Voter identity cards, along with biometric authentication, will be the basis for identifying beneficiaries and processing payments for welfare schemes within the ambit of the Panchayati Raj Ministry, Union Minister for Panchayati Raj and JD(U) leader Rajiv Ranjan Singh, alias Lallan Singh, reiterated on Tuesday (November 3, 2026).
He was speaking to the media on the sidelines of an event at the Sikkim Cooperative Milk Producers’ Union Limited in Gangtok.
He had made this remark earlier on Friday during a day-long workshop organised by his Ministry on the “People’s Plan Campaign (PPC) 2026-27” in Delhi. His remarks come amid the Opposition’s sustained campaign on “vote chori” (vote theft), alleging wrongful deletions from the electoral rolls. The Minister, while speaking in Delhi, had lamented the easy availability of Aadhaar card, which he said can be made in “every street corner”, implying the possibility of fraudulent beneficiaries. “If one wants, one can get an Aadhaar card made in five minutes,” he said. The proposed shift, the Minister argued in Gangtok, would ensure that welfare schemes are extended only to “eligible” beneficiaries, culling out “fraudulent entries”. This would strengthen the verification process and improve transparency in the delivery of welfare benefits, he said
