Name Change in Godda
Godda is described by its own administration in a way that decides almost every name case here: one single town, and more than two thousand villages spread across nine blocks and around two hundred panchayats. If you were not born inside the Godda municipal area, your birth entry sits with a block or panchayat registrar, not with the district headquarters. The second fact is the date. Godda became the 55th district of undivided Bihar on 25 May 1983; before that it had been a subdivision of the old Santhal Pargana district since 1855, run from Dumka. So older papers here are Santhal Pargana papers, and land is tenancy land where the khatiyan decides the spelling. This page is the local map.
For a name change in Godda, the affidavit is sworn before a notary at the district court, the two newspaper notices go into the Godda editions of a Hindi and an English daily, Aadhaar is updated at a Seva Kendra, and the Gazette of India file is posted from any Godda post office to the Department of Publication at Civil Lines, Delhi 110054. No gazette counter exists in this district or anywhere in Jharkhand, and the e-Gazette portal is where a published notice is searched and downloaded, not where an application is filed. For a birth record the question is which office wrote the entry. The district administration describes Godda as having one single town, with two subdivisions, Godda and Mahagama, nine blocks, Godda, Pathargama, Basantrai, Mahagama, Meherma, Boarijor, Thakurgangti, Sundarpahari and Poraiyahat, and around two hundred panchayats covering more than sixteen hundred villages over about 2,110 square kilometres, so most residents are block or panchayat cases rather than municipal ones. Godda came into existence as the 55th district of undivided Bihar on 25 May 1983 and had been a subdivision of the Santhal Pargana district since 1855, so an entry written before that date sits in a register at Dumka, and school certificates from before 2000 belong to the Bihar School Examination Board. Land here is held under Santhal Pargana tenancy law, so on protected land the khatiyan spelling governs, which matters in the Rajmahal coalfield blocks where compensation and employment files are compared name by name. Hindi, Urdu and Angika all appear in local records, and those differences are corrections rather than changes of name.
Search for name change in Godda and no local page comes back. The state-wide pages that rank carry claims worth correcting: that you can apply online through the e-Gazette portal, which is a reading portal and not an application portal, that publication takes ten to fifteen days, and that a gender name change needs medical certificates from authorised practitioners, when the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 route is a certificate of identity from the District Magistrate and no medical certificate is required for it.
The process itself is the same across the state and sits on the name change process page; the bill is on the cost page. This page stays local.
At a glance
- District
- Godda, created 25 May 1983 as the 55th district of undivided Bihar; district site godda.nic.in
- Before that
- A subdivision of the old Santhal Pargana district, run from Dumka, since 1855
- Towns
- One single town, at the district headquarters
- Subdivisions
- Godda and Mahagama
- Blocks
- Godda, Pathargama, Basantrai, Mahagama, Meherma, Boarijor, Thakurgangti, Sundarpahari, Poraiyahat
- Scale
- Around 200 panchayats and more than 1,600 villages over about 2,110 square kilometres
- Land
- Santhal Pargana tenancy land, where the khatiyan spelling governs
- Coalfield
- The Rajmahal coalfield side, with the Lalmatia colliery and its township in Mahagama block
- Languages
- Hindi and Urdu, with Angika in local speech and Santali in the hill blocks
- Gazette
- No counter here; Speed Post to Civil Lines, Delhi 110054, two to four working days
Key takeaways
- One town in the district, so most birth entries are block or panchayat records.
- Anything written before 25 May 1983 belongs to the old Santhal Pargana district at Dumka.
- On tenancy land the khatiyan spelling governs; Aadhaar is brought to it, not the reverse.
- Pre-2000 school certificates belong to the Bihar board, not to JAC.
- The e-Gazette portal is for reading a published notice, not for applying.
- Nothing about the gazette happens in Godda; the file is built here and posted to Delhi in your own name.
