Birth Registered in Bihar Before 2000: Correction for Jharkhand Residents
If you were born in Ranchi, Dhanbad, Hazaribagh or anywhere else in today's Jharkhand before November 2000, your birth was registered in the State of Bihar. People assume that means a trip to Patna, and for a birth that happened in what is now Jharkhand, it usually does not. The Registration of Births and Deaths Act 1969 lets a Registrar correct an entry "in any register kept by him under this Act", and it gives the State Government the power to appoint "a Registrar for each local area comprising the area within the jurisdiction of a municipality, panchayat or other local authority". When Jharkhand was formed, the Bihar Reorganisation Act 2000 gave the new State the power to name the authorities that exercise functions under existing laws in its territory. So the old register sits with a local Registrar, and the local Registrar for a place in Jharkhand is appointed by Jharkhand. The questions that actually decide your case are where the birth happened, whether it was ever registered, and whether a name was ever entered.
Ask three questions in this order, because each one sends you somewhere different. First, where did the birth actually happen, and is that place in Jharkhand or Bihar today? A birth register is kept by the Registrar of a local area, and section 15 of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act lets a Registrar correct an entry "in any register kept by him under this Act". The Bihar Reorganisation Act 2000 formed Jharkhand from eighteen named districts, "and thereupon the said territories shall cease to form Part of the existing State of Bihar". Section 87 of that Act lets Jharkhand "specify the authority, officer or person" who exercises functions under existing laws "as respects the transferred territory". So for a birth in today's Jharkhand, start with the local Registrar in Jharkhand, not Patna. Only a birth that happened in what is still Bihar goes to a Bihar Registrar. Second, was the birth ever registered? If not, section 13(3), as rewritten in 2023, requires "an order made by a District Magistrate or Sub-Divisional Magistrate or by an Executive Magistrate authorised by the District Magistrate, having jurisdiction over the area where the birth or death has taken place". For a birth in Jharkhand, that magistrate is in Jharkhand too. Third, was a name ever entered? Many births of that period were registered without one. A State Government page records that "For the birth registered prior to 01.01.2000 without name, the name of the child shall be registered upto 31.12.2019." That date has passed, and we could not verify whether it was extended again, so ask your Registrar before you assume either way. An old certificate headed "Bihar" is not worthless because of the heading; the register behind it was made under a central Act that "extends to the whole of India". We print no fee or timeline.
Which Registrar Holds a Birth Record From Before Jharkhand Was Formed
The mistake almost everybody makes is to follow the name of the State printed on the certificate. The law follows something else: the register, and the Registrar who keeps it.
Start with the Registration of Births and Deaths Act 1969, which "extends to the whole of India". Under section 7(1), "The State Government may appoint a Registrar for each local area comprising the area within the jurisdiction of a municipality, panchayat or other local authority or any other area". Under section 15, a Registrar corrects or cancels an entry "in any register kept by him under this Act". So the person who can correct your entry is the Registrar who keeps the register it is written in.
Then look at what the Bihar Reorganisation Act 2000 did. Section 3 formed Jharkhand from eighteen districts: "Bokaro, Chatra, Deogarh, Dhanbad, Dumka, Garhwa, Giridih, Godda, Gumla, Hazaribagh, Kodarma, Lohardaga, Pakur, Palamau, Ranchi, Sahebganj, Singhbhum (East) and Singhbhum (West) districts", "and thereupon the said territories shall cease to form Part of the existing State of Bihar." Section 87 then says that "The Government of the State of Jharkhand, as respects the transferred territory may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify the authority, officer or person who, on or after the appointed day, shall be competent to exercise such functions exercisable under any law in force on that day."
