In a notification issued on 4 August, the Office of the Registrar General and Census Commissioner, India, Ministry of Home Affairs, ordered that with effect from 1 October 2017, an Aadhaar number will need to be provided in order to obtain death certificate of any deceased person. This number will be required by the issuing authority for establishing the identity of a deceased. The ministry expects that this measure will result in ensuring accuracy of the details provided by relatives, dependents, acquaintances of the deceased.
Beside that, the ministry stated in a press release that: “It will provide an effective method to prevent identity fraud. It will also help in recording the identity of the deceased person. Further, it will obviate the need for producing multiple documents to prove the identity of the deceased person.” Let’s read more about this new order.
Aadhaar Mandatory
Aadhaar has been made mandatory for various purposes such as availing LPG subsidy, obtaining a Permanent Account Number (PAN), and filing of income tax returns. Death certificates are the latest to be linked to it.
From 1 October, to obtain the death certificate, one will have to provide Aadhaar number or Enrolment ID Number (EID) of the deceased, and other details as sought, in the application for death certificate. The Registrar General has further directed the departments responsible for registration of births and deaths in the states and union territories to ensure compliance by concerned registration authorities and a confirmation to this effect by on or before 1 September 2017. According to the press release, the above provisions shall come into effect in all states except Jammu & Kashmir, Assam and Meghalaya. The dates for these three states will be notified separately.
Without Aadhaar
In case a diseased person does have an Aadhaar number, or the heir applying for the death certificate is not aware of the Aadhaar number or EID of the deceased, the applicant will have to provide a certificate that the deceased person does not possess an Aadhaar number to the best of his/her knowledge.
In the certificate, the applicant has to acknowledge that any false declaration given in this regard will be treated as an offence as per the provisions of the Aadhaar Act, 2016 and also Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969. Applicant will also have to furnish his or her Aadhaar number along with the Aadhaar number of the spouse or parent.
[“Source-livemint”]