Which Office Holds Your Birth and Certificate Records in Godda
| Where the record was made | Who holds it | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Godda town, inside the municipal area | The urban body at the district headquarters, the district's only town | Apply for a Section 15 correction at its birth and death section |
| Mahagama, Meherma, Basantrai, Pathargama | The block or panchayat registrar of that block | Apply at the block office that registered the birth |
| Boarijor, Sundarpahari, Thakurgangti, Poraiyahat | Their own block registrars, in the hill and forest blocks | The same; a certificate from one block is corrected only there |
| Any of the district's villages | The panchayat and block that covers it | Ask at the panchayat first; it will name the block office holding the register |
| Anything written before 25 May 1983 | The old Santhal Pargana district, run from Dumka | Read the issuing office on the certificate and apply where it was written |
| Land and revenue papers | The circle office, against the khatiyan | Align other documents to the khatiyan spelling, not the other way round |
| Caste, residence, income and EWS certificates | The Godda district administration through JharSewa | A fresh certificate in the correct name; certificates are reissued, not amended |
Why Most Godda Birth Records Are Block Records, Not Town Records
The district's own description says it plainly: Godda has one single town and more than two thousand villages under its panchayats. For a district of about thirteen lakh people, that means the town counter serves a small share of the population while the nine block offices carry almost everyone else.
What people get wrong
They travel to the headquarters assuming it holds every record in the district. It holds only the entries it registered. A Boarijor, Sundarpahari or Thakurgangti birth is corrected at that block office, and in a district with hill blocks and poor connectivity, that journey is a full day.
Start at the panchayat
If the certificate is lost and you do not know where the birth was registered, the panchayat secretary can name the block office that holds the register. One phone call saves the trip.
The Pragya Kendra can file, not correct
Common service centres submit district applications and follow them up. Only the registrar who wrote the entry can correct it, under Section 15 of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969.
Why an Older Godda Record Sits With the Old Santhal Pargana District
Santhal Pargana was created as a single district after the Santhal rebellion of the 1850s, and Godda was one of its subdivisions from 1855 until it became a district in its own right on 25 May 1983. Boundaries changed; registers did not.
Birth entries
An entry written before May 1983 was made under the old district, whose headquarters was Dumka, and the correction is applied for where the entry lives. The Dumka page covers that side, and the Deoghar page has the same history.
School records
Schools stayed where they were and their admission registers with them, so the board corrects against that register, through the school. Anyone schooled before 2000 holds a Bihar School Examination Board certificate.
Revenue papers
Older revenue records carry Bihar-era and Santhal Pargana headings. That is normal and does not make them invalid; the circle office reads them as they are.
The Khatiyan Name, Coalfield Compensation and Employment Files in Godda
Godda sits on the western side of the Rajmahal hills, with the coalfield and the Lalmatia colliery and its township in Mahagama block, and a large thermal power project in the district. Where land changes hands for a project, every paper is compared, and a name difference that nobody minded for thirty years suddenly decides a file.
| Record | Why the name differs | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Khatiyan and revenue records | Written when the record of rights was prepared, often decades ago | On tenancy land this spelling governs; bring the Aadhaar to it, never the reverse |
| Compensation files | Typed from the khatiyan and checked against your identity documents | Fix the weaker paper, usually the card, and carry a one-and-the-same-person affidavit meanwhile |
| Employment given against land | The land record and the candidate's certificates must describe one person | Correct the certificate through the board, then produce both together |
| Colliery service and provident fund records | Opened at appointment from the school certificate | Certificate or gazette first, then the personnel office, then the provident fund separately |
| Succession and family papers | Parents' names spelt differently across generations | Anchor to the Class 10 certificate of each person; the father's name page sets out the routes |
The Notary, the Newspapers and the Aadhaar Kendras in Godda
The affidavit
Sworn before a notary at the district court, where the judgeship has sat since the 1980s; stamp paper and fee commonly Rs 100 to Rs 500 together. Carry the typed wording and read every spelling back before signing.
The two notices
Booked at the classified desks of the Godda editions of a Hindi daily and an English daily circulating in Jharkhand. The wording must be identical in both, and you buy two complete copies of each on the day; a cutting returns the file.
Aadhaar and PAN
Seva Kendras operate in the town and at block headquarters; a name update is Rs 50 to Rs 75 per attempt with two in a lifetime. PAN is corrected online from anywhere, which helps if you work outside the district.
The Gazette Route From Godda: The Central Process, Step by Step and Paper by Paper
Everything before this happens in Godda; this part does not. There is no gazette counter in Godda, in Ranchi or anywhere in Jharkhand, and the e-Gazette portal is where a published notice is read, not where an application is filed. The file is built here and posted to the Department of Publication in Delhi in your own name. Here is the whole process, in the order it happens, with what each paper says.
