NEW DELHI: After receiving several requests from passengers, Railway has agreed to accept e-Aadhaar as one of the prescribed proof of identity for undertaking journey in any reserved class. Earlier only printed version was considered as a valid ID.
According to railway ministry, the issue regarding acceptance of e-Aadhaar as one of the prescribed proof of identity for undertaking journey in any reserved class was being raised at various foras.
Accordingly, the matter was examined in consultation with Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).
“The authority has specified that as per Section 4(3) of Aadhaar Act, 2016, an Aadhaar number in physical or electronic form subject to authentication and other conditions, may be accepted as proof of identity of the Aadhaar number holder for any purpose,” said an order issued by railways.
Railway has now decided that downloaded Aadhaar is a legally valid proof of identity under Section 4(3) of the Aadhaar Act along with the printed version of the card.
“In view of the above, it has been decided to incorporate downloaded Aadhaar (e-Aadhaar) also as prescribed proof of identity at par with printed Aahaar card in the list of prescribed proofs of identity which are valid for undertaking journey in any reserved class,” said the order.
There are ten recognised documents which are accepted by railways as proof of identity during journey for travellers. While printed Aadhaar was accepted but downloaded version was not considered valid.