Mamata Banerjee expresses concern over easy availability of Aadhaar cards

Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee watches after taking an oath as the new chief minister of the eastern Indian state of West Bengal during a swearing-in ceremony in Kolkata May 20, 2011. Banerjee has waged a three-decade long battle that has catapulted her to the upper echelons of India's turbulent politics, and last week, she cemented her status as a powerbroker by trumping one of the world's last democratically elected communist governments. REUTERS/Rupak De Chowdhuri (INDIA - Tags: POLITICS) - GM1E75K1Q5I01

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Friday expressed concern over reports that Aadhaar cards were easily available from fictitious agencies and asked the people to be more alert to prevent theft of data and violation of privacy.

Banerjee in a Facebook post said she has been voicing her serious concern over the violation of privacy due to Aadhaar from the very beginning and had urged to ensure a "foolproof mechanism" to ensure security of data.

She said a section of the press has reported that Aadhaar cards are now easily available from fictitious agencies upon payment of small amounts.

"If this is true, then this is a huge infringement of individual privacy and data security," she said in her post.

"I would like to request all citizens of the country to be more alert and cautious to prevent data theft and violation of privacy," she added.