Name Change in Sahibganj
Sahibganj sits at the eastern tip of Santhal Pargana, between the Ganga and the Rajmahal hills, and its paperwork carries that history. The district administration records only two statutory towns and six census towns for about eleven lakh people, with 1,813 villages of which 1,349 are inhabited, so almost every birth entry here is a block record rather than a municipal one. The dates matter too. The district was formed on 17 May 1983 from the Rajmahal and Pakur subdivisions of the old Santhal Pargana district, and Pakur was then carved out of Sahibganj on 28 January 1994. So this district holds registers for two sets of families: its own, and Pakur's from before 1994. This page is the local map.
For a name change in Sahibganj, the affidavit is sworn before a notary at the district court, the two newspaper notices go into the Sahibganj 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 local 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 for reading a published notice, not for filing an application. For a birth record, the administration's own figures decide where you go: two statutory towns, six census towns and nine blocks, Sahibganj, Mandro, Borio and Barhait in the Sahibganj subdivision and Taljhari, Rajmahal, Udhwa, Pathna and Barharwa in the Rajmahal subdivision, each block also a revenue circle. Two dates decide older papers. The district was formed on 17 May 1983 from the Rajmahal and Pakur subdivisions of the old Santhal Pargana district, so anything written before that sits in a register at Dumka; and Pakur district was carved out of Sahibganj on 28 January 1994, so a Pakur family with a pre-1994 entry may still find it here. The Borio, Barhait, Taljhari and Pathna blocks lie in the Damin-i-koh tract, where Paharia, Mal Paharia and Santal families live and where names cross from Malto and Santali into Hindi registers, which is a correction question and not a change of name. Land is Santhal Pargana tenancy land, so the khatiyan spelling governs.
Search for name change in Sahibganj and nothing local comes back. The state pages that fill the SERP say you can apply through the e-Gazette portal, that publication takes ten to fifteen days, that you must have no pending legal issues or criminal cases to qualify, and that a demand draft goes to a Controller of Publications in Jharkhand. None of those is true, and the last two are inventions that stop people applying who are perfectly entitled to.
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
- Sahibganj, in Santhal Pargana division, formed 17 May 1983; district site sahibganj.nic.in
- Subdivisions
- Sahibganj and Rajmahal
- Blocks and circles
- Sahibganj, Mandro, Borio, Barhait, Taljhari, Rajmahal, Udhwa, Pathna, Barharwa
- Towns
- Two statutory towns and six census towns only
- Villages
- 1,813 in all, of which 1,349 are inhabited and 464 uninhabited
- Older records
- Before May 1983 with the old Santhal Pargana district at Dumka; Pakur entries from before January 1994 may be here
- Damin-i-koh tract
- Borio, Barhait, Taljhari and Pathna blocks, home to Paharia, Mal Paharia and Santal families
- Land
- Santhal Pargana tenancy land, where the khatiyan spelling governs
- Affidavit
- Notary at the district court; commonly Rs 100 to Rs 500 with stamp
- Gazette
- No counter here; Speed Post to Civil Lines, Delhi 110054, two to four working days
Key takeaways
- Two statutory towns only, so most birth entries here are block records.
- Pre-1983 entries sit with the old Santhal Pargana district; Pakur entries from before 1994 may sit in Sahibganj.
- Paharia, Santali, Urdu and Bengali spellings in Hindi registers are corrections, not changes of name.
- On tenancy land the khatiyan spelling governs; Aadhaar is brought to it.
- There is no eligibility rule about pending cases, and no demand draft to any Jharkhand controller.
- Nothing about the gazette happens here; the file is built locally and posted to Delhi in your own name.
