Exclusion from Digitally Delivered Services

Digital IDs have streamlined public service delivery and helped reduce corruption in India, but have raised concerns regarding the exclusion of marginalised populations.

With rapid increase in digitisation witnessed in the past decade, there has been a paradigm shift in the way public welfare and service delivery is deployed.56 The establishment of Digital IDs in India by the way of Aadhaar in 2009, overhauled public service delivery by establishing digital identities, streamlining service and scheme delivery. This curtailed corruption and reduced leaks within the system.

However, along with the convenience benefits and reduction in corruption, exclusion related risks have also surfaced.

Since the 2018 Supreme Court judgement which provided constitutional validity to Aadhaar, the number of government schemes and services associated with it has risen exponentially. Despite the increase in services, research shows that a small but significant number of people are unable to access essential public schemes and services due to lack of access to Aadhaar and authorisation. This exclusion is especially prevalent among marginalised populations and communities who need public welfare services the most.

Exclusion from Service Delivery refers to individuals and groups being denied goods, services, conditions and specific opportunities that will aid acquisition of social, economic and emotional wellbeing.60

Transfer transactions through Aadhaar and 2X rise in bank accounts linked to Aadhaar57

Exclusion from welfare services remains prevalent especially among marginalised populations third-gender residents in

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Shanti is a 40 year old transgender folk dancer and lives in an interior area in Odisha. She makes her living by performing traditional dances in nearby cities.

During the recent lockdowns when all means of livelihood were closed, Shanti was dependent on government services for survival. However, she has been facing multiple challenges in accessing ration and other government services.

All service deliveries are linked to Aadhaar and she has yet not been able to procure an Aadhaar card as she did not have access to required documents with consistent details. The exclusion impacted her wellbeing but she did not have any means to address it.

Over the past six years, the system’s response to digital-ID-linked exclusion has evolved from the emerging to the mainstream stage. New digital IDs have incorporated best practices, and better grievance redressal mechanisms have been set up to address exclusion and other risks linked to digital IDs.

2016 status: There was a lack of consensus among stakeholders about linking of Aadhaar; the period between 2012-2016 saw multiple court cases to prevent mandatory linkage of Aadhaar with welfare schemes.

2022 status: Legal consensus was reached after the Puttaswamy Judgement (2017) on the right to privacy, and after the constitutional validity of Aadhaar was upheld in 2018. The 2018 judgement also clarified that no one could be denied services due to a failure of Aadhaar authorisation.

The Act was passed in the parliament and provided legal backing to Aadhaar.61

Cleared mandatory enrollment of Aadhaar for government welfare schemes.62

The Act provided legal backing to linkage of banks and SIM cards with Aadhaar.63

The Health ID was launched in 2021 and enrollment was initiated along with the COVID vaccinations. Aadhaarlinked birth registration was introduced in 16 states.64 65

There has been rapid growth in the number of government services and schemes linked to digital ID.

Aadhaar Act was passed in Parliament in March 2016 and subsequently notifications were issued under the Act making Aadhaar mandatory for availing various welfare benefits such as PDS, LPG, MGNREGA, scholarships, pensions etc. This has risen exponentially in the past six years and as of 2022, 300 and 400 schemes of the central and state governments respectively require Aadhaar verification and linkage. The central government’s Ayushman Bharat Digital Mission health ID was launched in 2021.

In 2016, Aadhaar had postal and email-based grievance redressal mechanisms. By 2021, Aadhaar launched a toll free helpline, a chatbot and a resident portal as grievance redressal mechanisms.66 The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has also initiated efforts to ease Aadhaar access for sex workers without a domicile certificate.67

In parallel, RBI has also been strengthening Aadhaar enabled payment systems by harmonising Turn Around Time (TAT) and customer compensation in case of failed transactions.68