The Ministry of Education introduced Automated Permanent Academic Account Registry (APAAR) ID to digitize student academic records, aiming for a "single source of truth."
It's linked to Aadhaar.
This follows other digitization efforts like Unified District Information System for Education Plus (UDISE+) and the Student Database Management Information System.
While the government says APAAR is not mandatory, schools in states like Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka are pushing for 100% enrollment.
Schools are warning parents of consequences for not enrolling.
Education authorities are pressuring religious minority institutions and other administrators.
There are issues with name mismatches, causing enrollment failures.
The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, is not yet in effect, raising data security concerns.
The Supreme Court has ruled that Aadhaar cannot be mandated for basic education, and APAAR is seen as a way to circumvent this ruling.
If the government wishes to undertake the goal of improving the reliability and accessibility of education records, it should back its administration of that effort with legislation.
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