| Where the birth happened | Where to start |
|---|---|
| A town in today's Jharkhand, such as Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad or Bokaro | The local Registrar for that town in Jharkhand, usually at the municipal body. See birth certificate correction |
| A village in today's Jharkhand | The Registrar for that local area, usually at block or panchayat level |
| A place that is still in Bihar | The local Registrar in Bihar for that place. Living in Jharkhand now does not move the register |
| A hospital in a different town from where the family lived | The Registrar for the place of the birth, not the family's address. Check where the hospital was |
| You do not know where it was registered | Find out before anything else. See the section on finding the old register entry below |
One honest limit on this section. We are telling you what the two Acts say about who appoints Registrars and who corrects entries. We did not find, and did not read, the specific Jharkhand notification naming the Registrars for each area after 2000. So confirm with the office itself that it holds your year's register, especially where local bodies were created, merged or renamed after 2000. If an office tells you the register is kept elsewhere, ask it in writing where.
Is a Birth Certificate Headed "Bihar" Still Valid in Jharkhand?
People are sometimes told, at a counter or by an agent, that an old certificate headed "Government of Bihar" is no use now that they live in Jharkhand. Nothing we read in either Act says that, and the structure of both Acts points the other way.
The certificate is an extract from a register kept under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act 1969, a central Act that "extends to the whole of India". It said "Bihar" because the place of birth was in Bihar at the time. Section 84 of the Bihar Reorganisation Act says the reorganisation "shall not be deemed to have effected any change in the territories to which any law in force immediately before the appointed day extends or applies". The law under which your birth was registered did not stop applying to your place of birth when the State boundary moved.
| The question | What the Acts say, as far as we read them |
|---|---|
| Does the 1969 Act still apply to my place of birth? | Yes. It "extends to the whole of India", and section 84 of the Reorganisation Act says the reorganisation did not change where existing laws apply |
| Was my register entry cancelled when Jharkhand was formed? | We found no provision saying so. The entry stays in the register |
| Who appoints the Registrar now? | For a place in the transferred districts, Jharkhand, under section 7 of the 1969 Act read with section 87 of the Reorganisation Act |
| Will every office accept the old paper? | We cannot promise that. A fresh certified extract of the same entry is the practical answer |
| Does the heading need correcting? | No. It records where the place was at the time. There is nothing to correct in it |
Finding an Old Birth Register Entry From Before 2000 in Jharkhand
You cannot correct an entry you have not found, and with a birth from the 1980s or 1990s, finding it is often the real work. The law gives you a right to have the register searched. Section 17(1) says that, "Subject to any rules made in this behalf by the State Government, including rules relating to the payment of fees and postal charges, any person may cause a search to be made by the Registrar for any entry in a register of births and deaths".
Two practical points make the search go better. First, go with as much detail as the family can reconstruct: the date or at least the month and year, the exact place of birth including the hospital if there was one, the father's and mother's names as they were written then, and whether anybody remembers registering the birth. Second, expect the old register to be a paper book rather than an online record. Registers of that period were handwritten, and we could not verify how many of them have been brought onto any online system in Jharkhand. Ask the office whether it holds your year's register and how it searches it.
| What the search finds | What to do next |
|---|---|
| The entry, with your name correct | Ask for a certified extract. Nothing needs correcting |
| The entry, with a spelling error in your name or a parent's name | A section 15 correction, proved to the Registrar's satisfaction. The correction is made by a marginal entry. See parent's name in a birth certificate |
| The entry, with no name at all | See the next section, because the special window closed on 31 December 2019 |
| No entry at all | The birth may never have been registered. That needs an order from a magistrate. See the section after next |
| An office says the register is not with it | Ask it in writing where the register is kept. Local bodies have been created and renamed since 2000 |
One point on the correction itself, because it surprises people. Section 15 lets the Registrar correct an entry proved "erroneous in form or substance", and the correction is made in the margin. The original entry is not rewritten. So a corrected old entry will show both what was written and what it was corrected to, which is exactly what makes the correction trustworthy to other offices. Do not expect a clean new page.
A Birth Registered Without a Name Before 2000
A great many births in the 1980s and 1990s were registered before the child was named, and the name was never added. The certificate says "male" or "female" where a name should be. This is the single commonest problem with birth records from that period.
