Come October 1, death certificates will be issued only after relatives of the deceased provide Aadhaar number to authorities, a government notification said on Friday.
The notification by the Office of the Registrar General, which functions under the home ministry, said an applicant is required to provide Aadhaar number or enrolment ID number (EID) of the deceased and other details as sought in the application for death certificate for the purpose of establishing the identity of the deceased.
However, if the applicant is not aware of the Aadhaar number or EID of the deceased, he or she will be required to provide a certificate that the deceased person did not possess Aadhaar number to the best of his or her knowledge, the notification said. The use of Aadhaar for the applicants of death certificate will result in ensuring accuracy of the details provided by the relatives, dependents, acquaintances of the deceased.
“It will provide an effective method to prevent identity fraud,” it said.
The directive would be applicable for the residents of all states except Jammu and Kashmir, Assam and Meghalaya, for which a date would be notified separately.
“The Aadhaar number will be required for the purpose of establishing the identity of the deceased for the purpose of death registration with effect from October 1,” according to the notification.
The production of Aadhaar number 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.
The Registrar General has directed all states and Union Territories to ensure compliance by the registration authorities concerned and send a confirmation on or before September 1.
The notification also warned that if any false declaration is given by the applicant, it will be treated "as an offence" according to the provisions of the Aadhaar Act and the Registration of Birth and Death Act.
The applicant's Aadhaar number will also be collected along with the Aadhaar number of the spouse or parents of the deceased.
The office of the Registrar General is the central authority to coordinate and unify the activities of chief registrar of birth and death in states and Union Territories.