of stateless people are more likely to inherit the same (lack of) status. Of particular concern is the disruption of birth registration processes. Civil registration has not been classified as an essential service in India, leaving birth registration severely disrupted due to the COVID-19 pandemic.67 A significant decline in birth registration has been reported in early 2021 and relates to, among others, an increase in home births and legal and operational challenges to register births during the pandemic.68 39. COVID-19 has intensified the challenges faced by stateless people in India. The lack of documentation has undermined access to healthcare, while fear of arrest, detention and harassment has cultivated a culture of fear around accessing healthcare for stateless and undocumented people. The inability to carry out effective preventative measures including social distancing and wearing PPE, as well as lack of access to sanitation and hygiene products and facilities due to living and working conditions, also places stateless communities at great risk. The mental health impacts of lockdowns, loss of livelihoods, exposure to health risks and starvation and exclusion from state relief measure, are also significant. Further, there is an urgent need to ensure inclusivity in the roll out of COVID19 vaccines.69 While the Indian government created welfare packages for struggling lowincome earners, farmers, the homeless and migrant workers; DFNs and stateless people are excluded from these initiatives.70 40. According to a 2018 Standard Operating Procedure, 71 those excluded from the Draft 2018 NRC could file for inclusion in the final NRC list through an application process that included submitting their biometric details. These biometric details have been stored by the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI).72However, the biometric details of over 2.7 million residents of Assam who applied through this process have been locked, denying them access to multiple welfare schemes for which Aadhaar linkage is mandatory. As the NRC appeals process is yet to commence, these Indian citizens who are at risk of statelessness, have been unable to link their biometrics to access financial transactions and welfare schemes, enrol in certain institutions, access employment, or obtain social security benefits including access to healthcare, education, and rations.73 41. These deprivations have been challenged in the Gauhati High Court and have been widely reported on. 74 Such exclusion from the NRC process, and subsequently from access to government schemes and entitlements have had a serious mental health 67 Gupta, A., COVID-19 and the importance of improving civil registration in India, Center for the Advanced Study of India, April 13, 2020. Available at: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/iit/aashishgupta. 68 Paras Singh, Deaths up in city, birth certificates issued fall sharply The Times of India (July 6, 2021). 69 UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), The Impact of COVID-19 on Stateless Populations: Policy recommendations and good practices on vaccine access and civil registration, 3 June 2021, https://reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/60b8d6d84.pdf 70 DAJI and Institute on Statelessness and Inclusion, Together We Can- India, The COVID Impact on Stateless People and a Roadmap for Change, 2021, INDIA_Together_We_Can.pdf (institutesi.org). 71 Standard Operating Procedure, modalities for disposal of claims and objections in the updation of National Register of Citizens (NRC) 1951 in Assam, http://nrcassam.nic.in/pdf/SOP-claims-objections-final.pdf 72 This is a statutory authority established under the provisions of the Aadhaar (Targeted Delivery of Financial and Other Subsidies, Benefits and Services) Act, 2016. 73 On the question of access to rations, the Government of Assam has issued orders that rations cannot be disbursed to existing beneficiaries who do cannot present a vaccination certificate and Aadhaar enrolment. See Additional Deputy Commissioner, Cachar, Silchar vide Order No. CSM25/2019/100, 05 October, 2021. 74 Sadiq Naqvi, Name in NRC final list, but no Aadhar? Why Assam people are angry and confused, EastMojo, 13 December 2020, https://www.eastmojo.com/news/2020/12/13/name-in-nrc-final-list-but-no-aadhar-why-assam-people-are-angry-andconfused/ ; Gyanandra Rai, Not in NRC List, Biometrics Frozen – How Do I Get Aadhaar Card?, The Quint, 31 March, 2021, https://www.thequint.com/my-report/assam-nrc-list-aadhaar-card-biometric-frozen-citizen-report#read-more; Rahul Karmakar, Frozen biometrics of Assam NRC applicants cause Aadhaar hurdle, The Hindu, 4 November, 2020 https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/other-states/frozen-biometrics-of-assam-nrc-applicants-cause-aadhaarhurdle/article33021976.ece 13