UIDAI shifted to IT Ministry from Niti Aayog

NEW DELHI: The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), which issues Aadhaar cards, has been shifted to the administrative control of the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology from Niti Aayog.

The decision to shift UIDAI from Niti Aayog, which has replaced Planning Commission, has been taken keeping in mind the government's ambitious 'Digital India' programme as the Aadhaar numbers are being linked with several services, official sources said.

The issuance of Aadhaar cards, started by the then UPA government, has come under the scrutiny of the Supreme Court which recently held that the card would not be mandatory for availing benefits of government's welfare schemes.

The Cabinet Secretariat has amended Government of India (Allocation of Business) Rules, 1961 and put it under Department of Electronics and Information Technology (DeITy), Ministry of Communication nd Information Technology, a notification issued by the government said.

Earlier, UIDAI was the part of Planning Commission. Niti Aayog is headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi as its chairperson.

Aadhaar is a 12-digit individual identification number issued by UIDAI.