Hyderabad: Certificate delay worries parents

Hyderabad: The delay in issuing birth and death certificates in the GHMC South Zone has been causing distress to the applicants. Those needing the certificates are being made to run around even after availing the services of middlemen.

Those who have been unable to fill the applications by themselves have been availing the services of agents to obtain certificates of various kinds. Even educated applicants have been applying through agents to avoid delays. To their dismay, even the agents have not been able to resolve their concerns. While officials blame the delays on the lack of staff, those who are available are deployed to other duties. Officials said on condition of anonymity that a majority of the staff was posted to fieldwork assignments.

Sources from the department claimed that only two keys had been provided to process birth and death certificates and that only two operators were working in the department. Additionally, the higher officials authorised to clear the petitions have been busy with other assignments and have therefore been delaying the clearance of the files, as a consequence of which, the subordinate staff had been unable to disburse the certificates on time.

Mr Syed Mohammed Ahsan said that only the GHMC South Zone was suffering from the lack of organisation within the department, as certificates were being issued within the prescribed period in all the other zones. He appealed to the public representative concerned to review the matter with the higher officials of the GHMC in order to mitigate the issue.