114 Aadhaar Seva Kendras in 53 cities and towns would be established in the first phase. (File)
To provide hassle-free Aadhaar enrolment services, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) on Tuesday said that it was going to set up Aadhaar Seva Kendras across the country on the lines of the Passport Seva Kendras.
UIDAI CEO Ajay Bhushan Pandey said that around 114 such centres in 53 cities and towns, including all state capitals, would be established in the first phase. This would be in addition to the centres already operating in banks, post offices and government premises.
These centres, each with eight or 16 stations depending on the population of the city, would start functioning within the next few months.
"With Aadhaar Seva Kendras, we are building hassle-free and resident-friendly enrolment and update facility infrastructure to ensure ease in Aadhaar-related services to residents," he added.
UIDAI sources said that the Aadhaar Seva Kendras would be supervised directly by its own employees just like the Passport Seva Kendras are run under the supervision of passport officials.
They would provide appointment-based enrolment and update services to residents while also dedicating a few counters for walk-in customers.
Following the decision of the Supreme Court in the Binoy Viswam case, also known as the PAN-Aadhaar linking case, the UIDAI had started shifting enrolment and update facilities from private places to banks, post offices and government premises to make Aadhaar-related services more secure.
The UIDAI intends to phase out private Aadhaar centres by establishing 30,000 supervised enrolment stations in banks, post offices and government premises.