Aadhaar: India's Digital Identity Revolution for Global Inclusion

Resources

Resources & Recommendations

Books

• "Imagining India" by Nandan Nilekani - This book, published in 2008, outlines Nandan Nilekani's vision for India, including the role of technology in the nation's transformation and the need for a digital ID for everyone.

People Mentioned

• Nandan Nilekani (Co-founder and Chairman of Infosys, Co-chair of the G20 Task Force for Digital Public Infrastructure) - The main guest of the podcast, discussed his role in co-founding Infosys and leading the creation of India's Aadhaar digital identity infrastructure and the India Stack.
• Mr. Narayana Murthy (Leader of the seven co-founders of Infosys) - Mentioned as the leader of the founding team of Infosys.
• Prime Minister Manmohan Singh - Suggested that Nandan Nilekani take on the task of implementing the unique ID project for India.
• Prime Minister Narendra Modi - Became a big champion of Aadhaar and drove the bank inclusion program, accelerating its implementation after 2014.

Organizations & Institutions

• Infosys - The technology company co-founded by Nandan Nilekani, where he served for 30 years and is currently the chairman.
• Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) - The government body created in January 2009 and tasked with providing every Indian with a unique digital ID (Aadhaar), where Nandan Nilekani became its first employee.
• NPCI (National Payments Corporation of India) - An organization that conceptualized and launched UPI in 2016.
• Lloyds Banking Group - Ron van Kemenade's affiliation as Group COO, and the location of their technology center in India where he met Nandan Nilekani.
• G20 - A forum for international economic cooperation, for which Nandan Nilekani co-chaired a task force on digital public infrastructure.
• Co-Develop - A philanthropic organization created to replicate the approach of digital public infrastructure in other countries.
• Center for Digital Public Infrastructure - An organization that helps countries strategize the implementation of digital public infrastructure.
• United Nations (UN) - Has adopted a framework for digital public infrastructure.
• World Bank - Is supportive of the digital public infrastructure initiatives.
• IIIT-Bangalore (International Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore) - Where the open-source software MOSIP was built.

Tools & Software

• Aadhaar - India's unique digital identity infrastructure, providing a unique ID to every resident.
• UPI (Unified Payments Interface) - A real-time payment system developed by NPCI, enabling instant money transfers and digital payments.
• MOSIP (Modular Open Source Identity Platform) - An open-source software built at IIIT-Bangalore, used as the basis for ID systems in several countries.

Other Resources

• India Stack - A layered digital public infrastructure in India, comprising Aadhaar, UPI, and other digital services, enabling residents to participate in a digital society.
• Jan Dhan Yojana program - A financial inclusion program by the Indian Prime Minister that utilized Aadhaar's KYC to open 700 million new bank accounts.
• Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) - A program in India that electronically transfers money to bank accounts, becoming the world's largest such program.
• Micro ATM - A system allowing people to withdraw money from their bank accounts without visiting a branch or a large ATM.