New Aadhaar cards for 51 villages on Uttarakhand-China border, survey underway

MHA's survey will help in identifying infiltrators in the bordering area.

Uttarakhand:In the backdrop of the Manipur crisis, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is conducting a survey in the 51 villages located on the inner line of the Uttarakhand-China border following which Aadhaar Cards will be issued to them. Under this, a house-to-house survey is being conducted and verification will be done keeping security issues in mind. The move will help in identifying the local citizens and the infiltrators, official sources said.

Uttarakhand Information Technology Development Agency (ITDA) director Nitika Khandelwal said that MHA has issued a detailed standard operating procedure which is being closely followed while conducting the survey in these sensitive areas on the border. "As per the ministry's instructions, the survey along with verification is being done through police and intelligence. This is a security-sensitive issue and Aadhaar Cards will be issued only following verification. The Aadhaar Card centres in the border district have already been activated," Khandelwal said.

She said people of the bordering areas do not have Aadhaar Cards and have been demanding for long that the cards be issued to them. Following this, the MHA has taken the initiative to survey and verify their details. Also, Khandelwal mentioned that strict vigilance will be in place while issuing the cards.

"There will be discretion on whose cards would be made and whose not. In view of the sensitivity of the border area, people will be verified here according to strict guidelines. If it is felt that someone should not be verified from the point of view of security, then verification will not be done," she added. Uttarakhand, located in the northwestern part of India, is bounded by the Tibet Autonomous Region of China.