Which Office Holds Your Birth and Certificate Records in Sahibganj
| Where the record was made | Who holds it | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Sahibganj town and Rajmahal town | Their urban bodies, the district's two statutory towns | Apply for a Section 15 correction at the birth and death section of the one that issued it |
| Barharwa, Udhwa, Mandro and the census towns | The block registrar for that block | Apply at the block office; a census town is not a municipality |
| Borio, Barhait, Taljhari, Pathna, in the Damin-i-koh tract | Their own block registrars | The same; a certificate from one block is corrected only there |
| Any of the district's 1,349 inhabited 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 17 May 1983 | The old Santhal Pargana district, run from Dumka | Read the issuing office on the certificate and apply where it was written |
| A Pakur entry from before 28 January 1994 | Possibly a Sahibganj register, from when Pakur was its subdivision | Read the issuing office; it may be here rather than in Pakur |
| Land and revenue papers | The circle office for that block, against the khatiyan | Align other documents to the khatiyan spelling, not the other way round |
Why Sahibganj Holds Old Santhal Pargana and Pre-1994 Pakur Records
The district administration sets out the history in one sentence: the Rajmahal and Pakur subdivisions of the old Santhal Pargana district were carved out on 17 May 1983 to form Sahibganj district, and the Pakur subdivision of Sahibganj was then carved out on 28 January 1994 to constitute Pakur district. Two boundary changes in eleven years, and registers that stayed where they were written both times.
If your paper is older than 1983
It was written under the old Santhal Pargana district, whose headquarters was Dumka, and the correction is applied for where the entry lives. The Dumka page covers that side.
If you live in Pakur now
An entry made before January 1994, when Pakur was a subdivision of Sahibganj, may sit in a Sahibganj register. Travelling to the Pakur collectorate with such a certificate is the wasted trip of this belt.
If your school is older than the state
Anyone schooled before 2000 holds a Bihar School Examination Board certificate, and that board corrects it, not the Jharkhand Academic Council.
Damin-i-koh, Paharia Names and Tenancy Land in Sahibganj
The district's own profile divides Sahibganj into two regions. The first, made up of Borio, Mandro, Barhait, Pathna and Taljhari, lies in the Damin-i-koh tract, hills and slopes where Paharia, Mal Paharia and Santal families live. The second, Sahibganj, Rajmahal, Udhwa and Barharwa, is the plain along the Ganga. The name problems differ between them.
Names that cross languages
A Paharia or Santali name recorded by a Hindi-speaking clerk produces a written variant, not a new name. Two spellings of one name are a correction at the issuing office, or a public notice quoting the wrong spelling where a certificate cannot be corrected.
Why the ST certificate matters
For Paharia and Santal families the ST certificate and the Class 10 certificate together decide which spelling the file will use. Fix them to agree first, then everything else follows. The tribal surname page sets out the router.
Land in the tract
Damin-i-koh land carries its own history and sits under Santhal Pargana tenancy law, so the khatiyan spelling governs and an Aadhaar is brought to it. A name change is not a transfer and needs none of a transfer's permissions.
The Notary, the Newspapers and the Aadhaar Kendras in Sahibganj
The affidavit
Sworn before a notary at the district court; stamp paper and fee commonly Rs 100 to Rs 500 together. A notary is enough for a gazette file. Carry the typed wording and read every spelling back before signing, letter by letter.
The two notices
Booked at the classified desks of the Sahibganj 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 for families working outside the district.
The Gazette Route From Sahibganj: The Central Process, Step by Step and Paper by Paper
Everything before this happens in Sahibganj; this part does not. There is no gazette counter in Sahibganj, 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 this district the usual case is a Paharia, Santali, Urdu or Bengali 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 Sahibganj 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 Sahibganj, in Order, for a Name Change
Find the office that wrote the entry
One of two town bodies, one of nine block offices, Dumka for anything before May 1983, or Sahibganj itself for a Pakur entry from before January 1994.
Settle the spelling against the right anchor
The Class 10 certificate for a person, the ST certificate alongside it for Paharia and Santal families, and the khatiyan where land is involved.
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 Sahibganj
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 the hill blocks the school may be a long walk from home and the admission register may be decades old, so ask early whether it still exists and whether the original admission form survives. If the register carries the same spelling as the certificate, the board has nothing to correct against and the route becomes a public notice quoting the wrong form exactly. Anyone schooled here before 2000 holds a Bihar School Examination Board certificate, and that board corrects it.
What a Name Change Costs From Sahibganj
| 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 | Sahibganj 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 |
| Demand draft | