SC to begin hearing petitions challenging validity of Aadhaar today

New Delhi: Supreme Court, on Wednesday, is expected to begin hearing petitions challenging validity of Aadhaar and its mandatory linkage with several services. Amid the raging debate over privacy concerns related to Aadhaar, Paytm founder Vijay Shekhar Sharma said on Tuesday there is a continuous need of adding more security layers in the unique identity system. "This continues with Aadhaar. There is no secret, confusion about it. What they need to keep doing is adding more layers of security and safety," Sharma said in response to a query on concerns around alleged data breach of Aadhaar. He was talking to reporters on the sidelines of Baba Ramdev led-Patanjali Ayurved announcing partnership with eight e-commerce firms for selling its products. People willing to open account with Paytm Payments Bank are required to verify themselves with the 12-digit Aadhaar number. Meanwhile, Aadhaar will include face recognition alongside iris or fingerprint scan as a means of verifying users, helping those who face issues in biometric authentication or have worn-out fingerprints, the authority in charge of the national identity card system said. The face authentication will be enabled by July to help people facing difficulty in biometric authentication due to old age, hardwork or worn-out fingerprints, the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) said in a statement. The UIDAI said that face authentication would be allowed "only in fusion mode" meaning along with either fingerprint or iris or OTP to verify the details of Aadhaar holder.