The government is set to link the Aadhar card to the newly launched BHIM app for making e-payments through mobile devices. An update to the BHIM app will integrate the user's Aadhar number with it, enabling payments to be made easily and seamlessly.
As reported in the Times of India, there will be no need for bank registration or biometric authentication if a user logs into the app with her or his Aadhar number. This will only be applicable to those users whose bank accounts are integrated with Aadhar. The mobile number and SIM will still be used for authentication. The National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), which designed the BHIM app, will be rolling out the update.
"Through Aadhaar, any person — large service providers or independent ones such as plumbers or carpenters, irrespective of whether they are on BHIM or not — can get payments for their services directly into their bank accounts if it is linked to Aadhaar," Ajay Bhushan Pandey, chief of Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), told the Economic Times.
Pandey said that almost 38 crore bank accounts are linked with Aadhar in India. Soon, any person will be able to transfer money via the BHIM app to any Aadhar holder's bank account, provided the bank account is Aadhar linked. Currently, the app only allows transfer to a bank account, UPI address, or mobile number that is registered with the BHIM app.
Although the government is working on integrating Aadhar based biometric authentication in Point of Sales (PoS) machines, it believes that including Aadhar in BHIM app would make the adoption faster and easier.
Recently, BHIM downloads crossed the 10 million mark on the Google Play store. The government has promised to release the iOS version of the app soon.