After making Aadhar card compulsory for applying for PAN card, the government has made Aadhaar-based e-KYC in mobile phone verification mandatory. The Department of Telecommunications directed all mobile phone service providers to re-verify existing customers, prepaid and postpaid, using their unique Aadhaar identity number and biometric details. They were told to complete the exercise by early next year. Notably, Aadhaar-based e-KYC would also be mandatory for customers procuring new SIM cards.