UPSC Prelims 2020 · GS Paper I
Question 1: Polity and Governance
Consider the following statements :
- 1.Aadhaar metadata cannot be stored for more than three months.
- 2.State cannot enter into any contract with private corporations for sharing of Aadhaar data.
- 3.Aadhaar is mandatory for obtaining insurance products.
- 4.Aadhaar is mandatory for getting benefits funded out of the Consolidated Fund of India.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
AnswerUPSC’s answer is (b).
In the Puttaswamy (Aadhaar) judgment of 2018 the Supreme Court upheld Aadhaar for subsidies, benefits and services paid from the Consolidated Fund of India (Section 7), so statement 4 holds. It struck down Section 57, which let private bodies use Aadhaar through contracts, so statement 2 holds. Authentication data may be kept for six months at most, not three. Outside State benefits and tax, Aadhaar cannot be forced on people.
- 1. Authentication data may be retained for six months, not three.
- 2. Section 57 was struck down, so private bodies cannot use Aadhaar by contract.
- 3. Aadhaar is not mandatory for insurance products.
- 4. Section 7 was upheld for benefits funded from the Consolidated Fund of India.
How you could have got this
- If you were sure statement 1 is not correct, (a) and (d) go: each of them includes 1.
What you needed to know: Authentication data may be retained for six months, not three.
- Then, if you were sure statement 2 is correct, (c) goes: it leaves 2 out.
What you needed to know: Section 57 was struck down, so private bodies cannot use Aadhaar by contract.
Only (b) is left. You didn’t need statements 3 or 4.
Which options go is worked out from UPSC’s key and the options, not by a model.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Wrong: statement 1 fails because the retention limit is six months, not three.
- (b) Right: only statements 2 (private contracts barred) and 4 (mandatory for Consolidated Fund benefits) hold.
- (c) Wrong: Aadhaar is not mandatory for insurance products; the Court rejected compulsory linking outside State benefits and tax.
- (d) Wrong: it includes statements 1 and 3, both false.
Worth knowing: The Aadhaar and Other Laws (Amendment) Act, 2019 later allowed voluntary Aadhaar authentication by private entities under law; UPSC's answer follows the 2018 judgment.
Answer: UPSC’s key. Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 2020, General Studies Paper I, Series A. The paper on upsc.gov.in.