Latest! Aadhaar made mandatory for PPF, post office deposits, Kisan Vikas Patra

Aadhaar is not going to stop making news any time soon, it seems. Despite controversies over the unique identity card and the apprehensions over privacy, the government of India has made Aadhaar mandatory for all post office deposits, Public Provident Funds (PPF), the National Savings Certificate scheme and Kisan Vikas Patra.

In four different Gazette notifications, the ministry of finance said that Aadhaar is mandatory for opening all post office deposit accounts, PPF, National Savings Certificate scheme and Kisan Vikas Patra deposits, new agency PTI reported on Friday.

In the notifications the government has mandated that existing depositors will be given time till December 31, 2017 to verify accounts with 12-digit unique verification number.

"Existing depositors who have not provided Aadhaar number at the time of application for such deposit shall submit his Aadhaar number to the post office savings bank or deposit office concerned, on or before December 31, 2017," the notification added.

However depositors who are yet to get the Aadhaar number shall submit proof of application for enrolment for Aadhaar, the government directed in the notification.

The government of India had earlier notified that it was mandatory to link Aadhaar card with Permanent Account Number (PAN) latest by December 31, 2017 in order to file income tax returns (ITR). The government earlier made it compulsory for all taxpayers to link Aadhaar and PAN and brought in necessary amendments in the income tax laws in the last Union budget.

Likewise, it is mandatory to verify Aadhaar with know-your-customer (KYC). The banks, financial institutions were directed by the Centre to make sure their customers are KYC compliant. Every individual must submit Aadhaar and PAN details to the bank to be KYC-compliant. The deadline for verifying Aadhaar with the KYC is December 31, 2017. The bank account will be barred if one fails to submit the details in KYC forms before the deadline.

Following a Supreme Court judgment in February 2017, the department of telecommunications (DoT) directed telecom operators to verify all the existing mobile subscribers (both pre-paid and post-paid) with the Aadhaar. The government has made it mandatory to provide Aadhaar details while applying for new mobile connections or while buying SIMs.

 Aadhaar details are compulsary to avail benefits of social welfare schemes. Beneficiaries need to link Aadhaar to get the benefit of as many as 135 schemes (of 35 ministries) including the free cooking gas (LPG) to poor women, kerosene and fertiliser subsidy, targeted public distribution system (PDS) and the MGNREGA.