Dinesh Shah wrote:
On 9/12/06, jtd wrote:
Who are the issuers?
- Passport - an upmarket version of the above
Very few have this document and it's costly and time consuming to acquire.
That is why it is still considered a valid proof of id by many Govt. and private organizations. PAN number is only an extension for economic data records. The details that we have to furnish to get a passport and the police verification are quite ok, except that we still have no system to verify the person's biological id.
So instead of starting from scratch, why not build a layer over the passport system that already has international validity, and have the passport authority as the National records keeper with properly defined responsibilities. That will save a lot of trouble. Passport has not spread due to its nature of being necessary for foreign travel only. If we make it compulsory for all, every one will be within range. The cost of procuring a passport is high because right now the persons who need it are going to be 'foreign returned'. That can change and the cost can be subsidized for poor people. I don't recollect but how much does it cost to get a PAN number?
Regards,
Rony.
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