Section 14 of the 1969 Act deals with exactly this. It says that "Where the birth of any child has been registered without a name, the parent or guardian of such child shall within the prescribed period give information regarding the name of the child to the Registrar either orally or in writing", after which the Registrar enters the name.
The catch is "within the prescribed period". A State Government health department page sets out the ordinary rule as a name registered within one year free of charge, and after one year but within fifteen years from the date of registration with a late fee. For older births it records a special window: "For the birth registered prior to 01.01.2000 without name, the name of the child shall be registered upto 31.12.2019."
| The situation | What we can and cannot say |
|---|---|
| The law that allows a name to be added | Section 14, within the prescribed period |
| The ordinary period, as one State's page describes it | Within one year free, and up to fifteen years from registration with a late fee |
| The special window for pre-2000 births | Recorded as running up to 31 December 2019. It has passed |
| Any later extension | We could not verify one. Ask your Registrar in writing |
| If no name can be added | The entry still proves date and place of birth. Your name is carried by your other documents. See name entry on a birth certificate for the current rules on recent births |
Registering a Birth From Before 2000 That Was Never Registered
If the search finds no entry at all, the birth may simply never have been registered, which was common in rural areas at the time. A birth can still be registered decades later, but not by the Registrar alone.
Section 13(3), as rewritten by the 2023 amendment, says: "Any birth or death of which delayed information is given to the Registrar after one year of its occurrence, shall be registered only on an order made by a District Magistrate or Sub-Divisional Magistrate or by an Executive Magistrate authorised by the District Magistrate, having jurisdiction over the area where the birth or death has taken place, after verifying the correctness of the birth or death and on payment of such fee as may be prescribed."
| The question | The answer under section 13(3) |
|---|---|
| Can it still be registered? | Yes, on a magistrate's order |
| Which magistrate? | A District Magistrate, a Sub-Divisional Magistrate, or an Executive Magistrate authorised by the District Magistrate, with jurisdiction over the place of birth |
| What does the magistrate do? | Verifies the correctness of the birth before ordering registration |
| What does it cost? | A prescribed fee, which we did not verify for Jharkhand and do not print |
| Is it worth doing for an adult? | Sometimes. Many adults find their Class 10 certificate proves their date of birth well enough for most purposes. Ask the office that wants the birth certificate whether it will accept that first |
How to Correct a Birth Record Registered in Bihar Before 2000
Establish exactly where the birth happened
The town or village, and the hospital if there was one. Whether that place is in Jharkhand or Bihar today decides which Registrar you start with.
Go to the local Registrar for that place, as it is today
For a place in today's Jharkhand, the Registrar is appointed by Jharkhand. Usually the municipal body in a town, and the block or panchayat level in a village.
Ask for a search of the register
Section 17(1) lets "any person" cause a search. Take the date, the place and both parents' names as they were written then.
Get the result of the search in writing
Found and correct, found with an error, found without a name, or not found. Each sends you somewhere different, and "not found" said at a counter is not a written answer.
If the entry is right, ask only for a certified extract
Nothing needs correcting. The "Bihar" heading records where the place was at the time, and it is not something to correct.
If there is a spelling error, apply under section 15
With proof of the correct spelling, usually your oldest documents and your parents' papers. The correction is made in the margin, and the original stays visible.
If there is no name, ask in writing whether one can still be entered
The special window for pre-2000 births was recorded as closing on 31 December 2019. Ask under which rule a name can be entered now, if at all.
If the birth was never registered, go to the magistrate
Section 13(3) requires an order from a magistrate "having jurisdiction over the area where the birth or death has taken place". Take every piece of evidence of the date and place.
Ask the office that wants the certificate what it will accept
For many adults, the Class 10 certificate already proves the date of birth well enough. Check before you spend months on a birth record you may not need.
Keep every reply, and keep the old certificate
An old paper certificate is hard to replace. Photocopy it, keep the original out of any file that will not come back, and keep every written answer.
