KOLKATA: Couples in West Bengal may soon get their marriages registered online and instantly get marriage certificates in hand!
The state government initiative will be implemented from next month onward with an aim to reduce paper usage, duping by touts and to ensure swiftness in the registry procedures including awarding of marriage certificates to the couples.
Explaining the functioning of online marriage registry, All Bengal Marriage Officer Organisation general secretary Jayanta Mitra said: “The state government has developed software which when clicked will lead to an application. The application has to be filled up by the bride and bridegroom with scanned age proof, address proof and other requisite documents. The couples will then get the certified copies of the registry. The new system will be paperless, transparent and swift.”
Over 200 marriage registrars throughout the state are being trained in the first phase of training to handle the online procedure of registering the marriages. The e-registry would be launched in several police station areas of Hooghly and Kolkata districts from next month onward.
“Online registry of marriages was being planned since long. The marriage registrars are undergoing training and a few technical issues are being looked into. We hope to launch e-registry of marriages from next month,” law minister Moloy Ghatak said.
Though the registry of the marriages is going online, the couples cannot arbitrarily get their marriages registered on their own from any computer as the software for the registry will be available only at the computers in the marriage registrar offices.
According to administrative sources, the new system will also be significantly cheaper than the present charge of Rs 1,000 for marriage certificates. Also, digitisation is expected to make the system more efficient and reduce duping of gullible couples by marriage registry touts besides reducing the mountains of papers.