No doubt, many will scoff at home minister Lal Krishna Advani's announcement that every Indian citizen will get an identity card. Critics of the BJP will read a hidden agenda into the statement. Others will point to the logistical problems of giving every adult Indian a personal card - and stress the failure of the voter I-card scheme.It would be prudent not to adopt such alarmist or defeatist postures at the very outset. A multipurpose I-card must work towards making life convenient for the citizen, not harassing him. Part of the reason why the voter I-card project is in tatters is that the common man sees no great incentive in acquiring a card which he can use only at polling time. To gain mass acceptability, the new I-card will not only have to replace the voter I-card but also improve upon it - and make itself truly useful to daily living.This is an age in which governments are becoming increasingly responsive to citizens. Progressive administrations everywhere are seeking to reinvent themselves as gigantic service-providers. Yet, the Indian state system is still designed to thwart rather than facilitate. No wonder today's Indian has flung upon him a plethora of identities: a voter I-card, a PAN card from the income-tax authorities, a driving licence and a ration card. .preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}Is it not possible for the Advani card to combine all these functions? If the new card is marketed in this manner - as a democracy's ultimate cachet - every Indian will make it his business to possess it. This will truly make everyday existence that much more comfortable. The problem with the earlier voter I-card proposal was that T.N. Seshan, then chief election commissioner, made it a self-publicity campaign. Also, in the best traditions of the left hand of the government not knowing what the right one is doing, other state agencies did not recognise the voter I-card's multipurpose potential. In the end, Rs 100 crore went down the drain. If Advani can now make amends, the nation will forgive him the cost.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Apr 13, 1998--- ENDS ---
