Q.771 Aadhaar Card for Non-

resident OCI - Government

pensioner

Question: Sir, In your answer to Q. 619 (http://nriinformation.com/question8/question619.ht m) you have clearly stated that OCI's who do not reside in India cannot apply and cannot get the Aadhaar Card, which is meant only for those who reside in India. I am a citizen of Canada and hold an OCI card. I am also a pensioner who receives monthly pension from the Govt of India, which is credited into my bank account in India. Once a year, I repatriate the accumulated amount of my pension by paying due income tax and submitting the IT Clearance certificate according to the procedure laid down in this behalf by the RBI. I now understand that my Bank is expecting me to get an Aadhaar Card. As I understand, I am not eligible to apply for one as I do not have an Indian residential address. What should be my recourse should the Bank insist on it? As you can understand, arguing with the local branch of the Bank over such technicalities is quite frustrating as the Bank Officials themeslves are not familiar with such exceptional issues. I tried to visit the official website of the Aadhaar Card https://uiadi.gov.in to find out if an answer to my question is available there. Unfortunately, the only responce I constantly get is 'This webpage is not available'. Thank you in advance... Raja. Answer: It would appear many people have faced problems due to non availability of Aadhaar card. The supreme court of India has actually passed a ruling saying Aadhaar is not compulsory to avail any benefits due to an individual. Here is a link in one of India’s leading newspapers dated March 16, 2015 regarding this issue: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/aadhaar -not-mandatory-sc-reiterates/article6999924.ece The only course I can suggest if your bank insists on Aadhaar: • Advise them the reason’s you do not have Aadhaar which is, that you are not a resident of India • Communicate with the bank manager instead of clerks. Regarding Aadhaar card official website, try the following link: http://aadharcarduid.com/ Here you will find it clearly stated: Who can apply? There are no restrictions of age or gender. Any individual, including infants, who is a resident in India and satisfies the verification process laid down by the UIDAI can enroll for AADHAAR (http://aadharcarduid.com/)