Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, benefits and services) Act

Aadhaar is a 12 digit unique number assigned to residents of India that is provided and managed by UIDAI. Initially promoted as a voluntary identification to facilitate the availing of services for those without adequate documentation, the project has grown in scope to make welfare, government pensions, insurance and other critical services conditional on the number being provided. This has resulted in fears of increased surveillance as well as security concerns.