Registration of birth is a right of every child and is the first step towards establishing her/his legal identity. It is compulsory to report births and deaths to the Registrar of Births and Deaths under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 (as amended in 2023). Birth registration is a permanent and official record of a child’s existence. The child who is not registered at birth is in danger of being denied the right to an official identity, a recognised name and a nationality. Registration is also a vital tool for a nation’s development because the process of registration means collection of data on vital statistics (number of births & deaths). It is an essential element of national planning for children since it provides a demographic base. Benefits of registration The birth certificate is the first right of the child and it is the first step towards establishing its identity. The following are the uses of birth certificates For admission to schools As proof of age for employment. For proof of age at marriage. To establish parentage. To establish age for purpose of enrollment in Electoral Rolls. To establish age for insurance purposes. For registering in National Population Register (NPR). Use as a single document to prove the date and place of birth of a person born on or after the date of commencement of the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2023, i.e. 1st October, 2023. Birth registration status in India According to the ‘Vital Statistics of India based on the Civil Registration System’ for 2023, the status is as follows The level of reporting is 98.4% at National level during 2023. 21 States/UTs have achieved 100% level of registration of births in 2023 13 (population of more than 1 Crore as per Census 2011) out of 19 major States namely Haryana, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Telangana, Uttarakhand, West Bengal, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat have crossed 90% level of registration of births. The share of male birth registration is 52.4% which is more than female birth registration of 47.6%. The share of institutional births to total registered births is 74.7 %. However, this does not include information from Sikkim Registration services are decentralised spreading across all States and union territories with 286539 registration centres. 90.3% of these centres are in the rural areas and about 3.4% are in urban areas. The rural-urban bifurcation of Registration Units of Chhattisgarh, which accounted for another 6.3% is not available. The Registrar General, India is the central authority for unifying and coordinating the registration work in the country and at the state level, each State has a Chief Registrar of Births and Deaths who has the overall responsibility of coordinating, unifying and supervising the work of registration. The local registration centres are managed by Registrars and Sub-Registrar of Births and Deaths who are the grass-root level. What a citizen need to do for birth registration? General facts to know Births are registered only at the place of their occurrence. Head of the household is responsible to report births that occurred in the house to the Registrar of Births and Deaths of the concerned area. It is the responsibility of the medical officer in-charge or any person authorised by her/him to report the births and deaths that occur in hospitals, maternity or nursing homes, health centres or other like institutions to the Registrar of Births and Deaths of the concerned area. The birth and death certificates are issued free of charge by the concerned Registrar for events reported within 21 days. Registrar to issue Birth or Death certificate, electronically or otherwise as soon as the registration is completed but not later than seven days. The birth/death reported after 21 days of its occurrence but within 30 days can be registered on payment of the prescribed late fee. The birth/death reported after 30 days but within one year of its occurrence can be registered with the written permission of the District Registrar or such other authority and on production of self-attested documents and on payment of such fee as prescribed. Births and deaths reported after one year of its occurrence shall be registered only on an order of the District Magistrate or Sub-Divisional Magistrate or by an Executive Magistrate authorised by the District having jurisdiction over the area where birth or death has taken place after verifying the correctness of birth and death and on payment of the prescribed fee. A birth can be registered without the name of the child. Name of the child can be entered in the birth certificate within 12 months without any fee and after one year but within 15 years of registration on payment of prescribed fee and by approaching the concerned Registrar. Error(s), if any, in the particulars of birth or death records can be corrected as per the prescribed procedure under Section 15 of the Act. Any entry in the birth or death records made fraudulently or improperly, can be cancelled by the concerned Registrar. Under Section 17 of the RBD Act, any person can cause a search in the birth or death registers for any entry and obtain a certified extract. The birth of an Indian Citizen, occurred outside the country, can also be registered in India within sixty days of return of the parents at the place where they intend to settle. After this period, it could be registered under delayed registration provisions of the Act. On adoption of a child, the name of the adoptive parents and a new name for the child can be entered in the birth register. When to register The birth has to be registered with the concerned local authorities within 21 days of its occurrence, by filling up the form prescribed by the Registrar. Birth Certificate is then issued after verification with the actual records of the concerned hospital. In case the birth has not been registered within the specified time of its occurrence, the certificate is issued after due police verification ordered by the revenue authorities. If Birth Registration is not done within the specified period, then registration can be done within one year by paying a nominal late fee. If Registration has not been done within one year; the registration can be made any time by submitting the affidavit before first class magistrate or executive magistrate. The magistrate verifies the details of affidavit and if found satisfactory, issues the order to Registrar to enter the entries of birth in birth register. The format of affidavit is available at the Registrar office and also with a notary. In this process Registrar will ask to deposit the late fee amount in his office. A self attested copy of Matriculation certificate, Aadhar card, PAN card if attached with the affidavit will help in easy completion of the process. Whom to contact Rural Areas - The registration work is entrusted to the officials of Panchayat, Health, Revenue, Education and Police Departments of States/UTs. Registration centres/ units in Government Hospitals - In addition to that registration centers/ units have also been opened in major Government hospitals, CHC's/ PHC's in majority of the State. Birth and death event that occurred in that institutions are registered there and certificate of birth is issued by the Medical officer in charge or equivalent who has been declared as Registrar or Sub Registrar of births and deaths. Urban Areas: The Health Officer of Municipal Corporation / Municipalities etc. or in absence of such a post, the Executive Officer of the town administration functions as the Registrar of Births and Deaths. Who can register the birth of a child When birth has taken place in a house - Head of the house or nearest relative of the head of the House or oldest person in the family can register the birth of a child When the Birth has taken place outside the house When birth took place in a Sadar Hospital/Sub-Divisional Hospital/Medical College Hospital/Referral Hospital - Deputy Superintendent of the hospitals and officers In-charge of referral hospital and PHCs. In Maternity Home and other like Institution: Medical officer In-charge In a Jail: Jail In-charge In a Dharmshala, Boarding House etc: Person In-charge In a Moving Vehicle: Person In-charge of the Vehicle Found deserted in a public place: Headman of the Village/In-charge of the local police station How to apply for a birth certificate Get a birth Certificate Registration Form from the concerned registrar's office. When a child is born in a hospital, the form is provided by the Medical Officer Incharge. Fill in the form and submit to the Registrar. Documents such as Birth report provided by the hospital where the birth tool place and Identity proofs of the parents are required. Once the verification of the birth records (date, time, place of birth, parent's ID proof, nursing home etc.) is done by the registrar, birth certificate is issued to the applicant. Under the provision of Section 14 of the Act, a birth certificate can be obtained without the name of the child. In such cases, the name can be entered by the concerned registration authority without any charge within 12 months and by charging the prescribed fee up to 15 years (from the date of registration). Rules for Indians living abroad Indians who live abroad can contact the Indian missions abroad to register the birth of children any time. The Home Ministry has issued an order delegating powers to the heads of Indian missions abroad for registering the birth of children even after expiry of one year under Section 4 of the Citizenship Act, 1955. Related Resources Vital Statistics of India based on the Civil Registration System for 2023 Source: Birth and Death Registration