New Delhi: Aiming to ease the Aadhaar update process for children, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has announced a complete waiver of charges for the Mandatory Biometric Update that will benefit about six crore children across the country.
The waiver, effective from 1 October, for a period of one year, covers the first biometric update required when a child reaches the age of five. Under the existing Aadhaar enrolment norms, fingerprints and iris scans are not captured for children below five years due to the immaturity of these biometrics.
Hence, children are required to update their biometrics once at the age of five and again at 15 years, known respectively as the first and second MBUs.
Previously, while the MBUs performed between ages five to seven and 15-17 were free, a fee of Rs 125 was charged thereafter. With this latest decision, UIDAI has effectively made the MBU process free for all children in the five to 17 age group.
UDAI said the move is expected to make Aadhaar updates more accessible, ensuring that every child has an Aadhaar linked with valid and up-to-date biometric information. An updated Aadhaar facilitates smoother access to various services such as school admissions, scholarship benefits, entrance examination registrations and Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) schemes.
The Authority has urged parents and guardians to ensure timely biometric updates for their children to avoid any inconvenience while availing government schemes or educational services.