Route check and wording, day 0
Confirm that you need a gazette at all: a marriage surname, a divorce and a spelling correction do not, and the six UIDAI categories reach Aadhaar without one. In Godda the usual case is an Angika, Urdu or Santali name written by ear into a Hindi register, which is a correction. Then fix the exact wording and confirm it in writing.
Affidavit, day 1 to 2
Sworn on non-judicial stamp paper before a notary at your district court, in the OLD name as on your current Aadhaar: old name, new name, father's or husband's name, address with pin code, reason, verification clause, notary seal and register number. Stamp paper and notary commonly Rs 100 to Rs 500. Format on the affidavit page.
Two newspaper notices, day 3 to 7
One Hindi daily and one English daily in editions that circulate in Jharkhand, identical wording quoting the affidavit number and date. Keep the complete original page of each paper, masthead and date visible, two copies. Rs 800 to Rs 4,000 at actual cost. Detail on the newspaper page.
Proforma, CD and request letter, day 7 to 8
The Department's proforma typed in two copies, headed "No. ADVT IV /", signed in the old name, two witnesses with full addresses and pin codes, two photographs, self-attested IDs of you and both witnesses; a CD with the notice in Word without the witness portion plus a signed certificate that soft and hard copy match; a request letter to the Controller of Publications. Full list on the documents page.
Fee on BharatKosh, day 8
Only on bharatkosh.gov.in, in your own name, selecting the Department of Publication and the Gazette notification purpose: commonly Rs 1,100 for an adult, Rs 1,700 for a minor, revised each financial year, non-refundable. Print the receipt for the file. No demand draft, no cash, no counter anywhere in Jharkhand.
Delivered in Delhi in your name, day 8 to 10
The five papers, affidavit and pages in original, to the Department of Publication, Civil Lines, behind Delhi Vidhan Sabha Metro Station, Delhi 110054, in person or by tracked post in the applicant's name. Our Delhi office delivers Jharkhand files in your name. Nothing is returned, so keep a scanned set.
Published and downloaded, day 40 to 55
Part IV is released weekly; publication commonly takes 30 to 45 days. Search your old or new name on egazette.gov.in, download the free PDF, and note the Gazette number, date and page. No attestation is needed for use in India. A wrong print is corrected by corrigendum within six months.
Then Aadhaar, PAN and every record
Carry the printed Gazette PDF with the affidavit and both newspaper pages to an Aadhaar Seva Kendra in Godda first, then PAN, then the school or board, then the circle office where land records carry the name. The gazette pillar, with the July 2025 story of the Jharkhand Gazette, is the gazette name change page.
The five papers, line by line
| Paper | What it contains, clause by clause | The mistake that returns the file |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Affidavit | Title "Affidavit for change of name". Deponent's old name, son or daughter or wife of, age, address with pin code. Clause 1: that the deponent is a citizen of India and a resident of the address. Clause 2: the old name as on Aadhaar and the documents it appears on. Clause 3: that the deponent has decided to be known as the new name, spelt in full, from the date of the affidavit. Clause 4: the reason, in one line. Clause 5: that the old and new names refer to one and the same person. Verification clause: that the contents are true to the deponent's knowledge, sworn at the place on the date. Deponent's signature in the OLD name; notary's seal, signature, register serial and date. | Signed in the new name; a spelling in clause 3 that differs from the proforma by a letter; a photocopy sent instead of the original. |
| 2. Two newspaper pages | Wording: "I, [old name], son or daughter or wife of [name], resident of [address, pin code], have changed my name to [new name] by affidavit No. [number] dated [date] sworn before [notary, place]. Henceforth I shall be known as [new name]." One Hindi daily and one English daily in editions circulating in Jharkhand, on any date after the affidavit. The complete page of each, masthead and date visible, in original, two copies each. | A cutting instead of the page; a notice dated before the affidavit; the two notices worded differently; the new name spelt differently from the affidavit. |
| 3. Proforma, two copies | Headed "No. ADVT IV /" with the date. Wording for a change of name: "I, [old name], son or daughter or wife of [name], employed as [occupation] at [address] or residing at [address], have changed my name and shall hereafter be known as [new name]. It is certified that I have complied with other legal requirements in this connection." Signature in the OLD name. Two witnesses, each with full name, father's name, full address with pin code and signature. Computer typed, no cutting or overwriting. | Handwritten; one witness; a witness without a pin code; signed in the new name; the wrongly-written-name wording used for a change, or the reverse. |
| 4. CD with certificate | The proforma's notice in a Word file, without the witness portion, with the old name typed in place of the signature. A signed certificate on paper: "Certified that the soft copy on the enclosed CD and the hard copy of the notice are the same." The CD labelled with the applicant's name. | A PDF instead of Word; the witness portion left in; the certificate unsigned. |
| 5. Request letter | To the Controller of Publications, Department of Publication, Civil Lines, Delhi 110054. Subject: publication of change of name in the Gazette of India, Part IV. The request, the list of enclosures, the BharatKosh receipt number and date, the applicant's mobile and email, the applicant's signature in the old name. | No receipt number; the letter signed by an agent. |
What goes with the five
Two passport photographs; self-attested copies of the applicant's Aadhaar and PAN and of both witnesses' Aadhaar; the BharatKosh receipt; for an applicant abroad, the affidavit attested by the Indian mission and the higher fee. Documents not older than about a year.
