CHENNAI, September 12, 2016
About 6.41 crore people in Tamil Nadu have been issued Aadhaar cards, making it the sixth largest State under the scheme till August 2016, data from the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) shows. Tamil Nadu is behind Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.
Tamil Nadu, however, has a higher percentage of women covered under Aadhaar, compared to the national average. While 46.93 per cent women have been covered nationally, 50.32 per cent of women in Tamil Nadu have been enrolled in the scheme. The national average for men is 50.16 per cent, while in Tamil Nadu, 49.64 per cent have been covered.
Among the districts in the State, Chennai has the highest number of Aadhaar cards issued at 37.15 lakhs followed by Kancheepuram with 36.42 lakhs. The number of Aadhaar cards issued till August stands at about 89 per cent compared with the State’s total population of 7.21 crore as per the 2011 Census.
State Revenue minister R.B. Udhayakumar had informed the State Assembly that about 94 per cent of the population have been covered under the National Population Register-Biometric Enrolment (NPR-BME) scheme as of March 31, 2016.
Aadhaar cards for over 90 per cent of the population in Virudhunagar, Ariyalur, Tirunelveli, Dharmapuri and Tiruchi had been generated as of March 31, the minister said. Ramanathapuram, Chennai and Tirupur had the least number of Aadhaar cards generated at less than 80 per cent, according to the policy note of the Revenue Department tabled in the Assembly.
In certain districts such as Ariyalur, Perambalur, Chennai and Pudukkottai, the biometric enrolment was more than 100 per cent compared to the population registered during the 2011 Census, likely due to migration. Perambalur had the highest enrolment at 109.56 per cent compared to the 2011 Census data. Tiruppur had the lowest coverage at 87.72 per cent as per the data provided by the State government.