Priyanka Sambhav
Aadhar is a 12-digit identity number issued by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) to citizens of India. In 2018, the Supreme Court of India declared it constitutionally valid identity proof. Aadhar is mandatory for many services like you must link Aadhar to your PAN card, quote it while filing IT returns and to avail various subsidies and government schemes like pension, LPG gas subsidies etc. You can have your Aadhar in physical form like on a card or Aadhar letter or in an electronic format.
What is an e-Aadhar? Will it hold the same validity as a physical Aadhar?
An e-Aadhaar is a password protected electronic copy of Aadhaar, which is digitally signed by the UIDAI. As per section 4 (3) of Aadahar Act, e-Aadhar is equivalent to a physical copy of Aadhaar for all purposes. Act says – “An Aadhar number in physical or electronic form subject to authentication, and other conditions as may be specified by regulation may be accepted, as proof of identity of the Aadhar number holder for any purpose.”
The downloaded e-Aadhar carries the name, address, gender, photo, date of birth details of Aadhar holder just as it is in the printed Aadhar letter. It also has the date of Aadhar generation and date of Aadhar download. It has a digital signature of UIDAI and is a legally recognized document.
Follow these steps to download your Aadhar Card from UIDAI website-
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Visit the UIDAI website www.UIDAI.govin or https://eaadhaar.uidai.gov.in
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Go to My Aadhar tab and choose ‘Download Aadhar.’
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You will be asked to choose from 3 options- do you have your Aadhar number, Enrolment Id (EID) or a virtual ID for further process. If you want a masked Aadhar, this is the time to opt for. A masked Aadhar hides the first eight-digit of your number in the downloaded e-Aadhar.
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You have the option of entering your 12 digit Aadhar number, or 28 digit enrolment ID (mentioned in your acknowledgement slip) or a 16 digit virtual ID and enter the captcha code.
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You will receive a 6 digit OTP on your registered mobile number. This OTP is valid for 10 minutes only.
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After you enter the OTP, you will be asked to fill a quick survey. Post this you click on ‘Verify and Download’ to download your e-Aadhar. It will be in PDF format.
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This file will be password protected, and the system will prompt you for a password. It would be a combination of your name and birth date/year.
Another easy way of carrying your e-Aadhar is on Digilocker app. It is a cloud-based platform for storing government-issued identification and registration papers. You have to download Digilocker on your phone save the electronic copy of your Aadhar on your phone so that you don’t have to carry multiple documents when you are on the move.
