UPA II’s most talked out mission to provide exclusive and independent Identification to every Indian was as unique as the programme to take computer literacy in every nook and corner of India through a technocrat Sam Patroda envisaged during Rajiv Gandhi’s prime Ministership. India’s technological face today is Nandan Nilekani, the most well known Indian technocrat who took Indian software to the world through the firm founded by him along with Shri Narayana Murthy from scratch known as Infosys. Naturally, his enthusiasm to do something for the Country was quiet instantaneous. He was asked to head the Unique Identification Project from inception.
A well known face in business circles and elite company, Nilekani must have thought that it was an easy task, already done, if the top layers of the Government like the Prime Minister and others persuaded him to invent a model which would take care of one document that would provide a unique identity card for every Indian. It was a far sighted step. In began Nilekani earnestly, consistently, with a purpose to turn his idea into a Product. Its introduction will have far reaching dimensions. Wide acceptability of the UID would help people to identity themselves instead of having multiple identity cards which may not have all over acceptance.
After having done the preliminary, including creating software and putting it on-line with the Computer in Yojaana Bhavan, the team led by Nilekani estimated the cost to the Government at Rs 14,841 Cr and requested for ear-marked outlay from the 12th Five Year Plan slated to commence from the sun rise of April 1, 2012. The Planning Commission who was the mother department of UIDAI was the first to create a turf War; it wanted financial control over the funding of UIDAI, and insisted on placing an Integrated Accounts department which will monitor demands and undertake implementation by routing correspondence with Planning Commission and not directly routing requests, file papers, wants to the Finance Secretary, directly. Any direct action which required speedy execution was put under a colun. Home Ministry came into the picture raising objections on the reliability of the Unique Identification Number, and insisted on cross checking for duplication as Security angle was involved. This would result in procrastination. Reserve Bank of India’s last straw that UNIDAI would not suffice as a document to open Bank accounts or verification proof has put a big question mark over the utility of the Project itself. How will the project take off, if the concerned Ministries who cannot devise its own methodology to evolve a fool-proof mechanism where to kill a project which had all the projected queries to the reservations.
It was expected. One under Secretary can torpedo the entire Scheme of the government proposes by putting many questions, or probing questions. With Right to Information Act in place, it is for anybody to get the noting to establish that Government went out of the way to placate somebody or gave extra importance to a Scheme. I was appointed as a Consultant on such terms and conditions with a Job description, and my performance was audited by an autonomous body which was under one of the Ministries at Udyog Bhavan, New Delhi. The Ministry used me at the slightest pretext, made me reply Parliamentary questions, and give inferences and ideas requests made by PMO asking the Ministry to process a request, etc. I was also responsible for preparing a Scheme, presenting it before various Ministries including Planning Commission, answered insipid queries raised by other Ministries, amend the Scheme based on norms specified by other Ministries, attend in person the Expenditure Finance Committee meeting which is exclusive to Secretary, Jt Secretary of the Ministry only, etc to argue about the Scheme authored by me . The Scheme was approved by the Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs headed by the Prime Minister. I had brought the industry under the various Schemes of the Commerce Ministry, made their projects eligible for Duty Drawback, and got over Rs 1.5 Cr released for organizing a reverse buyer-seller meet which saw participation from 120 business visitors. Now, my job with the different ministries was appreciated and I started getting importance. After 3 ½ years, the Government asked the autonomous body as to under what authority they appointed me, and their Internal Finance department, whose officials I would have met at least 2 dozen times to answer a volley of doubts, concluded that my Contract appointment was unauthorized.
Government of India and its officials can do anything under the sun, which cannot be finite and depended upon. They quoted an irrelevant and outdated clause to refuse me fair compensation for the Job I did . When I saw the contradictions surfacing on various issues like the administrative note of Finance Ministry, affidavit of Planning Commission, many other notings by officials on files which are available on the Public domain show that intelligence and sincerity is not a virtue of the various departments of South bloc, North bloc, Krishi bhavan, Nirman Bhavan, Yojana Bhavan, Sanchar Bhavan, or any bhavans in Delhi. A man publicized to the hilt by the media, for the highly pompous schmee to make available a single identity card which would serve all purpose, should have been put to the embarrassment of this nature by the modern day babus who still live in the colonial Past. Shame indeed.
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