If you want to lower your child’s age or change other details in the birth certificate, it is possible if you are prepared to shell out around Rs3,000 to the staff of the office of the City Health Officer, Registrar of Births & Deaths under the Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation.
A sting operation carried out by Kanak News exposed the fraudulent practices at this office. The reporter of the news channel posed as a decoy uncle of a child whose parents wanted their child’s date of birth changed to facilitate admission in a CBSE-affiliated school.
During the conversation, a woman staff said it is possible if the child’s mother’s maiden surname is different from the surname of her husband. She further explained that she would arrange a certificate from a doctor regarding the child’s date of birth as desired by his/her parents and the parents have to swear an affidavit regarding the child child’s date of birth. Following this, an NOC would be issued by office of the Registrar of Birth & Death, using which the parent of the child would file a misc case in local court.
After the court’s verdict, the office of the Registrar of Birth & Death would issue a revised certificate as per the details provided by the applicant. The woman official was heard in the video telling the reporter that the latter would get the revised birth certificate by December if he begins the process now. She said that though the child’s father is required to physically appear at the office and sign documents, she would manage it if she is provided with the identity proof of his brother and Rs3,000 as bribe.