Centre allows UPSC to use Aadhaar for candidate verification

The central government on Wednesday for the first time allowed the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to conduct Aadhaar-based authentication on a voluntary basis to verify the identity of candidates at the time of registration and at various stages of examination and recruitment.

The move is significant as last month the commission cancelled the provisional candidature of IAS probationary officer Puja Khedkar and banned her from all future examinations for fraudulently appearing in the civil services examination above the eligibility requirement.

Kodekar was also accused of abusing quotas for persons with disabilities and other backward classes (OBCs), among other things.

The personnel ministry, in a notification, said UPSC “is permitted to conduct Aadhaar authentication on a voluntary basis to verify the identity of candidates at the time of registration on the ‘One Time Registration’ portal and at various stages of examination/recruitment test using yes/no or/and e-KYC authentication facility”.

The notification added that the committee should comply with all provisions of the Aadhaar (Targeted Provision of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016, “rules and regulations made thereunder” and directions issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).

Aadhaar is a 12-digit number issued by UIDAI to all eligible citizens based on biometric and demographic data.

In July this year, the Union Supreme Court took a series of actions against Khedkar, including filing a case against her for falsifying civil services exam applications. Subsequently, the Delhi Police registered a case to investigate.

Kodekar, who was temporarily posted in the Indian Administrative Service (2023 batch, Maharashtra cadre), has been accused of abusing her power and privileges during her training in Pune.

In June this year, UPSC also decided to use CCTV surveillance system based on facial recognition and artificial intelligence to prevent cheating and impersonation in various examinations.

Through a tender document, the government invited bids from experienced public sector players to design two technology solutions — “Aadhaar-based fingerprint authentication (i.e. digital fingerprint collection) and facial recognition of candidates and QR code scanning of e-admit card” and “Real-time AI-based CCTV monitoring services” — for the examination process.

The JBI conducts 14 major examinations every year, including the prestigious Civil Services Examination for selection of officers to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), Indian Foreign Service (IFS) and Indian Police Service (IPS), besides several recruitment tests and interviews every year for selection to Category A and Category B posts in the Central Government.

Hundreds of thousands of applicants apply for positions at such job fairs held across the country.

(This article has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from United News Agency – Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf）