The Prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh has given an opportunity to Nandan Nilekani to head an IT-driven Government program. The program will concentrate on providing unique identification (UID) numbers to citizens. Following this, Nilekani has resigned as Co-Chairman of the Infosys Technologies.

Nilekani on his exit stated, “I am sad to let go off that great and intimate association but this was an offer for which I could not have refused.”

The UID can help in the identification process, which also means no more carrying loads of identity cards. It is expected to take one year’s time to complete the process said Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman. He added that the UID will have a biometric identification system.