---
layout: default
title: "Scrap UID Project, Say People's Organisations"
description: "A The Hindu report on civil society and people's organisations demanding the scrapping of the UID project, with Sunil Abraham raising concerns about legislative sanction and data privacy."
categories: [Media mentions]
date: 2010-04-29
source: "The Hindu"
permalink: /media/scrap-uid-project-say-peoples-organisations-the-hindu/
created: 2026-04-15
---

**Scrap UID Project, Say People's Organisations** is a *The Hindu* report published on 29 April 2010. The piece covers a press conference held by representatives of people's movements, mass organisations, and civil society institutions, demanding an end to the Unique Identification Number project. It quotes [Sunil Abraham](/sunil/), then executive director of the [Centre for Internet and Society](/cis/), raising concerns about the absence of legislative sanction and the risks of handing biometric data to foreign companies.

## Contents

1. [Article Details](#article-details)
2. [Full Text](#full-text)
3. [Context and Background](#context-and-background)

## Article Details

<dl class="media-details">
  <dt>📰 Published in:</dt>
  <dd><em>The Hindu</em></dd>

  <dt>📅 Date:</dt>
  <dd>29 April 2010</dd>

  <dt>📄 Type:</dt>
  <dd>News Report</dd>

  <dt>📰 Article Link:</dt>
  <dd>Not available online</dd>
</dl>

## Full Text

<div class="highlighted-text" id="fulltext">

<p>Representatives of people's movements, mass organisations and institutions on Wednesday said the unique identification number (UID) project is being executed without any legislative or parliamentary sanction and demanded an end to it.</p>

<p>Sunil Abraham, executive director of the Centre for Internet and Society told press persons here that neither the launch of the UID project nor the constitution of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) had any legislative sanction. Nothing is known of how the chairperson of the authority is selected, while the project proposes finger-printing of the entire population and storing of biometric and personal data of every person throughout his life and thereafter.</p>

<p>"Although the scheme is to only provide verification of identity, it is unclear what safeguards would prevent third parties from handling, sharing and utilising the data for any purpose," he said. The UIDAI has agreed to use the services of foreign companies, their software and hardware. It appears that no thought has been given to the perils of placing in the hands of foreign companies data pertaining to the entire population of the country, Mr. Abraham felt. About the claims that the UID project will save crores of rupees by preventing misuse of various welfare schemes, Mr. Abraham questioned whether any feasibility study had been made in this regard.</p>

<p>The UID, the National Population Registry and the NATGRID, once combined and connected, pose grave concerns pertaining to civil liberties and fundamental rights.</p>

</div>

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## Context and Background

The article was published in April 2010, roughly a year after the UIDAI was established by executive order in January 2009. The UID project had not yet been placed before Parliament, and civil society groups were pressing that concern openly. The absence of a data protection law made the question of third-party access to biometric records particularly pointed at the time.

Sunil Abraham's statement at the press conference covered three distinct objections: the lack of parliamentary authorisation, the involvement of foreign firms in handling population-level data, and the absence of any published feasibility study backing the project's claimed savings. The convergence of UID, the National Population Registry, and NATGRID into a combined surveillance infrastructure was already a live concern in these discussions, years before Aadhaar became law.

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