According to the law, marriages in India have to be registered legally. Additionally, the couple can choose to have their celebrations and their religious cultures and customs. Depending on the religion of the people getting married, they have to pick one of the two Acts:
- The Hindu Marriage Act 1955
- The Special Marriage Act 1954
What are the reasons for the legal registration of marriage?
Marriages are protected under the law if they are legally registered. In marriages quite often, people could be abused, mistreated, or just treated unfairly. The law only steps in and assist these people if they register under it. Furthermore, there are instances where people want a divorce or to be separated since they weren’t treated the way they should have been. The law can solve these issues and give both sides have a voice, but this can only happen if the wedding has been registered.
Post registering a marriage the married couple will receive a marriage registration certificate which they can use as an official document for all other Government documentation processes, which is the same document needed when working on a name change.
Other processes where a marriage certificate is useful is when applying for a visa or travelling together from one country to another. There are a few instances where getting a room together when under two different last names, can be quite challenging but having a marriage certificate to prove marriage, makes the process easier. Furthermore, moving to another country, where a spouse might be working, is a lot easier with a marriage certificate to prove that the two individuals are married.
The marriage certificate also comes in handy when opening a joint bank account. Furthermore, it has its uses when dealing with any financial transactions, like withdrawing from spouses accounts, especially in the case of death. It helps coordinate with the insurance company with a settlement in the same situation.
What are the documents needed when applying for a marriage certificate?
There are multiple certificates needed, and the applicants have to prove a lot of the details about themselves. The primary documents are:
- Proof of identification and address for both the husband and wife
- Voter ID, ration card, passport, driving License
- The applicant has to use varying documents to prove their identification and address
- Proof of Date of Birth of both husband and wife
- Two passport photographs
- Separate marriage affidavits in the right format from both, the husband and wife
- Aadhaar Card
- Marriage Invitation Card
All the provided documents have to be self-attested.
According to the Hindu Marriage Act, after submitting the documents, the applicant should receive an appointment in 15 days from the registration. Furthermore, the witnesses signing the document, have to be a part of the wedding, residing in India with their documentation and PAN cards. When applying for the certificate, whether online or offline, the applicants and witnesses have to visit the office, to sign the documents.
How to obtain a birth certificate in India?
Birth certificate in India is an important document of proof that depicts your permanent existence in a country. For every Indian citizen born here, having a Birth certificate is compulsory. This document is important if you want to avail services like healthcare and majority education for the child. Once you register for Birth certificate, you automatically get registered to government records which helps you take benefits of legal rights, resources and protection from the country.
Birth certificate helps as a proof when you get your school and college marksheets. It is also the first proof you give to get your identifications issues by the government like passport, adhaar card. Living in a country without Birth certificate issued by correct authorities can be considered illegal and strict actions can be taken.
Birth certificate in India
A birth certificate is issued by Municipal Corporation in urban areas , Tehsildar at Taluk level and gram panchayat in village level.
Most basic Procedure-
- Step 1: Bring a birth certificate registration form from your respective registrar’s office.
- Step 2: After the birth of the child in a hospital, this form is provided by the medical incharge there.
- Step 3: Within 21 days of time, you have to fill the form.
- Step 4: If you fail to register in 21 days, a police verification is issued and only then registeration is done.
- Step 5: In the verification (Date and place of birth, parents’ ID proof, nursing home etc) are all verified and only then the birth certificate is issued.
- Step 7- After the verification and approval, you then have to follow back after 7 days to physically obtain the birth certificate.
Since many of the government facilities have started going online in terms of filling applications and issuing documents, services to obtained Birth certificate in India online is available.
- Online procedure to obtain birth certificate
There is an online website e-Nagarsewa which is used for applying birth certificate.
1. First register yourself on the website.
2. Complete your registration and you will receive a login id (your mobile number) and along with this you will also receive an auto-generated password which will be sent on your respective mobile phones.
3. Then you have to login with the login ID and password you received on your mobile number.
4. On the dashboard screen, you will find a link to apply for birth certificate. Click on the link.
5. Fill in all the details as asked in the form and submit the form.
6. Once you finish filling the form, you will receive an SMS on the registered mobile number regarding the same and confirming the registration.
The easiest way to obtain Birth certificate is to get it from the hospital itself.
- Obtain birth certificate from the hospital
- This is a very easy way to obtain certificate since many hospitals provide this service.
- Right after the child is born, you can apply for the birth certificate in the hospital itself.
- The hospital operator or medical in charge will fill in the application on the information provided by citizens.
- An SMS is sent to your mobiles phones when the registration is completed.
What is a death certificate and who can register a death?
- A document issued by the government proving death of an individual is known as Death. Death has to be registered in India under the state government. It is mandatory
- According to law, as per birth and death Registration act 1969. It is essential to register a death within 21 days of time. In Delhi, the municipal corporation of Delhi is responsible for issuing the death certificates to the applicant. The family of deceased receives a death certificate after completing the Registration.
- This document is very important for maintaining the database of the population by the state governments. The registrations of birth and death are consistently kept in check to record the total population data. For insurance retrieval, the family might need a death certificate.
Who can register a death?
Death has to be registered within 21 days. There are some rules and regulations that have to be followed for this process. Not everyone is allowed to register a death. The people who can register death to obtain a death certificate are:
- In case of death that occur within a household, it is the responsibility of the eldest member of that household to Register the death. The death has to be registered in the nearest Registrar office.
- In case of a death that takes place on hospital premises, it is the responsibility of the medical staff or any other responsible institution member to Register the death. The death has to be registered with the nearest Registrar office.
- If a person is imprisoned and death occurs on the jail grounds, it is the responsibility of jail in-charge to register the death with the nearest Registrar office.
- In case of a death recorded/ observed in a public place, it comes under the local police in-charge to Register the death with the registrar office nearby.
- In villages, the registration of death in a public area can be made by the head of the village, also known as panchayat head to the nearest Registrar office.
How to get a death certificate in Delhi?
In Delhi, various government bodies are responsible for providing the services of death Registration. A death certificate can be registered with NDMC, MCD and Delhi Cantonment Board. The whole process of Registration must be fulfilled within 21 days of death. The time taken to dispatch a death certificate is no more than 7 working days, after the receipt of Registration is generated to the applicant. This time period is only applicable when there are no issues with the application form and documents. The verification process should go smoothly only then, the death certificate will be dispatched in 7 days.
Cost of death certificate in Delhi
There is no cost for registering birth or death certificate in Delhi when registered within 21 days time period. However, for requesting extra copies of the certificate a minimum amount of Rs.5 per copy is charged. There is also an additional charge of Rs. 2 for searching of the death certificate from the Database, a single entry in a single year. For additional year searches +2 Rs. Is charged. These certificates can be obtained from either the zonal offices or the registration centres belonging to local bodies.
