>> and the loser. If the illegal immigrants can manage to get ration
>>> cards and election ID cards from the administration, why can't they
>>> get a UID? So the problem here is rampant corruption in
>>> administration, not the absence of a citizen identification  
>>> mechanism.
>>>
>>> Why do the benefits of government schemes not reach the targeted
>>> sections? This is because the lion's share of the allocations for  
>>> such
>>> schemes are siphoned off by the corrupt politicians and bureaucrats.
>>> This politician-bureaucrat nexus is responsible for irregularities
>>> prevailing in the public distribution system. If the government  
>>> cannot
>>> break this powerful nexus and eliminate corruption, how can just a  
>>> UID
>>> card ensure proper distribution of government's welfare package?
>>>
>>> There are gross discrepancies in the issue of various identity cards
>>> in force now. It is no secret that a major portion of the BPL(Below
>>> the Poverty Line) cards issued to avail of subsidised food  
>>> commodities
>>> through the PDS is bogus. A report states that there are 97 million
>>> BPL cards in the country whereas the number of BPL families come to
>>> only 58 million. Nandan Nilekani, who has been appointed chairman of
>>> the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), himself  
>>> mentions
>>> in his celebrated book `Imagining India' that the number of BPL  
>>> cards
>>> in his home state of Karnataka exceeds the total population of the
>>> state. This is because the cards are issued indiscriminately, thus
>>> denying the benefits of PDS to the really deserving. The story is  
>>> the
>>> same as regards an estimated 65 million kisan credit cards in
>>> circulation in the country.
>>>
>>> How does the government propose to prevent similar fraud in the  
>>> issue
>>> of national ID card? Where is the guarantee that the same corrupt
>>> forces which took advantage of the BPL cards won't abuse the UID  
>>> also?
>>> Is the government willing to give a public commitment that the issue
>>> of UID will be transparent and corruption-free?
>>>
>>> The entire ID card project is estimated to cost around Rs 1.5 lakh
>>> crore. No doubt, it will offer a multi-billion dollar business
>>> opportunity for the domestic technology players, with the first  
>>> phase
>>> of the project — which will cover ultra urban, urban, and semi-urban
>>> populations — alone offering a Rs 6,500 crore business opportunity.
>>> But the business part apart, is such a mammoth spending justified?  
>>> If
>>> this ambitious programme falters at the implementation level like
>>> other such ID cards did, what will be the drain on the public
>>> exchequer? Rather than embarking on a new identification card at  
>>> such
>>> colossal cost, shouldn't the government have made an honest  
>>> attempt to
>>> plug the loopholes in the present system of issuing ID cards? Did  
>>> the
>>> government set the right priority in taking up the UID project? Only
>>> time will tell.
>>>
>>> Speak up: Do you think UID will serve the intended purpose?
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>>
>>
>>
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