Close to 6 lakh people in Meghalaya don't have Aadhaar

PTI, SHILLONG, APRIL 15, 2025  : The Meghalaya government is working overtime to enrol close to 6 lakh people in the state who are yet to register themselves under the Aadhaar database to avail both development and welfare schemes of the government, officials said on Tuesday.

The Aadhaar enrolment was slow in East Khasi Hills and West Garo Hills districts, with both registering 75 percent and 83 percent respectively, which indicates that these two districts have over 3.27 lakh people out of the system, they said.

"We are working overtime to get everyone enrolled under the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) which allots the Aadhaar number. At present, close to 28 lakh people are enrolled in the state," a senior official told PTI.

He said there is some kind of apathy among the people to register themselves for the Aadhaar number. East Khasi Hills district alone has over 2.31 lakh people who are yet to be enrolled due to various reasons, while over 96,400 people in West Garo Hills are not registered, according to the figures available till February this year, the official said.

West Khasi Hills and South Garo Hills are among the districts with the least enrolment, with each registering 68 and 67 percent enrolment respectively, the official said.

The Meghalaya government recently bagged two awards for best-performing state in carrying out mandatory biometric updates (MBUs) of children and in the verification of adult Aadhaar enrolment.

The Meghalaya government recently bagged two awards for best-performing state in carrying out mandatory biometric updates (MBUs) of children and in the verification of adult Aadhaar enrolment.

The authorities have completed registering over 37,000 children below 5 years of age, while over 6.93 lakh were among those between 5 and 18 years old, the official said. Over 20.67 lakh people above 18 years of age have enrolled under the Aadhaar database, he added.

State Nodal Officer for Aadhaar Joram Beda expressed satisfaction and appreciation for the achievement and the award the Aadhaar authorities have given the state recently.

He said, "This recognition reflects the unwavering commitment and dedication of our Aadhaar team from field-level staff to district officials and technical staff. I congratulate everyone who contributed to this outstanding performance."

"Everyone in the government is working to further improve the delivery and outreach of Aadhaar services in Meghalaya, ensuring that every resident has access to their unique identity and to essential government schemes," he said ¹.