Central Gazette Process for a Name From Jharkhand, and Why It Cannot Change a Birth Register
No district in Jharkhand has a gazette counter, so a genuine file goes from Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Hazaribagh, Deoghar or anywhere else in the state to the Department of Publication, Civil Lines, Delhi 110054, and the notice publishes in Part IV of the Gazette of India. As reported in July 2025 the Finance Department stopped personal name change notifications from the Jharkhand Government Press with immediate effect, so there is no state alternative to fall back on.
The Eight Steps of a Name File Sent From Jharkhand
Settle the final name first
Letter by letter, with the spacing you want, and then use exactly that everywhere, Aadhaar included. A corrigendum after publication is a second fee and a second wait.
Pick the category, then its proforma
A genuine change of name is change of Name Adult or Major. A wrongly typed spelling is the public notice for a wrongly written name. Twelve categories exist and only one is yours.
Type the proforma in duplicate
Two originals with two witnesses giving signature, full name, address and mobile number on both copies. A change of name is signed in the old name; a public notice is signed in your own name.
Fill the employment field if it is a change of name
The adult proforma asks for the post of the applicant and the office or company name. A student or a homemaker should still complete it rather than leaving it blank, because a blank field brings the file back.
Publish and keep the original paper
One of the daily local leading newspapers, carrying both names in full, the father or husband name and the residential address. The whole original paper goes in the file, not a cutting.
Pay only through BharatKosh
The Non Tax Receipt Portal and nowhere else since October 2018. Select the Department of Publication by name, read the amount the portal shows on the day, pay in your own name and print the e-receipt.
Check every date, then post it yourself
Nothing in the file older than one year. Personally or by post or courier only, never through an agent or advocate. Photocopy everything first, because nothing sent in comes back.
Read the notice, then update in the right order
Check every word the day it publishes, download the e-Gazette copy, and then update the Aadhaar first, because the system leverages it for unique identification, and let the bank account, the voter entry and any scheme records follow after it in that order. The birth register itself is never changed by the notice; only the Registrar can correct it.
The Five Papers in the File, and What Is Checked in Each
| The paper | What is checked in it, clause by clause |
|---|---|
| 1. The proforma, in duplicate | That it is the right category format; the existing full name exactly as your documents carry it; the new full name exactly as settled; the father or husband name; the full address with pin code; the post and office or company name where it is a change of name; the signature in the right name for the category; two witnesses complete with signature, full name, address and mobile number |
| 2. The affidavit or undertaking | The same names and address as the proforma, word for word, with wording matching the category. On Rs 100 non-judicial stamp paper as our safe default |
| 3. The original newspaper | The original paper, not a cutting; the paper name and date of publication visible; both names carried; the father or husband name and residential address; dated within the last year |
| 4. Photographs, identity proof and any category paper | Two self attested passport photographs; self attested identity and address proof matching the proforma address; both witnesses proofs; and, in a public notice file, the attested photocopy of the connected document carrying the error |
| 5. The CD, its certificate and the BharatKosh receipt | MS Word, without the witness portion, with the name typed in place of the signature; the certificate that the hard copy and the soft copy are the same; the forwarding letter to the Controller of Publication with a telephone number and email; the e-receipt |
The posting detail is on the sending the file to Delhi page, the change of name wording on the proforma format page and the public notice wording on the public notice proforma page, the charge by category on the fee and undertaking page, the reasons files come back on the rejection reasons page, and the download on the download page.
