Ruckus over ID in Jammu and Kashmir, MP from Omar Abdullah's party said

News Topical, Digital Desk : Jammu and Kashmir News: A new welfare scheme launched by the Jammu and Kashmir administration has landed in trouble after a sitting MP from the ruling National Conference called it a surveillance tool.

The Jammu and Kashmir government has launched the Parivar Pehchan Patra System, a unique digital identity for every household in Jammu and Kashmir, aimed at streamlining public service delivery and welfare schemes.

What did the government say?

The system is headed by the Planning, Development and Monitoring Department (PDMD) and supported by departments including Finance, IT, Rural Development and JK Bank, it will assign a unique ID to every household and individual, linking them to a real-time socio-economic database.

Technical support comes from the Bhaskaracharya Institute for Space Applications and Geoinformatics (BISAG-N). Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo, who chaired the launch meeting, called it an important step towards a more accountable and responsive administration.

The ID system will streamline welfare eligibility, reduce duplication and update dynamically with life events such as birth, death and migration.

Data obtained from Mission Yuva, a household survey covering over 1.1 crore individuals, will form the basis of the system. Field teams and digital tools will verify the data, especially in areas where there is no Aadhaar linkage.

What did the National Conference MP say?

The plan was strongly criticised by National Conference (NC) MPs, who raised privacy concerns, questioned the need for another ID when Aadhaar exists, and warned of potential surveillance and misuse in Kashmir.

Agha Ruhullah Mehdi, a sitting MP from Srinagar, criticised the new system on Twitter, calling it a tool for mass surveillance. "The UK scrapped its identity register in 2010 after public protest. Why? Because it enabled mass surveillance, lacked consent and posed serious risks to civil liberties. The regime is now imposing a far more intrusive family identity in J&K without any protections, debate or alternatives," he said.

The first phase of the new scheme will begin in Kupwara and Kishtwar, with Aadhaar authentication and a “backend dashboard” expected to be fully functional by the end of 2025.