UIDAI onboards 300 OVSEs strengthening Aadhaar offline verification

New Delhi, November 5 (IANS): Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) has onboarded 300 Offline Verification Seeking Entities (OVSEs), since its rollout in January, and fuelled the growing adoption of the Aadhaar application among residents, the government said on Thursday.

The milestone marks a major step towards expanding the use of Aadhaar-based offline verification across sectors ranging from hotels, hospitality, healthcare, education, events, gig economy, and consumer facing players, the statement from Ministry of Electronics & IT said.

This also enabled secure, consent-based, and paperless verification through Aadhaar offline verification mechanism -- empowering both service providers and residents.

The onboarding of these OVSE partners reflects growing confidence in Aadhaar-enabled, privacy-first digital verification frameworks that prioritise user control while ensuring ease of access and data minimisation in alignment with the provisions of DPDP Act, the statement noted.

UIDAI strengthens the digital identity experience for residents and organisations by bringing essential services to residents' smartphones and expanding the institutional ecosystem for offline verification.

The Aadhaar App continues to gain traction, with nearly 7.5 crore downloads recorded so far, pointing to its role as a key digital interface between the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and residents. The application enabled Aadhaar number holders to conveniently access a range of Aadhaar-related services through their smartphones.

The App has facilitated substantial usage of key services, including over 86 lakh mobile number updates, 22.16 lakh address updates and 40.25 lakh email updates, without a physical visit to the centre.

The App has also recorded 4.6 crore biometric lock/unlock transactions, reflecting growing awareness and adoption of security features that give residents greater control over the use of their biometrics.

Further, the application recorded 3.61 lakh Aadhaar lock or unlock transactions. Biometric lock or unlock and Aadhaar lock or unlock features empower Aadhaar number holders to add another layer of privacy at their choice.

These initiatives are aligned with the government's Digital India vision and the broader objective of improving ease of living through secure, accessible and technology-enabled public services for a Viksit Bharat.