Nandan Nilekani / Head of the Unique Identification Authority of India

Last updated on profile page : January 31st, 2013

BIO

Born in 1955, Nandan Nilekan is a graduate from Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (Mumbai). A cofounder of Infosys, he chaired the company from 2002 to 2007.

He joined the Indian government in 2009 to become head of the Unique Identification Authority of India, which is issuing identity numbers to all Indian residents.

He is also heading the Government of India's technology committee, TAGUP (Technology Advisory Group for Unique Projects, an advisory group to look into technology part of five large financial sector projects).

He is the recipient of several awards, including the prestigious Schumpeter Prize for innovative services in economy, economic sciences, and politics. He was listed as one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2006 and was named Forbes « Businessman of the Year » in 2007. He is the author of an acclaimed book, Imagining India: The Idea of a Renewed Nation (Penguin Press, 2009).

BOOKS BY NANDAN NILEKANI
  • Imagining India: The Idea of a Renewed Nation
    Nandan Nilekani
    List Price: EUR 15,72

By Nandan Nilekani on ParisTech Review

IT for ID: India’s Biometrics Megaproject

Society on January 31st, 2013

Launched in 2009, the Unique Identification Authority of India is a megaproject mixing the latest information technologies and basic development requirements. Its objective is both simple and ambitious: to provide a unique identity number to all residents in the country. Helping the poorest to access the modern economy and society is an emergency and a key to economic and social development. It is also a challenge, and not only a technical one.

Inde : la biométrique pour tous !

Society on January 31st, 2013

Créée en 2009, l'Autorité indienne d'identification unique (Unique Identification Authority of India, UIAI) est un mégaprojet où convergent une technologie de pointe et les impératifs de base du développement économique. Son objectif est aussi simple qu'ambitieux : fournir à tous les résidents du pays, et notamment aux plus pauvres qui sont souvent dépourvus de pièces d'identité, un numéro d'identification unique. Le principal enjeu est le développement, car dans l'économie moderne, rien ne se fait sans pouvoir prouver son identité. Mais immatriculer 600 millions de personnes d'ici 2014 est un défi, et pas seulement sur le plan technique.

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