REGISTRATION OF BIRTHS AND DEATHS WING 

 Historical background : 

            The history of civil registration in India dates back to the middle of the nineteenth century. It started with the registration of deaths with a view to introducing sanitary reforms for control of pestilence and disease and not so much for studying population trends. The Provincial Sanitary Commissioners obtained statistics on deaths from the local health officers and passed them on to the Sanitary Commissioner of the Government of India. The quality of statistics thus collected was highly deficient and incomplete. 

Need for  Central Legislation : 

            There was a great diversity in the legal provisions for registration of births and deaths in different parts of the county. Different Acts were enforced in different parts of the country at different points of time and even in a single state there were many acts in force in different areas. 

Registration of Births and Deaths (RBD) Act, 1969: 

            Against this background of municipalities of acts and rules governing civil registrations in various parts of the country, a central legislation on the subject was considered absolutely necessary to bring about improvement in the system. The recommendations of the 1961 Conference provided a blue print for action and the government of India, took a decision, in consultation with the state governments, for enactment of a central law relating to registration of births and deaths. Accordingly, the Registration of Births and Deaths Bill was introduced in the Rajya Sabha in 1964, which was passes in the Budget Session of 1964 – 1965 but lapsed on the dissolution of the Parliament. The Bill was again passed by the Rajya Sabha on February 27, 1968. The Lok Sabha passed the Bill on May 27, 1969 with certain amendments. These amendments were approved by the Rajya Sabha on May 16, 1969. The Bill was passed by both houses of Parliament received the assent of the President on May 31, 1969. It was notified in the Gazette of India Extraordinary, Part II Section I on June 2, 1969. 

            The RBD Act, 1969 thus replaced the diverse laws that existed on the subject, unified the system of registration throughout the country and made reporting and registration of births and deaths compulsory. It provided for a statutory authority at the center and in each state. It enabled the Central Government to promote uniformity and comparability in registration and compilation of vital statistics allowing enough scope to the states to develop an efficient system of registration suited to regional conditions and needs. 

Brief Provisions of the Act:

            The Act has been divided into a number of sections and sub-sections covering aspects such as registration establishment, procedures, records and statistics. The salient features of these sections are briefly indicated here. 

SECTION  1

            Enables enforcement in different parts of the states on different dates. 

SECTION  2

            Describes definitions of vital events. 

SECTION  3 - 7

            Established a statutory authority at local, state and national levels for registration. 

SECTION  8 – 9

            Fixed responsibilities on different categories of persons required to register births and deaths. 

SECTION  10

            Makes certain persons responsible to notify births and deaths and to certify cause of death. 

SECTION  11, 12 and 15

            Lay down the registration procedures. 

SECTION  13

            Permits delayed registration. 

SECTION  14

            Allows registration of name of child at a later date. 

SECTION  16 – 17

            Provides maintenance of records for issuance of certificates and extracts. 

SECTION  18

            Authorises inspection of registration offices. 

SECTION  19

            Prescribes the regular flow of returns from the registrar 

SECTION  20

            Sanctions registration of births and deaths of Indian citizen abroad. 

SECTION  21

                Empowers a registrar to obtain information regarding birth or death from a local resident. 

SECTION  22

             Confers powers on the central governments to give directions to the state governments. 

SECTION  23 – 25

            Impose penalties for the various offences. 

SECTION  26 – 28

            Admit registrars as public servants and provide protection. 

SECTION  29

            Saves the births, deaths and marriages registration Act, 1886. 

SECTION  31      

            Repeals the earlier laws on registration 

SECTION  30, 32

            Empower the state government to make rules and remove difficulties with the approval of the central government. 

Implementation of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 in Mizoram:

            Section 30 of the RBD Act, 1969 provides that State Government may, with the approval of Central Government by notification in the official gazette make such rules to carry out the purposes of the RBD Act. Accordingly the Mizoram Registration of Births and Deaths Rules 1978 was framed. The said Rules was implemented with effect from 1.7.1985 in the then Aizawl and Lunglei Districts and with effect from 1.1.1986 in the then Chhimtuipui District. Under the revamped system of Civil Registration System, new rules called the Mizoram Registration of Births and Deaths Rules 2007 was laid before the State Legislature and implemented in the state. 