BharatKosh, field by field
bharatkosh.gov.in, Non-Registered Users, Quick Payment; Ministry: Housing and Urban Affairs; Purpose: Department of Publication, Gazette notification; the amount for adult or minor; the payer's name exactly as the old name on the affidavit; the address; UPI, net banking or card. Download the receipt with its transaction reference and print it for the file.
Reading the published notice
The e-Gazette PDF carries the Gazette of India number, the Part IV heading, the date of publication, the page number and your notice in its own paragraph. Every office reads the number, the date and the page; write them on every covering letter. A notice with a misprint is corrected by corrigendum within six months, free where the press erred; a corrected notice is what each office gets.
Where to Go in Godda, in Order, for a Name Change
Find the office that wrote the entry
The town body only if the birth was registered inside the municipal area; otherwise one of nine block offices, or Dumka for anything before May 1983.
Settle the spelling against the right anchor
The Class 10 certificate for a person, the khatiyan where land is involved. In this district both are read closely.
District court, then the classified desks
The affidavit sworn before a notary, then two notices with identical wording in a Hindi and an English daily, two complete copies of each bought on the day.
Pay on BharatKosh and post the file
Speed Post to Civil Lines, Delhi 110054 in your own name; then Aadhaar, PAN, the school or board, the bank, the JharSewa certificates and the circle office.
The five papers that go in the envelope are on the gazette documents page; the sending itself on the sending page.
JAC and Bihar Board Name Corrections in Godda
A Jharkhand Academic Council certificate is corrected against the school's admission register, through the school rather than through you, escalated to the District Education Officer or District Superintendent of Education when a school delays or refuses to forward the file. In a district this spread out, send the application through a family member rather than waiting for a free day. Anyone schooled here before 2000 holds a Bihar School Examination Board certificate, and that board corrects it. If the admission register itself carries the wrong spelling, the board has nothing to correct against and the route becomes a public notice quoting the wrong form exactly.
What a Name Change Costs From Godda
| Item | Cost | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Affidavit at the district court | Commonly Rs 100 to Rs 500 | Stamp paper and notary together; no value is prescribed by the Department |
| Two newspaper notices | Rs 800 to Rs 4,000 | Godda editions cost less than the Ranchi editions of the same dailies |
| Government gazette fee | Commonly Rs 1,100 adult, Rs 1,700 minor, Rs 1,350 public notice | BharatKosh only, in your own name, revised each financial year |
| Speed Post to Delhi | At actual cost | Two to four working days from Godda |
| Birth certificate correction | The block's or town body's own small fee | Section 15; a margin correction, the original entry is never erased |
| Gazette copy | Free | Downloaded from the e-Gazette portal, which is for reading, not for applying |
| Aadhaar and PAN | Rs 50 to Rs 75; Rs 72 or Rs 107 | Per attempt; Aadhaar is not refunded on rejection |
| Our charge | Quoted per case; the route check is free | Full bill on the cost page |
Name Change Myths and Mistakes in Godda
The myths the state pages carry
- "Apply online through the e-Gazette portal"; that portal publishes and shows gazettes, it does not take applications.
- "Publication takes ten to fifteen days"; a Part IV notice commonly takes 30 to 45 days after a complete file arrives.
- "A gender name change needs medical certificates from authorised practitioners"; the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 route is a certificate of identity from the District Magistrate, with no medical certificate required for it.