What Correcting a Pre-2000 Birth Record Costs in Jharkhand
Most of the cost here is time and travel rather than fees, and much of it can be avoided by starting at the right office. Here is what we can and cannot tell you.
| Item | What we can and cannot tell you |
|---|---|
| A search of the register and a certified extract | Section 17(1) makes the search "Subject to any rules made in this behalf by the State Government, including rules relating to the payment of fees". We verified no Jharkhand figure and print none |
| A section 15 correction | We print no figure. Ask the Registrar and get a receipt |
| Entering a name, if still allowed | We print no figure. The one fee we saw was another State's own, so we do not repeat it |
| A magistrate's order for a birth never registered | A prescribed fee under section 13(3), which we did not verify for Jharkhand |
| Travelling to Patna for a birth that happened in Jharkhand | Usually unnecessary. For a place in today's Jharkhand, start with the local Registrar here |
| A Central Gazette notice | It does not change a birth register, and for a birth record it is not the route. See the Gazette section above |
| What we charge | Quoted on the call. If your Class 10 certificate already does the job, we will say so and charge you nothing |
Myths About Birth Records Registered in Bihar Before 2000
| What people believe | What is actually so |
|---|---|
| A certificate headed "Bihar" must be corrected in Patna | The Registrar who keeps the register corrects it. For a place in today's Jharkhand, that Registrar is appointed by Jharkhand |
| An old "Bihar" certificate is invalid in Jharkhand | We found no provision saying so. The 1969 Act "extends to the whole of India" |
| The "Bihar" heading should be changed to "Jharkhand" | No. It records where the place was at the time |
| The register moved to wherever I live now | It stays with the Registrar of the place of birth, not your present address |
| A corrected entry gets a clean new page | Section 15 corrections are made in the margin, with the original left visible |
| A name can always be added to an old nameless entry | The special window for pre-2000 births was recorded as closing on 31 December 2019. Ask what applies now |
| A birth never registered cannot be registered now | It can, on a magistrate's order under section 13(3) |
| Any magistrate will do | One "having jurisdiction over the area where the birth or death has taken place" |
| A gazette notification will fix the birth record | A gazette does not change a birth register. The Registrar's correction does |
| Everything from that period is online now | We could not verify that it is. Expect a handwritten register and ask how the office searches it |
| I need a birth certificate for everything | Often the Class 10 certificate already does the job. Ask first |
Key Terms for Old Birth Records in Jharkhand
| Term | What it means in practice |
|---|---|
| Registrar | The officer appointed for a local area under section 7, who keeps the register and corrects it |
| Register | The book, often handwritten for that period, in which the birth was entered. The certificate is an extract from it |
| Certified extract | A copy of the register entry issued under section 17. The practical answer to a faded or doubted old certificate |
| Transferred territory | The eighteen districts that became Jharkhand under section 3 of the Reorganisation Act |
| Appointed day | The day Jharkhand came into being, 15 November 2000 |
| Section 87 | The power of Jharkhand to name the authorities that exercise functions under existing laws in its territory |
| Section 15 correction | A Registrar's correction of an entry proved erroneous, made in the margin |
| Section 14 | The provision for entering a name on a birth registered without one, within the prescribed period |
| Section 13(3) | Registration more than a year late, only on a magistrate's order |
| Marginal entry | How a correction appears: alongside the original, not replacing it |
| Anchor record | For most adults born before 2000, the Class 10 certificate, which often proves the date of birth by itself |
| Written reply | What to ask for at every step. "Not found" at a counter is not one |
Help With Pre-2000 Birth Records Across Jharkhand
Most of what people need on this subject is the right office and the right question, not a service. We work out where the birth happened and which local Registrar should hold the register. We help the family reconstruct the date, place and parents' names as they were written then, so the search has a chance. And we tell you whether the result needs a section 15 correction, a name entry, or a magistrate's order. Before any of that, we check whether your Class 10 certificate already does the job for the office asking, because for many adults it does. What we will not do is send you to Patna for a birth whose register is kept in Jharkhand, or sell you a gazette notice for a birth record, which a gazette cannot change. We help people across Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Hazaribagh, Deoghar and every other district, on scans over WhatsApp.
District pages are linked from the services page.