            Since the implementation of the RBD Act in the state, registration of births and deaths has been made compulsory in Mizoram. 

Registration Functionaries:

            The registration organization in Mizoram was headed by the Chief Secretary, IDC (Inter-departmental Co-ordination Committee) meeting held on 18.7.2003 resolved that the Organisation henceforth be headed by Secretary / Commissioner, i.e. Planning and Programme Implementation Department. Accordingly, Secretary Planning and Programme Implementation Department was appointed Chief Registrar of Births and Deaths, Mizoram on 30.10.2003. 

1.      Chief Registrar : The Chief Registrar is appointed by the state government under section 4(1) of the Act. He is the Chief executive authority in the state for implementing the provisions of the act and the rules made there under. 

2.      Additional Chief Registrar : The Additional Chief Registrar of Births and Deaths is the Director of Economics and Statistics. He is the functional head of registration system in the state. The Additional Chief Registrar is responsible for organizational and operational aspects of the Act for ensuring effective functioning of the registration system in the state. 

3.      Joint Chief Registrar of Births and Deaths : The Director of Census Operation being the representative of the Registrar General, India is appointed the Joint Chief Registrar of Births and Deaths of Mizoram. 

4.      District Registrar : The Deputy Commissioner of each district is appointed District Registrar under section 6(1) of the Act.

The District Registrar is responsible for authorizing delayed registration as prescribed in the rules. 

5.      Additional District Registrar : The District Education Officers are appointed Additional District Registrars. 

6.      Registrars : Primary School Teachers are appointed Registrar of Births and Deaths. The registrar are appointed by the state government under section 7(1) of the act. The whole area of Mizoram is presently divided into 771 registration units, hence the number of Registrar in the state is 711. 

Responsibilities of the Registrar: 

(a)                The Registrar is responsible for recording the specified information regarding vital events which take place in his jurisdiction. 

(b)               Ensuring the completeness and accuracy of each record. 

(c)                He should place a board near the outer door of this house / office indicating that he is the Registrar of Births and Deaths for the local area for which he is appointed. 

(d)               The registrar is required to send in the prescribed forms to the Chief Registrar. He must be very prompt in sending the returns in time and shall check the completeness and accuracy of the entries made therein before sending such returns.

Registration of Births and Deaths Wing (Vital Statistics Wing):

            The Civil Registration System in Mizoram is being looked after by the mini vital statistics wing, manned by 11 staffs under Directorate of Economics and Statistics. Prompt registration and submission of monthly returns is ensured and monitored by this wing. Besides, issuance of certificates, maintenance of records, and adequate supply of registration forms and other materials to the local registrars are also the duties of the wing. 

Achievement:

1.                  Annual Report : Information received from the monthly returns are compiled, processed and analysed. Vital data are derived in the form of Annual report. The latest report relates to the year 2005. 

2.                  Annual Training : Annual training of registrars of births and deaths is held towards the end of every calendar year at each district headquarters. Problems faced by the registrars and new developments are discussed during the training. Registration materials for the next calendar year are also distributed during the training. The last annual trainings were held during November and December 2006. 

3.                  Medical Certification of causes of Deaths : Medical Certification of Causes of Deaths submitted by the medical officers of rural and urban institutions are coded according to the 10^th Revision of ICD. The coded causes of deaths are entered into software provided by the Office of the Registrar General, India. The data so derived from the entry is published for the first time for the year 2005. 

District Wise rural urban distribution of registration units:

            District                                    Urban              Rural               Total

(1)        Mamit                           -               4                    62                    66

(2)        Kolasib                         -               9                    27                    36

(3)        Serchhip                       -               9                    27                    36

(4)        Champhai                     -             15                    77                    92

(5)        Aizawl                           -             84                    83                  167

(6)        Lunglei                          -             30                  111                  141

(7)        Saiha                             -               9                    48                    57

(8)        Lawngtlai                      -               -                   111                  111

                        TOTAL               -           160                  546                  706 

            From the monthly returns submitted by the local Registrars, the mini vital statistics wing under the Directorate of Economics & Statistics prepares the Annual Report on the working of Registration of Births and Deaths Act 1969. Birth, Death and Infant Mortality Rates since implementation of RBD Act in Mizoram are as follows :-