Nagaland has decided to discontinue manual registration of births and deaths and transition to a fully online system, while also proposing to shift registration responsibilities at the village level from teachers to village councils.
The decisions were taken at the 13th State Level Inter Departmental Coordination Committee (SLIDCC) meeting on Registration of Births and Deaths held on March 17 at the Nagaland Civil Secretariat.
Chairing the meeting, Chief Secretary Sentiyanger Imchen observed that registration of births and deaths was not the primary responsibility of teachers and suggested a review of the existing system.
It was proposed that village councils in rural areas and nurses in medical institutions be entrusted with registration responsibilities, with training and sensitisation to be carried out. During the transition period, both teachers and village councils will perform registration duties to ensure continuity of services.
The committee also resolved to discontinue manual registration entirely, with all births and deaths to be recorded through the online CRS ORGI portal. A cut-off date for phasing out manual certificates will be finalised by the department.
Officials said the move is aimed at improving data accuracy, ensuring real-time reporting, and preventing fraudulent practices.
On digitisation, over 9,400 legacy birth and death records were converted into digital format during a recent special drive, with plans for further campaigns across districts.
The meeting also flagged gaps in medical certification of cause of death, noting that only Kohima, Dimapur and Tuensang currently report such data. The Health and Family Welfare department has been directed to ensure all medical institutions, both government and private, submit such reports.
To improve access in urban areas, the government is exploring the setting up of multiple registration centres, particularly in Kohima and Dimapur.
In addition, Baal Aadhaar services for children aged 0–5 years have been launched at the Directorate of Economics and Statistics in Kohima and are expected to be rolled out across all districts.