Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment Dr Virender Kumar on Monday acknowledged implementation challenges arising from Aadhaar linkage in Meghalaya, stating that efforts are underway to address difficulties unique to the hill state so that centrally sponsored schemes can be executed smoothly and within a stipulated timeframe.
Talking to media persons after the review meeting held at Tara Ghar in Shillong, Kumar said, “Adhar linkage is being done all over the country, Meghalaya being a Hills state in certain areas the inconvenience or difficulties are being highlighted. In this regard, after talking to community department how to solve this problem so that the implementation of various centrally sponsored schemes can be done in a smooth way in a stipulated time frame, we will try.”
Responding to queries, he added, “the schemes made by the centre are made for the entire country, and uniformity in implementation is being done in all the states. If certain states face difficulties in implementation then efforts are being made to have an effective solution, which can be effective in implementing the schemes and along with other states the implementation can be done in an effective way.”
During the meeting, departments highlighted challenges arising from Aadhaar linkage, noting that Aadhaar implementation in the State remains lower compared to the National average. Issues flagged included Aadhaar Verification Issues wherein the Ministry has made Aadhaar verification mandatory for beneficiaries, while Aadhaar enrollment in the State remains a challenges as many beneficiaries are unwilling to enroll or register. The Department has initiated awareness campaigns and organized Aadhaar enrollment drives in coordination with District Administration to address this issue. Difficulties in Aadhaar Updation were also highlighted, with many beneficiaries not remembering or no longer having access to the SIM cards linked to their Aadhaar during enrollment, making OTP-based authentication and updates difficult.
The review meeting was attended by Paul Lyngdoh, Adviser Govt of Meghalaya Social Welfare Department, deputy commissioner RM Kurbah and officials from different departments.
Kumar further said, “In Today ‘s review meeting, the centrally sponsored schemes, we have done the review be it PM Awas yojna or PM Gram Sarak yojana, or Any other scheme, presentation are being made from various departments, the meeting informed about the implementation of the schemes particularly in East Khasi Hills. Today I have also visited several institutes including. Schools, child care institute, old age home beside others and I met them and enquire about the implementation of the schemes and its reach out. Several important points are being highlighted and we have taken note of that. Through Ministry of DoNER all the states in North East, the central minister visits states and in this regard my visit was scheduled for East Khasi Hills.”
