The Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI)'s changes to the Aadhaar card format are now directly impacting citizens applying for driving licenses. The absence of the father's name from the address column on Aadhaar cards is causing significant difficulties in submitting applications through the Transport Department's "Sarathi" portal. Thousands of applications have been stalled due to this.

Citizens applying for a driving license are facing significant difficulties because the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has removed the father's name from the address column in the new Aadhaar card format. The father's name is required when filling out applications on the Sarathi portal, but thousands of applications are stuck due to the lack of this information through Aadhaar e-KYC.

According to Transport Department regulations, it's mandatory to enter the father's name when applying for a license online. Most citizens apply through Aadhaar e-KYC. However, because the father's name isn't listed separately on the new Aadhaar card, the relevant column remains blank when accessing information on the 'Sarathi' portal. Due to the Aadhaar information being locked, citizens are unable to manually enter their father's name. This causes significant inconvenience to citizens as applications are not being submitted. This technical error is forcing citizens to repeatedly visit the RTO office. Young and rural applicants are particularly facing difficulties. In the era of Digital India, instead of simplifying the process, this disruption is wasting citizens' time and money.

The Maharashtra VLE Samvad organization has drawn attention to this issue and has submitted a representation to Union Minister Nitin Gadkari and the state's Transport Minister. Shankar Holla, the organization's representative, has demanded that the Sarathi portal be immediately modified to allow manual
entry of the father's name. Additionally, the National Informatics Center should immediately make the necessary changes to the Sarathi software, obtain information from other Aadhaar documents if the father's name is missing from Aadhaar, and stop detaining citizens until the technical issues are resolved. Everyone is watching the Transport Department and the Central Government's actions in this matter.

PC: Navarastra