"Another Surveillance Tool": Mehbooba Mufti On Unique Family ID

PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Monday said the Jammu and Kashmir administration's plan to create a 'unique family ID' for residents of the Union Territory was emblematic of the widening "trust deficit" after the 2019 abrogation of Article 370.

The former chief minister said Kashmiris are viewed with suspicion and dubbed the unique family ID as another "surveillance tool".

"Creating 'a unique family ID' for J&K residents is emblematic of the widening trust deficit esp post 2019," Ms Mufti tweeted.

"Kashmiris are viewed with deep suspicion & this is another surveillance tactic to tighten the iron grip on their lives," she added.

The Jammu and Kashmir administration is planning to create an authentic database of all families in the Union Territory with each of them having a unique alpha-numeric code, the objective being an easy selection of eligible beneficiaries of various social welfare schemes.

The proposed move to allot "Family ID" has been welcomed by the BJP but slammed by other parties which raised concerns over personal data safety.

At the recent national conference on e-governance in Katra in Reasi district, Jammu and Kashmir Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and Chief Minister of Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar released the 'Digital J&K Vision Document', unveiling the government plan to create an authentic, verified and reliable database of all families of the Union Territory.

According to the vision document, "Each family will be provided with a unique alpha-numeric code called JK Family ID. The data available in the family database would be used to determine eligibility through automatic selection of beneficiaries for receiving social benefits."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)