The Unique Identification Authority of India has asked telecom operators to give users the facility to check if their mobile numbers have been linked with their Aadhaar, PTI reported on Monday.

The Aadhaar authority asked the operators to make the facility available by March 15. The government has said all mobile numbers must be linked with Aadhaar by March 31.

The UIDAI made the decision after it found that some retailers, operators and their agents had allegedly misused people’s biometric data to issue new SIMs that were not theirs or to link numbers with Aadhaar that was not theirs. The UIDAI asked operators to ensure that their retailers and agents do not indulge in such fraudulent activities.