Aadhaar hurdle for J&K residents in other states

Vikram Sharma

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Tribune News service

Jammu, March 13

Citizens who have a government (BSNL) mobile network in their name in Jammu and Kashmir are facing problems in linking their mobile number with the Aadhaar if they are presently residing outside the state.

A BSNL mobile user, Vikas Sharma, a permanent resident of the state who got his SIM issued from Jammu and Kashmir in 2005 had to move out for a job in Punjab in 2010.

Meanwhile, the Government of India made Aadhaar mandatory for all citizens which includes linking the mobile number also.

The user, who now lives in a flat in Kharar, Punjab, and has a residential address there, got his Aadhaar card issued from Punjab.

As the date of linking the Aadhaar with mobiles closed in, Vikas Sharma, general manager at Bee Gee Builtech company at Kharar, came to his hometown (Jammu) and approached a BSNL centre to link his mobile with the Aadhaar which could not be done as the biometric machine displayed that the user was a resident of Punjab and had to get his mobile linked from there.

The harassment to Vikas increased when he reached a BSNL mobile kiosk in Chandigarh.

The official asked him to link his mobile online through the new Interactive Voice Response System method through the number 14546.

“But when I dialled that number, it said my number did not exist,” said Vikas. Masood Malik, Jammu district head of the Unique Identification Authority of India, said, “There cannot be any such problem with the Aadhaar card. The fault may lie with the telephone service provider.” General Manager, BSNL, Vinod Chander, after listening to the grievance, said the user may approach the head office at Bahu Plaza to sort out the problem.

“We can change the residential address of the user online and get his biometric thumb impression to link his mobile with the Aadhaar,” he said.

Another BSNL mobile service provider official suggested that the user may port out his name from Jammu and get it ported in at Chandigarh for mobile linking.