8. Persons required to register births and deaths.—(1) It shall be the duty of the persons specified
below to give or cause to be given, either orally or in writing, according to the best of their knowledge
and belief, within such time as may be prescribed, information to the Registrar of the several particulars
required to be entered in the forms prescribed by the State Government under sub-section (1) of
section 16,—
(a) in respect of births and deaths in a house, whether residential or non-residential, not being any
place referred to in clauses (b) to (e) the head of the house or, in case more than one household live in
the house, the head of the household, the head being the person, who is so recognised by the house or
the household, and if he is not present in the house at any time during the period within which the
birth or death has to be reported, the nearest relative of the head present in the house, and in the
absence of any such person, the oldest adult male person present therein during the said period;
(b) in respect of births and deaths in a hospital, health centre, maternity or nursing home or other
like institution, the medical officer in charge or any person authorised by him in this behalf;
(c) in respect of births and deaths in a jail, the jailor in charge;
(d) in respect of births and deaths in a choultry, chattram, hostel, dharmasala, boarding-house,
lodging-house, tavern, barrack, toddy shop or place of public resort, the person in charge thereof;
(e) in respect of any new-born child or dead body found deserted in a public place, the headman
or other corresponding officer of the village in the case of a village and the officer in charge of the
local police station elsewhere:
Provided that any person who finds such child or dead body, or in whose charge such child or
dead body may be placed, shall notify such fact to the headman or officer aforesaid;
(f) in any other place, such person as may be prescribed.
(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in sub-section (1), the State Government, having regard to
the conditions obtaining in a registration division, may by order require that for such period as may be
specified in the order, any person specified by the State Government by designation in this behalf, shall
give or cause to be given information regarding births and deaths in a house referred to in clause (a) of
sub-section (1) instead of the persons specified in that clause.
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9. Special provision regarding births and deaths in a plantation.—In the case of births and deaths
in a plantation, the superintendent of the plantation shall give or cause to be given to the Registrar the
information referred to in section 8:
Provided that the persons referred to in clauses (a) to (f) of sub-section (1) of section 8 shall furnish
the necessary particulars to the superintendent of the plantation.
Explanation.—In this section, the expression “plantation” means any land not less than four hectares
in extent which is being prepared for the production of, or actually produces, tea, coffee, pepper, rubber,
cardamom, cinchona or such other products as the State Government may, by notification in the Official
Gazette, specify and the expression “superintendent of the plantation” means the person having the charge
or supervision of the labourers and work in the plantation, whether called a manager, superintendent or by
any other name.
10. Duty of certain persons to notify births and deaths and to certify cause of death.—(1) It shall
be the duty of—
(i) the midwife or any other medical or health attendant at a birth or death,
(ii) the keeper or the owner of a place set apart for the disposal of dead bodies or any person
required by a local authority to be present at such place, or
(iii) any other person whom the State Government may specify in this behalf by his designation,
to notify every birth or death or both at which he or she attended or was present, or which occurred in
such areas as may be prescribed, to the Registrar within such time and in such manner as may be
prescribed.
(2) In any area, the State Government, having regard to the facilities available therein in this behalf,
may require that a certificate as to the cause of death shall be obtained by the Registrar from such person
and in such form as may be prescribed.
(3) Where the State Government has required under sub-section (2) that a certificate as to the cause of
death shall be obtained, in the event of the death of any person who, during his last illness, was attended
by a medical practitioner, the medical practitioner shall, after the death of that person, forthwith, issue
without charging any fee, to the person required under this Act to give information concerning the death,
a certificate in the prescribed form stating to the best of his knowledge and belief the cause of death; and
the certificate shall be received and delivered by such person to the Registrar at the time of giving
information concerning the death as required by this Act.
11. Informant to sign the register.—Every person who has orally given to the Registrar any
information required under this Act shall write in the register maintained in this behalf, his name,
description and place of abode, and, if he cannot write, shall put his thumb mark in the register against his
name, description and place of abode, the particulars being in such a case entered by the Registrar.
12. Extracts of registration entries to be given to informant.—The Registrar shall, as soon as the
registration of a birth or death has been completed, give, free of charge, to the person who gives
information under section 8 or section 9 and extract of the prescribed particulars under his hand from the
register relating to such birth or death.
13. Delayed registration of births and deaths.—(1) Any birth or death of which information is
given to the Registrar after the expiry of the period specified therefor, but within thirty days of its
occurrence, shall be registered on payment of such late fee as may be prescribed.
(2) Any birth or death of which delayed information is given to the Registrar after thirty days but
within one year of its occurrence shall be registered only with the written permission of the prescribed
authority and on payment of the prescribed fee and the production of an affidavit made before a notary
public or any other officer authorised in this behalf by the State Government.
(3) Any birth or death which has not been registered within one year of its occurrence, shall be
registered only on an order made by a magistrate of the first class or a Presidency Magistrate after
varifying the correctness of the birth or death and on payment of the prescribed fee.
(4) The provisions of this section shall be without prejudice to any action that may be taken against a
person for failure on his part to register any birth or death within the time specified therefor and any such
birth or death may be registered during the pendency of any such action.
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14. Registration of name of child.—Where the birth of any child has been registered without a
name, the parent or guardian of such child shall within the prescribed period give information regarding
the name of the child to the Registrar either orally or in writing and thereupon the Registrar shall enter
such name in the register and initial and date the entry.
15. Correction or cancellation of entry in the register of births and deaths.—If it is proved to the
satisfaction of the Registrar that any entry of a birth or death in any register kept by him under this Act is
erroneous in form or substance, or has been fraudulently or improperly made, he may, subject to such
rules as may be made by the State Government with respect to the conditions on which and the
circumstances in which such entries may be corrected or cancelled, correct the error or cancel the entry
by suitable entry in the margin, without any alteration of the original entry, and shall sign the marginal
entry and add thereto the date of the correction or cancellation.