Ajay Bhushan Pandey, the Revenue Secretary of India, announced that citizens of India can use their Aadhaar cards in cash transactions that are more than Rs. 50,000.

Before the new law came in, citizens of India were required to use PAN Cards in transactions that were more than Rs. 50,000.

Banks and other private organizations will now accept Aadhaar cards in situations where PAN Cards were mandatory.

Secretary Pandey said, “Today you have 22 crore PAN cards which are linked to Aadhaar. You have more than 120 crore people who have Aadhaar. Supposing somebody wants PAN, he has to first use Aadhaar, generate PAN and then start using it. With Aadhaar the advantage would be he now does not have to generate PAN. So this is a great convenience.”

In the budget speech of Nirmala Sitharaman, the Finance Minister of India, the minister asked the panel to approve the usage of Aadhaar cards in situations where PAN cards were required, situations such as income tax returns, bank transactions, and many more.

Minister Nirmala said that the new move will allow citizens of India who does not have a PAN card to use their Aadhaar cards whenever they need it.

Secretary Pandey also reminded everyone that the PAN Card will not be removed.

During an interview, Secretary Pandey said, “Don’t see any need for phasing it out, it’s people’s choice. Your PAN base indirectly moves from 22 crores to 120 crores. PAN and Aadhaar both will exist because some people may choose to use one over the other. But at the backend, every PAN will have an Aadhar and every Aadhar will have a PAN.”

He added, “Because there are some people who are comfortable on PAN. So PAN and Aadhaar both will exist because some people may prefer to use Aadhaar, some people may prefer to use PAN. But at the back end, for every PAN there will be an Aadhaar.”

With the new scheme, citizens of India are now allowed to use PAN (Permanent Account Number) or Aadhaar Cards whenever they are required too.