Reported by Mrinal Kanti Banik
Agartala: The Tripura Human Rights Commission (THRC) has closed a case involving a 90-year-old woman from Unakoti district who was mistakenly declared dead in Aadhaar records, concluding that the error was caused by a technical issue in the UIDAI system and not due to any negligence by the district administration.
The commission, led by Justice Arindam Lodh, had initiated a suo motu inquiry following a newspaper report published on February 14, 2026, which highlighted that Chhaya Rani Goswami, a resident of Kailashahar, had been incorrectly marked as deceased in government digital records. The error reportedly led to the suspension of her ration benefits for almost a year.
The issue surfaced when Goswami’s son noticed that his mother’s name had been removed from the family ration card and that her Aadhaar details showed her as deceased. He then approached multiple government offices, including the Sub-Divisional Magistrate’s (SDM) office, seeking correction of the records.
Following the report, the THRC directed the Unakoti District Magistrate and Collector to conduct an inquiry and submit a detailed report on the matter.
The inquiry found that Goswami was alive and remained an eligible beneficiary under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) priority ration scheme. However, her Aadhaar authentication had been disabled after her details were wrongly updated as belonging to a deceased person, preventing verification through the electronic point-of-sale (ePOS) system used for ration distribution.
The district administration subsequently took up the matter with the Deputy Director of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), Guwahati Regional Office, requesting restoration of her Aadhaar status. UIDAI informed authorities that the reactivation process was in progress.
The commission also noted that Goswami’s social security pension was not affected during the period and that the pension amount continued to be deposited into her bank account regularly.
During the hearing, Kailashahar SDM Bipul Das, representing the district administration, informed the commission that all required documents had been submitted to UIDAI for Aadhaar restoration. He added that the administration had sought clarification from UIDAI regarding the incorrect deceased status but had not received a satisfactory response.
After reviewing the records, the THRC concluded that the incident resulted from a technical glitch in the digital system and found no fault on the part of the district administration.
With the Aadhaar issue resolved and Goswami able to access her entitled benefits, the commission closed the proceedings without issuing any further directions.