Aadhaar must to get ₹5L Ayushman cover

NEW DELHI: The Centre has published a gazette notification that makes Aadhar mandatory for beneficiaries under its annual health insurance cover.

As part of Ayushman BharatNational Health Protection Mission, the Centre has announced an insurance cover of ~5 lakh per year for hospitalisation to 10.74 crore families. The notification, published by the Union health ministry on July 4, makes Aadhaar— a 12-digit biometric identification system— mandatory to avail of the insurance benefit.

“A beneficiary eligible for receiving the benefits under the scheme shall be required to furnish proof of possession of Aadhar number or undergo Aadhaar authentication,” it reads.

Those who do not have Aadhar need to apply by March 31.

According to CEO, UIDAI, Ajay Bhushan, the authority has issued 121 crore Aadhaar number to date, and an estimated 10 lakh people enrol for or update their Aadhar details every day.

CEO, Ayushman Bharat, Indu Bhushan said the notification was issued only because the Aadhaar Act makes it mandatory to publish it and seek government approval, if anyone wants to use the data set from Aadhaar.