For the India-first innovations spearheaded by the India Stack, such as e-KYC, eSign, Digilocker, UPI, Rupay, eRupi, and FASTag), Aadhaar has given a crucial presence-less foundational identity layer on top of which different other layers and use cases get developed. CEO of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), Saurabh Garg, stated.

He said that as of today, India had produced 133 billion Aadhaar IDs while addressing MeitY's week-long Digital Week (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology).

According to Suresh Sethi, CEO of Protean eGov Technologies Ltd., these digital IDs in India were developed despite the fact that many people throughout the world are unable to access services since they lack an ID, which makes it difficult for them to participate in social security programs.

Garg says that, “There is near-universal adult Aadhaar saturation, and the overall saturation rate is 93 percent. The balance population is 10.02 crore. In the year 2021-22, India saw about four crore new enrolments and more than 16 crore Aadhaar updates”.

According to Sethi, who cited reports from the World Bank and McKinsey Analysis, one billion people worldwide lack an official identity document, and every second woman in low-income countries lacks an ID, which limits their access to essential services and participation in political and economic life.

As many as 161 nations use digital technologies for their ID systems, which emphasizes the necessity of strong privacy and data protection regulations.

“India has so far issued more than 400 million PAN cards, saved more than 6.5 billion TDS/TCS deductee records, identified more than 50 million pension subscribers through NPS and APY, witnessed more than 90 million Aadhaar enrolments, and two billion Aadhaar authentications, and registered 3.5 million students,” Sethi says.

Sethi outlined use cases for a national digital identity, outlining how people interact with institutions and produce shared value by using digital IDs in six different roles. It facilitates registration and authentication between customers and commercial providers of goods and services, secure digital payments, and electronic know-your-customer (e-KYC) for financial services.

According to Sethi, citing a McKinsey report, digital ID facilitates formalized business registration, high assurance contracting, and transacting between micro enterprises and consumers. It also facilitates talent matching, automated background verification, and effective payroll services between workers and employers.