The Centre has now made Aadhaar mandatory for those applying for the Individual Household Latrine subsidy. The incentive is provided under the Swachh Bharat Mission (Gramin) administered by the Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation.
A subsidy is granted to rural households for construction of individual toilets by the Centre and the state government and is open for households under the Below Poverty Line category, or for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes in the Above Poverty Line category, small and marginal farmers, women headed households and differently-abled people. The initiative was introduced after Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged to make India open-defecation free by 2019 during his Independence Day speech in 2014.
“An individual desirous of incentive for construction of IHHL (individual household latrine) under Swachh Bharat Mission-Gramin is hereby required to furnish proof of possession of Aadhaar or undergo Aadhaar authentication,” the notification by the ministry dated February 16, 2017 reads.
Applicants without an Aadhaar card have to apply for it before March 31 to get the benefits of the subsidy. In the meantime, those applying for the incentive can enrol for Aadhaar and submit the copy of their application as proof, the notification said. The Below Poverty Line Card, a voter identity card, PAN Card, driving licence and passport are among the other documents that can be submitted as ID proof. The order is mandatory in all states and Union Territories, excluding Assam, Meghalaya and Jammu and Kashmir.
On Monday, the Supreme Court turned down a plea on an urgent hearing of the case challenging the legality of Aadhaar. However, the bench headed by Chief Justice JS Khehar asserted that Aadhaar cannot be made mandatory for welfare schemes
The order comes weeks after the government made it mandatory to produce Aadhaar for women in the BPL category apply for a free LPG connection. On March 3, the Centre had announced that children at government schools would not be provided free midday meals unless they enrol for an Aadhaar number. However, after much criticism, the government issued a notice saying beneficiaries can continue to enjoy the welfare scheme with alternate ID proofs till they are assigned an Aadhaar number.
The Finance Bill passed in the Lok Sabha on March 22 also makes it mandatory to furnish Aadhaar card for filing of income-tax returns from July 1 to check tax evasion. On March 24, the Department of Telecommunication issued a notice making it mandatory for all mobile numbers to be linked to Aadhaar numbers before February 6, 2018.
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