Aadhaar Is Now Mandatory For All Workers To Avail Services Under Social Security Code 2020

On Wednesday, the Labour Ministry made Aadhaar a mandatory identity proof for both organised and unorganised employees seeking benefits under the Social Security Code. Apurva Chandra, Labour Secretary, said that Section 142 of the Social Security Code had been informed in the gazette. The aim of this section's announcement is to make it clear that the Ministry of Labor is now legally able to gather numbers for all employees who are eligible for social benefits. The National Informatics Centre will plan a registry of unorganised employees' Aadhaar numbers, which will be phased out within 2-3 months, according to Chandra. Employees or unorganised staff must file as beneficiaries to receive social security benefits, according to Article 142 of the Code on Social Security, 2020.

The ministry's most recent mandate is to make database development easier, with a focus on workers in the informal sector, including migrant workers. According to Section 142 of the Code, an employee, unorganised worker, or any other individual shall define his identity or, as the case may be, the identity of his family members or dependents via Aadhaar number. Moreover, according to Section 142 of the Social Security Code, Aadhaar is necessary for accessing benefits including, cash, or medical sickness or pension, gratuity or maternity, or some other benefit, or for withdrawing funds. We will begin collecting Aadhaar for other advantages and schemes as well. Once the social security code becomes operational, the social security benefits will be given by using Aadhaar, according to the Labour Secretary. On May 3, the government released a notification mandating the ministry and bodies operating under it to collect Aadhaar numbers from beneficiaries under the Social Security Code. The notification stated that '... the central government hereby appoints the 3rd day of May, 2021 as the date on which the provisions of section 142 of the said Social Security Code shall come into force.' The National Informatics Centre, according to the announcement, is nearing its end of the National DataBase for Unorganized Workers (NDUW). The portal's goal is to collect data for unorganised staff, namely migrant workers, in order to provide services under the government's various initiatives. An inter-state immigrant can enroll on the portal solely by submitting his or her Aadhaar number. Section 142 of the Social Security Code has already been notified for the processing of worker records, even migrant workers.