– Md. Sami Ahmad
Patna: Patna Municipal Corporation (PMC) has passed a resolution to keep a registration logbook in Qabristans (Cemeteries) to facilitate the registration of deaths. This will ease the process of getting death certificates from Patna Municipal Corporation. Initially, this will be provided at big Qabristans. Officials of PMC have said that both Muslim and Christian cemeteries will get this facility soon.
Until now, the Qabristan Committees register the death data, which is not considered official. This makes the process of getting a death certificate cumbersome as it takes quite long time. As PMC does not keep the data of Qabristans, the actual figures do not get official entry.
On the other hand, PMC keeps registration logbooks at major Shamshan Ghats (crematoriums) which help Hindu families to get death certificates. With the new resolution, there will be uniformity in registering deaths both at Qabristans and Shamshan Ghats.
It is reported that the entry in PMC’s logbook at Qabristans will be enough to get death certificates. At the moment one needs to get five witnesses and an affidavit from an executive magistrate to get a death certificate.
Nashoor Ajmal Nushi, the Bihar convener of All India Muslim Majlis-e-Mashawrat (Registered) has welcomed this move of PMC, saying that this arrangement needs to be implemented in all Qabristans of the state. He said people faced problems in getting death certificates and this arrangement would help the needy.
There are over eight thousand Qabristans in Bihar, officially recognised for boundary walls. Nashoor said at least in all municipal areas like Nagar Nigams, Nagar Parishads and Nagar Panchayats this facility of registering deaths should be implemented as soon as possible.
