Bargarh: In a bizarre and a striking incident of Aadhaar goof-up, a farmer from Bijepur area in this district was deprived of selling his harvested paddy as his Aadhaar record erroneously showed him as ‘dead’.
According to reports, the incident involves Tankadhar Giri of Pipilipali village under Bijepur block. Due to a serious error in Aadhaar database, Giri’s status was marked “deceased,” rendering his Aadhaar inactive and preventing biometric authentication at the procurement centre, they said.
According to officials and the farmer, Giri had brought 28.86 quintals of paddy to Budapali mandi against his token (296160). However, the transaction failed during the iris scan when the system flagged an Aadhaar-related error, making procurement impossible. Giri said he is alive and has all valid documents, but the Aadhaar database continues to show his name with a deceased status. As a result, he has been pushed into acute financial and mental distress. Giri alleged that no alternative arrangement was provided to enable him to sell his produce, even as the validity of the token expired January 3.
Also Read: SEIAA orders probe into ‘illegal’ mining in Khurda
The case has sparked concern over data integrity in welfare-linked digital systems and their impact on farmers during procurement season. After verification at Bijepur Aadhaar centre, officials informed the farmer that his Aadhaar had been deactivated due to a “deceased status” entry and advised him to visit Bhubaneswar. The farmer submitted all required documents to the District Collector and the Aadhaar centre in Bhubaneswar.
However, as the issue was not resolved within the stipulated time, he alleged that he was ultimately forced to take his paddy back home from the mandi. “The incident has exposed technical flaws in the paddy procurement system, raising questions about who is responsible for the financial losses suffered by farmers,” said Ramesh Mohapatra, adviser to the Sanjukta Krushak Sangathan. He added that many other farmers are facing similar issues, with their paddy procurement tokens getting stuck due to the government’s faulty centralised system. Mohapatra warned that if the administration does not take immediate corrective steps, farmers will be compelled to launch an agitation.
Orissa POST – Odisha’s No.1 English Daily
