Mahindra Satyam, a leading global consulting and IT services provider and Morpho (Safran group), the world leader in biometric technologies and identification solutions, have been selected as one of the key partners to implement and deliver the Aadhaar programme by UIDAI (Unique Identification Authority of India).

Aadhaar, the largest identity program in the world is designed to secure the identity of the residents of India, which is currently close to 1.2 billion. Based on latest generation biometric technologies (fingerprints and iris recognition), it aims to provide a unique identification number to each Indian resident to provide them with secure access to benefits and services (education, telecom, medical care, banking and financial services) as well as political and economic rights.

The Mahindra Satyam and Morpho team was selected by UIDAI as one of the three key partners for the initial phase of this programme. This first stage will run up to two years during which a total of 200 million residents are expected to be registered by a combination of the three selected providers.

Mahindra Satyam and Morpho will develop and maintain systems that will cross-check every new application by sifting through the biometrics database, preventing accidental or fraudulent duplication and ensuring that each identification number is unique. Morpho will provide the biometric technology while Mahindra Satyam will integrate and provide support across platforms and databases.

Mr. Jean-Paul Jainsky, Chairman and CEO of Morpho, said “Looking beyond the solely technological aspects, the Aadhaar project also gives us the opportunity to take part in a project that will support India’s development and take advantage of the demographic dividend to keep moving forward. This is at the heart of Morpho’s mission and reflects our ongoing commitment to India. The Aadhaar Project is clearly a transformational initiative that will change the course of biometrics technology.”

C.P Gurnani, CEO, Mahindra Satyam, said, “We are confident that with our technological prowess and Morpho’s capabilities in the biometric space, we can address the requirements of UIDAI and take India Inc to an altogether greater high.”