March 27, 2018
The IRDAI has extended the deadline for linking Aadhaar, a 12-digit unique identity number issued to all Indian residents, with existing insurance policies from 31 March 2018 until the Supreme Court decides on the matter.
New insurance policies still have to be linked with Aadhaar, said the IRDAI. Policyholders are given six months from the date of buying the insurance policy to submit the Aadhaar number.
In the absence of Aadhaar, a client shall submit any of the officially valid document as mentioned in the Prevention of Money-Laundering (Maintenance of Records) Rules, it said. Under the rules, Non-Resident Indian policyholders are not required to surrender their policy for not having an Aadhaar number
The Supreme Court is hearing petitions that challenge the Aadhaar identification programme citing privacy concerns. There have also been concerns about possible leak and theft of data from the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) and the potential damage that may cause.