Assam bars new Aadhaar cards for adults above 18; SC, ST, Tea tribes exempted
The Cabinet's decision is in line with state's ongoing fight against illegal immigration, says CM Sarma
A still from the cabinet meeting chaired by CM Sarma on Thursday. (Photo:@CMOfficeAssam/X)
Guwahati, Aug 21: The Assam Cabinet has approved a decision restricting the issuance of new Aadhaar cards for citizens above 18 years of age, except for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and tea garden communities who will be given one year’s extension to enroll.
Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma, during a press briefing post a cabinet meet at State Guest House in Kainadhara on Thursday, said the move comes after the state achieved Aadhaar saturation of 102%, higher than its actual population.
“This shows that more Aadhaar cards have been issued than the state’s population. To prevent misuse by infiltrators, we have decided that people above 18 will not be issued fresh Aadhaar cards. Only SC, ST, and tea garden communities are exempted because Aadhaar penetration among them is 96%, meaning 4% are yet to be covered,” Sarma explained.
Further informing that the decision would come into effect from October, Sarma said that citizens outside the exempted groups have only until September to apply for Aadhaar. "After that, applications will be barred," he said.
The Chief Minister also underlined that in “rarest of the rare cases”, Aadhaar may still be issued if approved by the Deputy Commissioner (DC).
“The DC will decide only after discussion with the Foreigners’ Tribunal and the Special Branch. This will ensure strict scrutiny,” he said.
Sarma linked the decision directly to the state’s battle against illegal immigration.
“Just yesterday, we pushed back seven infiltrators at the border. We may not be able to push back all, but by closing Aadhaar enrollment, we are sending a strong deterrent signal that infiltrators cannot claim entitlements through Aadhaar,” he asserted.
Earlier, the Chief Minister Sarma noted that many alleged illegal settlers possessed valid documents predating the 1971 cut-off under the Assam Accord, which complicated administrative action once their names were added to the voter rolls.
He warned that unchecked settlement could lead to an irreversible demographic shift, stressing that if people of Assam did not recognise the threat now, the situation could become critical in the next two decades.