ITDA enrolls thousands of ST members for Aadhaar cards in Nellore district

Tirupati: The Integrated Tribal Development Authority (ITDA) in Nellore district has achieved a significant milestone in its mission to arrange Aadhaar cards for Scheduled Tribe (ST) community members for cards.

 As part of this initiative, over 32,000 tribal people have been successfully registered with Aadhaar through the Permanent Aadhaar Enrolment Centre at the ITDA  office in Nellore.

The centre, exclusively established for the STs, was inaugurated on October 11, 2022.

Additionally, ITDA has deployed five mobile Aadhaar kits in certain locations, including Rapur, Gudur, Addanki, and two at the ITDA office premises. These mobile units have been engaged in enrolling STs in over 115 villages in 36 mandals across the district.

According to ITDA (Yanadis) project officer Manda Rani, a special drive was also held in 42 villages of three mandals -- Ulavapadu, Gudluru, and Singarayakonda. This resulted in the Aadhaar enrollment of 2,529 STs, strengthening the reach of Aadhaar coverage among the tribal population.

Further, ITDA organised special camps at Vaikuntapuram, Bodigadithota Burial Ground, Vinayaka Girijana Colony and Donthali towards Aadhaar enrollment for 500 tribal families and also admitted out-of-school children into CAP and Child Ashram Schools.

However, a pilot survey conducted by the Azim Premji Foundation showed that a significant number of ST Yanadis were still awaiting Aadhaar enrollment. This is resulting in a denial of benefits from the government welfare schemes to these people.

Responding to this, the project officer has initiated a comprehensive survey of ST Yanadis in SPSR Nellore district.

“To further extend the reach of this initiative, ITDA, in collaboration with the tribal welfare department and the district administration, has launched a comprehensive survey. The survey involves the use of a mobile app featuring four cards: Rice Card, Aadhaar, Health Card, Voter ID and Job Card. The survey, conducted through Grama Sachivalayam, commenced on Sept 1 with the support of the Azim Premji Foundation'', Manda Rani said.

For this purpose, the ITDA has enlisted the assistance of village and ward volunteers. So far, the survey has covered 5,690 STs out of an estimated 71,200 residing at different villages across the district, who are yet to be enrolled for Aadhaar.