India’s Provident Fund body removes Aadhaar as DoB proof, check updated list here

In a major decision, the Employees' Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) of India on Tuesday (Jan 16) removed Aadhaar card from the list of documents acceptable as date of birth proof (DoB). The decision was taken following a notification from the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI). In a circular issued on January 16, the EPFO declared that Aadhaar is originally an identification verification tool and not a proof of birth.

“In this connection, a letter has been received from UIDAI (copy attached), wherein it has been stated that the use of an Aadhaar, as proof of DoB needs to be deleted from the list of acceptable documents. Accordingly, the Aadhaar is being removed from the list of acceptable documents for correction in date of birth as mentioned in Table-B of Annexure -1 of the JD SOP under reference,'' the EPFO’s circular stated.

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The circular was also approved by the Central Provident Fund Commissioner (CPFC). According to some media reports, the decision was taken after some court judgments reinforced that Aadhaar could not be considered as proof of date of birth.

Documents still valid as DoB proof

1. Documents as valid Date of Birth proof
2. Marksheet issued by any recognised Government Board or University
3. School Leaving Certificate (SLC)/ School Transfer Certificate (TC)/ SSC certificate containing Name and Date of Birth
4. Certificate based on the service records
5. PAN card
6. Central/ State Pension Payment Order
7. Domicile Certificate issued by the Government
8. Passport
9. Government pension
10. Medical certificate issued by the Civil Surgeon

What is Aadhaar?

Aadhaar is a 12-digit unique identity number that can be obtained voluntarily by all residents of India, based on their biometrics (10 finger prints, 2 iris prints and photo of face) and demographic data. The data is collected by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), a statutory authority established in January 2009 by the Government of India, under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, following the provisions of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and other Subsidies, benefits and services) Act, 2016.

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Aadhaar is the world's largest biometric ID system. World Bank Chief Economist Paul Romer described Aadhaar as "the most sophisticated ID programme in the world".

(With inputs from agencies)