TNN | Jul 23, 2015, 04.35 AM IST
PUNE: The district administration has initiated action against an agency appointed for issuing Aadhaar cards over illegal practices.
Officials said the agency's contract has been terminated and the process of filing a police complaint was underway.
District collector Saurabh Rao said action was initiated against the agency because officials found it indulging in illegal practices and asking for charges from citizens for Aadhaar enrolment. The agency was supposed to take up work in Karvenagar area. It was found to be operating illegally in other area as well.
Rao said they had received complaints from citizens about being charged for Aadhaar enrolment. When the administration conducted an investigation, they found credence in them.
"We also found about 100 Aadhaar cards with the agency in violation of norms. Therefore, we are writing to the department of posts to check if there is any involvement of persons from their department in the racket," he said.
Rao said there is no provision for direct handover of the Aadhaar cards to the applicants and it is delivered to the address given in the application. "We are checking how the agency got the Aadhaar cards in a bunch," he added. He has warned other agencies from charging the applicants for the process.
Meanwhile, the collector said there are 18 centres issuing Aadhaar cards at present.
The Aadhaar coverage in the district is around 80% and steps are being taken to achieve 100% target, officials said. The addresses of the centres will be published on the district collectorate's website. About 156 machines have been deployed in the rural areas.