All 195 countries · Southern Asia
India
India's Aadhaar biometric ID is legally voluntary but needed in practice for most welfare, SIM cards and tax. The digital rupee has run retail and wholesale pilots since 2022, now including welfare payments. The Supreme Court's 2018 ruling limits mandatory use.
Digital ID · Goal 16.9
Digital ID in India
- Program
- Aadhaar
- Status
- Used by most adults
- National ID card
- ID card voluntary
- Biometrics
- Yes
- Law
- Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act 2016
Aadhaar holds fingerprint, iris and face data in a central repository. Legally it is not compulsory, but access to almost any government service requires it, and over 99% of adults hold one. In 2018 the Supreme Court upheld Aadhaar but ruled it cannot be mandatory for welfare. Biometric failures have reportedly led to denied food rations. Digital Personal Data Protection Rules were drafted in January 2025.
Digital money · Goal 8.10
Central bank digital currency
- Status
- Pilot
- Name
- Digital rupee (e₹)
The RBI began a wholesale pilot on 1 Nov 2022 and a retail pilot on 1 Dec 2022. By October 2025 it reported 19 banks and 7 million users. Programmable welfare schemes ran in Gujarat, Puducherry and Chandigarh, and a grain ATM pilot began in February 2026.
On the record
What has happened, newest first
- 2026-02Rolling it out
A grain-dispensing ATM pilot using the digital rupee was launched. Human Rights Foundation CBDC Tracker — India ↗
- 2025-05Rolling it out
The RBI annual report said 88,000 women had received welfare benefits through the digital rupee. Human Rights Foundation CBDC Tracker — India ↗
- 2025-01Courts & law
Draft Digital Personal Data Protection Rules, 2025 were released. SEAP (Nationality for All) — India digital ID overview ↗
- 2024-07Pushback
UIDAI told the Calcutta High Court that Aadhaar is not proof of citizenship or domicile. SEAP (Nationality for All) — India digital ID overview ↗
UN and WHO
How India has voted
- WHO
- Accepted the 2024 rule changes
- Pandemic Agreement (May 2025)
- No recorded objection
- Migration compact (Dec 2018)
- Voted yes
- Paris climate deal
- Party
- SDG Index 2026
- 68.3 · rank 94 of 169
- Progress reports to the UN (VNRs)
- 3
Sovereignty score
How the -3 adds up
- -1Running a CBDC pilot source ↗
- -1Government digital ID used by most adults source ↗
- -1Prices carbon nationally (tax or emissions trading) source ↗
Points come only from public, sourced actions we track, scored the same way for every country. It isn't a grade of a whole government. How scoring works →
People pushing back
Groups and cases in India
- Justice K.S. Puttaswamy v Union of India (2018)The Supreme Court upheld Aadhaar but held it cannot be mandatory for welfare and that essential services cannot be denied over biometric failure. source ↗
Nobody runs this from the top
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Nearby · Southern Asia
Country research checked Oct 2026. Tracker data checked 11 Oct 2026. Every claim links to its source.