- "Rs 999 all inclusive"; the Government fee alone is commonly Rs 1,100.
The local mistakes
- Travelling to the headquarters for a birth registered in a block or panchayat.
- Applying in Godda for an entry written before May 1983 under the old Santhal Pargana district.
- Correcting the khatiyan to match an Aadhaar card before a compensation file.
- Starting at the colliery personnel office instead of the school certificate.
- Sending a pre-2000 Bihar board certificate to JAC.
Godda Name Change Terms Explained
- Block registrar
- The registering authority in each of the nine blocks, which is where most births in this district are entered.
- Panchayat
- The village body that can tell you which block office holds your register, among around two hundred here.
- Old Santhal Pargana district
- The district run from Dumka of which Godda was a subdivision from 1855 until 1983; older registers stayed there.
- Khatiyan
- The record of rights in land; on tenancy land its spelling governs and other documents are aligned to it.
- Chiragi and be-chiragi villages
- Revenue terms used in this district for inhabited and uninhabited villages; they describe the village, not your name.
- Section 15 correction
- The Registrar's correction of a birth entry under the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969; a margin entry, not an erasure.
- Compensation file
- The land acquisition paperwork where every name is compared against the revenue record.
- Anchor certificate
- The Class 10 certificate for a person's name; the khatiyan for a land record.
- Bihar board certificate
- A school certificate from before 2000, corrected by that board and not by JAC.
- e-Gazette portal
- Where a published notice is searched and downloaded free; not an application portal.
- Public notice
- The gazette route for a name wrongly written on a certificate, quoting the wrong spelling exactly.
- Part IV
- The section of the Gazette of India carrying private notices, published from Delhi.
Name Change Help Across Godda District and Nearby
The whole state is covered from our Ranchi desk and the Delhi filing office; other district pages are linked from the services page.
Send your Godda documents on WhatsApp
Photograph the Class 10 certificate, the Aadhaar, the birth certificate with the office that issued it, and any khatiyan or compensation paper that carries the name; the first reply says which register holds your entry, whether the case is a correction or a gazette, and what it will cost. If a project file or a compensation notice is already running, say so in the first message, because the affidavit comes first then. 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
Name Change in Godda: Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a gazette office in Godda?
Can I apply online through the e-Gazette portal?
Where do I correct a birth certificate in Godda district?
My certificate is from the 1970s. Where is that record?
My khatiyan and my Aadhaar spell my name differently. Which do I change?
Will a name difference hold up my land compensation or an employment claim?
Does a gender name change need medical certificates?
My school certificate is from before 2000. Who corrects it?
Where do I make the affidavit in Godda?
Which newspapers should I use in Godda?
How long does it take from Godda?
Do you have an office in Godda?
People also search for: name change in Godda, gazette name change Godda, birth certificate correction Godda, Mahagama Pathargama Boarijor birth certificate, old Santhal Pargana records, khatiyan name correction, JAC certificate correction Godda, Bihar board certificate correction, Aadhaar name change Godda.
Official Sources for Godda Name Changes
- Godda district historyThe administration's own account of the Santhal Pargana subdivision and the 1983 district.
- Godda subdivisions and blocksThe two subdivisions and nine blocks named officially.
- JharSewa e-District portalCaste, residence, income and EWS certificates.
- Civil Registration SystemBirth and death registration and the Registrar's correction route.
- Department of Publication, Government of IndiaThe gazette guidelines, proformas and fees.
- The Gazette of India, e-Gazette portalWhere a published notice is searched and downloaded free.
Name Change in Godda in Eight Lines
The short version
- One town in the district; nine block registrars hold almost everything else.
- Ask the panchayat which block office holds your register before you travel.
- Anything written before 25 May 1983 belongs to the old Santhal Pargana district at Dumka.
- On tenancy land the khatiyan spelling governs, which decides compensation files.
- Pre-2000 school certificates belong to the Bihar board, not JAC.
- The e-Gazette portal is for reading a notice, not for applying.
- No gazette counter here; Speed Post to Civil Lines, Delhi 110054, in your own name.
- Three to seven weeks end to end; Government fee commonly Rs 1,100, our charge quoted separately.
Nine blocks, one register that matters: yours
Send your documents on WhatsApp and hear which office wrote your entry before you travel to it.