You can now lock your Aadhar Card for any biometric verification without internet, simply through an SMS and protect your virtual identity from any misuse!
The Aadhar Card is a unique identification number of the residents of India which is used for all kinds of verification purposes. The 12-digit unique number serves as the identification number of the cardholder. The Unique Identity Authority of India or the UIDAI, an authoritative body working under the Government of India governs the working and implementation of the Aadhar card. The Aadhar Card is based on the biometric and demographic data of the person concerned and is not a proof of citizenship or any other kind of authentication whatsoever. It simply establishes proof of residence in India with the biometric identification of the cardholder. Uses of Aadhar Card
The Aadhar Card is a biometric document with details of the person. It serves as the ideal identification tool to maintain a record in the Government database of the residents of India. Though it is not a citizenship card, it does serve a few important purposes:
Identity Card: It is widely accepted as an identification proof as it is Government approved and carries proof of identity, age and address.
Benefits of Subsidies: The Aadhar Card when linked with the Bank account can help the cardholder to avail government subsidies directly into the account, removing any fraudulent activities or malpractices.
For Opening Bank Accounts: All Banks and Financial Institutions now accept the Aadhar Card as a valid identification document. It can also assist in the process of opening a bank account for all kinds of verification and identification purposes.
Jan Dhan Yojana: The Jan Dhan Yojana is specifically designed to provide banking facilities in the rural areas. It accepts Aadhar Card as the only required document for opening a bank account, thereby doing away with all other paperwork which may be involved.
Provident Fund Disbursement: Another important use of the Aadhar Card is that if linked to the Pension Account, the Provident Fund Amount can be directly disbursed to an individual’s account.
Digital Life Certificate: This Certificate empowers pensioners to avail their pension amount digitally by providing their Aadhar Card Number without physically being present to collect it.
The UIDAI has, from time to time, laid down rules and services pertaining to the Aadhar Card under the rulings passed by the Supreme Court of India. The services provided are purely based on the effective application of them by all members holding the card. The SMS service is a step in this very direction where these services can be made available to people who may not have access to internet and the application-based services.
The basic requirement to avail the SMS services is to have your mobile number registered alongside your Aadhar Card in the UIDAI records to make the process smooth and easy. A virtual ID needs to be created in order to register your card on the UIDAI portal with your unique identification number.
To process the locking of your Aadhar Card, you will need to send two SMSs to 1947. The following steps will guide you to the complete locking process:
First you need to send an SMS from your registered mobile number to 1947 to get access to OTP. The format for the SMS should be: GETOTP SPACE XXXX where XXXX stands for the last four digits of your Aadhar Card number. To make it more clear, assume that your Aadhar Card number is 1234 5678 4321. The SMS that needs to be sent will be GETOTP 4321.
On receipt of the SMS sent by you, the UIDAI portal will send you 6-digit OTP via SMS.
Now, you will have to send the second SMS which will lock your Aadhar Card. The format of this SMS will be sent as follows: LOCKUID SPACE XXXX SPACE YYYYYY where XXXX is the last four digits of Aadhar Card number and YYYYYY is the 6 digit OTP number.
On receiving this SMS, the UIDAI will lock your Aadhar Card number and will notify you for the same with a confirmation message for your request. This completes the process of locking your Aadhar Card. Once an Aadhar Card number is locked, no authentication process can be done whether demographic, biometric or OTP-based, using that specific Aadhar Card number. For any kind of further authentication purposes or to know your Aadhar Card status, the Virtual ID number will have to be used.
If there are more than one Aadhar Cards registered under the same mobile number, then the last 8 digits of the Aadhar Card number will have to be entered instead of the 4-digits for authentication purposes.
For unlocking the Aadhar Card, you will have to use your virtual ID and send two SMS to the UIDAI portal at 1947 which will help you unlock the card.
Follow the steps given below in order to unlock your Aadhar Card:
First, you have to send an SMS from your registered mobile number to 1947 to receive an OTP. The format of the SMS will be: GETOTP SPACE XXXXXX where XXXXXX stands for the last six digits of your Virtual ID number.
On receiving the SMS sent by you, the UIDAI portal will send you a 6-digit OTP via SMS.
Now you have to send the second SMS in order to complete the unlocking process of your Aadhaar number. The format of the second SMS to unlock your Aadhaar number will be: UNLOCKUID SPACE XXXXXX SPACE YYYYYY where XXXXXX stands for the last six digits of Virtual ID and YYYYYY stands for the 6 digit OTP number.
On receiving this message, the UIDAI portal will send a confirmation message for the same. This completes the unlocking process and you can now use the Aadhaar number for all authentication purposes.
Alternately, you can also lock, unlock or check your Aadhar Card Status online on the UIDAI official website at uidai.gov.in.
It is in the general interest of the people to use their Aadhar Card as their identity and avail all the benefits thereunder as the Government stands to benefit by holding record of all legal residents of the country.
Recommended Read: Aadhaar Services: How Much Do You Need to Pay?