Send the old certificate and where you were born
Send a clear photograph of the old birth certificate if you have one, top to bottom, and tell us exactly where you were born: the town or village, and the hospital if there was one. That one detail decides which Registrar holds your record. Add your Class 10 certificate, your Aadhaar, and whatever the office asking for a birth certificate has put in writing. Tell us in one line what the problem is: a misspelt name, no name at all, a certificate an office will not accept, or no record found. Our first reply tells you which office to go to, what to ask for, and whether your Class 10 certificate makes the whole exercise unnecessary. If it does, we will tell you that and charge you nothing. Details on the contact page.
- 📞Call 9540005002
Monday to Saturday, 9 AM to 6 PM - WhatsApp 9540005064
Send your scans here, it is the fastest way - ✉️info@jharkhandnamechange.com
- 📍Ranchi office: Main Building, Near Shaheed Chowk, Ranchi, Jharkhand 834001
- 🏛️Head office (Gazette filing desk): Metro Pillar No. 377, Near Burari Metro Station, Shop No. B-1, Ground Floor, Gali No. 1, Khasra No. 31/12, Hardev Nagar, Jharoda Majra, Burari, Delhi 110084
Birth Registered in Bihar Before 2000: Frequently Asked Questions
I was born in Ranchi in 1995. Do I have to go to Patna to correct my birth certificate?
Is my old certificate saying "Government of Bihar" still valid?
Should the "Bihar" heading be changed to "Jharkhand"?
My birth was registered in a village that is still in Bihar. Where do I go?
My birth certificate has no name, just "male" or "female". Can a name be added now?
The search found no record of my birth at all. What now?
My name is misspelt in the old register. How is that corrected?
Will a gazette notification correct my old birth record?
Is my old birth record available online?
Do I actually need my birth certificate corrected?
How much does it cost?
How much of this can you actually do for us?
Official Sources on Pre-2000 Birth Records for Jharkhand
| Source | What it is used for on this page |
|---|---|
| The Bihar Reorganisation Act, 2000, read on Indian Kanoon | The most important link on this page. Section 3, the eighteen districts and the words "shall cease to form Part of the existing State of Bihar"; section 84, on laws continuing to apply to the same territories; section 87, on Jharkhand naming the authorities for the transferred territory; and the appointed day of 15 November 2000. Read on a reproduction because the India Code copy would not open |
| The Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 | Section 1(2), extent to the whole of India; section 7(1), Registrars for local areas; section 14, name entry; section 15, correction "in any register kept by him"; section 17(1), search and extracts |
| The Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2023, published by PRS Legislative Research | The new section 13(3), requiring a magistrate's order "having jurisdiction over the area where the birth or death has taken place" for registration more than a year late |
| Directorate of Public Health, Government of Tamil Nadu, birth and death registration page | The ordinary name entry periods, and the record that for births registered before 1 January 2000 without a name, the name could be registered up to 31 December 2019. Used for the national position it describes, not for its fee |
| What we could not verify | The Jharkhand notification naming Registrars after 2000; any extension of the 2019 name window, because the national circulars site and the circular we tried would not open; how many old registers are online; and every Jharkhand fee on this subject |
| Our other pages on the neighbouring cases | Current birth certificate correction, on the birth certificate page; old school certificates, on the Bihar Board page; date of birth, on the date of birth page |
| Your local Registrar, and the office asking for the certificate | The two sources that outrank this page. The Registrar on whether it holds your year's register and what it can do; the requesting office on whether your Class 10 certificate will do instead. Ask both in writing |
Pre-2000 Bihar Birth Records in Nine Lines
The short version
- The Registrar who keeps the register is the one who corrects it.
- For a birth in today's Jharkhand, that Registrar is appointed by Jharkhand.
- So start with the local Registrar here, not in Patna.
- A "Bihar" heading does not make the old certificate invalid.
- Ask for a search of the register and get the result in writing.
- A spelling error is corrected in the margin under section 15.
- The special window to name a pre-2000 birth closed in 2019.
- A birth never registered needs a magistrate's order.
- A gazette cannot change a birth register.