Aadhaar Card Linking: Things To Do By December 31 And February 6

Aadhaaris now becoming a must for a range of transactions, financial and otherwise. From investment in savings schemes to operating a bank account, even using a mobile phone will require you to link your Aadhaar number - the 12-digit identity number printed on Aadhaar card - with mobile SIM. Many telecom companies have asked their customers to link Aadhaar with mobile connection (SIM). Many telecom companies have now started sending alerts to customers about completing the Aadhaar-Mobile number linking process. Telecom companies have cited a government directive making it mandatory to link Aadhaar with mobile number by February 6, 2018. They had earlier instructed their customers to start the process of linking their Aadhaar card numbers with phone numbers.

How To Connect Phone Number With Aadhaar

If you have opted for 'eKYC' - Aadhaar-based activation - by providing the biometrics while applying for the mobile connection, you do not need to go through the Aadhaar-SIM linking process again, Idea Cellular said. Other subscribers need to visit their nearest Idea outlets and follow simple steps to complete the mandated E-KYC process, the telecom company said.

eKYC is an online method of providing details as per Know Your Customer norms.

Airtel Aadhaar-SIM linking

"As per the government directive, linking Aadhaar to your mobile number is mandatory for all existing customers," Bharti Airtel, the country's largest telecom operator, said on its website. Bharti Airtel also prescribed its prepaid and postpaid subscribers ways to achieve Aadhaar-SIM linking. To complete biometric verification, Airtel said customers having its postpaid connections are required to visit the nearest Airtel Store, while prepaid customers can do so by visiting their nearest retailer.

"We recommend you complete this process as soon as possible. Last date for the same is 6th Feb 2018," Bharti Airtel further said on its website - airtel.in.

Specifying the documents required for the process, Airtel said: "All you need is your Aadhaar card/number and your Mobile. You will be required to complete biometric verification. You will also receive the verification code (OTP) on your Mobile that would be required to complete the process."

Vodafone Aadhaar-SIM linking

Responding to a query in a series of posts on microblogging site Twitter, Vodafone India said: "Aadhaar based re-verification is to be done only once on a number. As per the instructions received from DoT (Department of Telecommunications), it is mandatory that the E-KYC (Aadhaar-based) re-verification needs to be completed before 6th Feb 2018 by all Telecom operators."

Hi, Aadhaar based re-verification is to be done only once on a number. As per the instructions received from DoT.. cont1

— Vodafone India (@VodafoneIN) September 13, 2017

cont1.. (Department of Telecommunications), it is mandatory that the E-KYC (Aadhaar based) re-verification needs to be.. cont2

— Vodafone India (@VodafoneIN) September 13, 2017

cont2.. completed before 6th Feb 2018 by all Telecom operators. Do let us know if you need any further information. -.. cont3

— Vodafone India (@VodafoneIN) September 13, 2017

Vodafone India is the Indian arm of British telecom major Vodafone.

Idea Aadhaar-SIM linking

Another telecom company Idea Cellular recently notified its customers about the requirement. Idea Cellular gave four steps for its customers to link their Aadhaar with mobile number.

Here are the four steps specified by Idea Cellular on its mobile app:

Step 1 - Visit our nearest Idea centre and provide your mobile number and Aadhaar number.

Step 2 - The Idea store executive will provide a four-digit verification code on your mobile from the re-verification application.

Step 3 - The subscriber will then provide the verification code to the Idea store executive and provide his or her biometrics.

Step 4 - After 24 hours, you will receive a confirmation SMS, reply 'Y' to complete the EKYC process.