Birth, Death Reporting To Be Automated.

Why in news?

• The government is planning to revamp the Civil Registration System (CRS) to resolve the current issues of timeliness, efficiency, and uniformity, leading to delayed and under-coverage of birth and death.

About CRS

• It is a continuous, permanent, compulsory recording of the occurrence and characteristics of vital events, like births, deaths, and stillbirths.
• The Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 provides for the compulsory registration of births and deaths.
• Chief Registrar is mandated to publish a statistical report on the registered births and deaths during the year.
• It is one of the main sources of data on vital events in India others are Sample Registration System (SRS) and Population Census.
• It is also linked to National Population Register.
• CRS is thus the only source for providing vital rates at the district level on regular basis, as the population Census is a decennial exercise and Sample Registration System is an annual exercise.
• CRS provide legal identity to individual and access to the rights of a citizen Including entitlements such as social benefits etc.
• The Registrar General of India (RGI) under Ministry of Home Affairs coordinates and unifies the activities of registration throughout the country. However, implementation is vested with the state governments.