West Bengal begins statewide birth certificate verification after SIR irregularities surface

The West Bengal government has launched a statewide verification of birth and death certificates after complaints of irregularities and alleged fake documents surfaced during the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls.

Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal on Thursday said the government received several complaints following the elections, with many cases pointing to fake birth certificates and violations of established procedures.

He said authorities are examining the records to identify any fraudulent documents and ensure accountability.

Agarwal warned that anyone found to have deliberately committed fraud would face strict action. He, however, clarified that the verification is a routine administrative exercise aimed at eliminating corruption and improving the integrity of official records.

He also stressed that only government officials will conduct the verification process, with no contractual employees involved.

As part of the exercise, the government has started collecting old birth and death registers from municipalities, municipal corporations and gram panchayats. These records will be scanned and digitised before being returned to the respective local bodies so that public services are not affected.

The state government has also introduced a major administrative change by withdrawing the authority of political heads of urban and rural local bodies to issue birth and death certificates.

According to Agarwal, West Bengal had been the only state where elected representatives such as gram pradhans, mayors and municipal chairpersons could issue these certificates.

Going forward, the responsibility will rest solely with designated government officials, bringing the state's system in line with practices followed across the rest of the country.