Over 2.5 Crore Aadhaar Numbers of Deceased Persons Deactivated to Prevent Identity Fraud

1. At a Glance

• UIDAI has deactivated over 2.5 crore Aadhaar numbers of deceased persons in a nationwide database clean-up to prevent identity fraud and leakage of welfare benefits [1][3].
• Aadhaar is the world's largest biometric identity system with ~134 crore live Aadhaar holders [1].
• Tests federalism (Centre–State data sharing via Civil Registration System), digital governance, and statutory powers under the Aadhaar Act, 2016.

2. Why in the News

• PIB release dated 04 February 2026 by Ministry of Electronics & IT announced the cumulative deactivation of >2.5 crore Aadhaar numbers of deceased individuals [1].
• Builds on an earlier milestone (PRID 2194626) when the count had crossed 2 crore [2].

3. Background & Evolution

• 2009: UIDAI constituted (executive resolution) under erstwhile Planning Commission.
• 2016: Statutory backing via Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016.
• 2019: Aadhaar & Other Laws (Amendment) Act — voluntary use for KYC.
• 2024–25: UIDAI began systematic sourcing of death records from Registrar General of India (RGI), States/UTs, Public Distribution System (PDS), and National Social Assistance Programme (NSAP) [3].
• June 2025: "Reporting of Death of a Family Member" facility launched on myAadhaar Portal [3][4].
• Feb 2026: Cumulative deactivation crosses 2.5 crore [1].

4. Core Static Facts

• Parent body: Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), a statutory authority under Ministry of Electronics & IT (MeitY) [1].
• Enabling law: Aadhaar Act, 2016.
• Death-record sources: RGI, States/UTs, PDS, NSAP, and (under exploration) banks & ecosystem entities [3].
• Civil Registration System (CRS) coverage: facility live for deaths registered in ~25 States/UTs; remaining under integration [1][3].
• Live Aadhaar base: ~134 crore [1].
• Portal: myAadhaar (https://myaadhaar.uidai.gov.in) — requires authentication + Death Registration Number [3].
• Reactivation: Wrongly deactivated holders may apply via a UIDAI circular procedure [4].

5. Multi-Dimensional Analysis

• Governance / Administrative
• Plugs leakages in DBT (PDS, NSAP, LPG subsidy, pensions) by purging ghost beneficiaries [3].

• Cross-ministry data flow: MeitY ↔ MHA (RGI) ↔ States under CRS.

• Legal / Constitutional

• Puttaswamy (2017) — right to privacy; K.S. Puttaswamy v. UoI (2018) upheld Aadhaar Act with restrictions.

• Deactivation governed by Aadhaar (Enrolment & Update) Regulations, 2016.

• Technological

• Integration with CRS (under Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969, amended 2023 — RBD Amendment Act mandates digital registration).

• Family-member self-reporting + biometric authentication layer.

• Social / Ethical

• Risk of false-positive deactivation of living persons → service exclusion (pension, ration); UIDAI has circular for reactivation of wrongly reported deceased cases [4].

• Address state in Aadhaar may differ from state of death registration — coordination challenge [1].

• Economic — Reduces fiscal leakage in welfare; supports JAM trinity (Jan-Dhan, Aadhaar, Mobile) integrity.

6. Recent Developments

• 04 Feb 2026 — Cumulative figure crosses 2.5 crore [1].
• 2025 — Earlier milestone of 2 crore deactivations announced [2].
• June 2025 — myAadhaar "death reporting" facility operationalised across 24 States/UTs (since expanded to ~25) [3].
• 2024 — UIDAI began proactive sourcing from RGI/PDS/NSAP [3].
• 2023 — Registration of Births & Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2023 enabled centralised digital death database, foundational for this drive.

7. Prelims Hooks

• UIDAI is a statutory body under MeitY, not MHA [1].
• Aadhaar Act enacted in 2016; UIDAI created executively in 2009.
• ~134 crore live Aadhaar holders as of Feb 2026 [1].
• >2.5 crore deceased Aadhaar numbers deactivated cumulatively [1].
• Death data sourced from RGI, States/UTs, PDS, NSAP [3].
• Portal used: myAadhaar — facility name: "Reporting of Death of a Family Member" [3].
• Family member must submit Death Registration Number + Aadhaar of deceased [3].
• Civil Registration System integration covers ~25 States/UTs [1].
• RBD (Amendment) Act, 2023 centralised digital death registration.
• Aadhaar Act upheld in K.S. Puttaswamy v. UoI, 2018.
• Deactivation ≠ cancellation — reactivation possible via UIDAI circular [4].

8. Mains Relevance

• GS-II: e-Governance, citizen-centric services, transparency in welfare delivery; Centre–State coordination (CRS).
• GS-III: Internal security (identity fraud), DBT efficiency.
• GS-IV: Privacy vs welfare, ethical handling of personal data.
• Possible stems: 1. "Aadhaar deactivation of deceased persons is as much an administrative imperative as it is a federal data-governance challenge." Discuss. 2. Examine the role of the Civil Registration System in plugging welfare leakages in India. 3. Balancing right to privacy with welfare-fraud prevention — analyse with reference to UIDAI's recent measures.

9. Related Topics

• Aadhaar Act, 2016 and Puttaswamy judgment — statutory & constitutional base.
• Civil Registration System (CRS) & RBD Amendment Act 2023 — death-data backbone.
• DBT Mission / JAM Trinity — beneficiary of clean-up.
• Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 — data-handling regime.
• National Population Register (NPR) — overlapping identity database.
• PDS, NSAP, PM-Kisan — major schemes affected by ghost beneficiaries.
• e-Shram, Ayushman Bharat — other Aadhaar-linked databases.
• Registrar General of India / Census — institutional context.

10. Common Errors / Trap Areas

• UIDAI is under MeitY, not MHA or NITI Aayog.
• Aadhaar Act is of 2016, not 2009 (year UIDAI was set up executively).
• RGI is under MHA, not MoSPI — but CRS data is shared with UIDAI.
• "Deactivation" is reversible; do not equate it with cancellation/cancellation of UID number.
• The facility is on myAadhaar portal, not on UMANG or DigiLocker.