IT Ministry’s plan:
The proposal for ‘federated digital identities’ is expected to be made public soon and the ministry will likely seek suggestions by February 27.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) proposes a new model of “federated digital identities,” under which multiple digital IDs of citizens, ranging from PAN and Aadhaar to Driving License and Passport Number, can be linked, accessed, and stored. Using this scheme, people will not need to show all their identity cards, but only one.
It has been reported that the ministry has suggested that this umbrella digital ID will give citizens control over their identity cards and allow them to choose which ID to use for which purpose. The proposal is expected to be released soon and the ministry will seek views by February 27.
The federated digital identity will be a unique ID where all the individual state and central government IDs can be stored. Through an e-KYC agreement, citizens can use the digital ID for authentication and availing of third-party services.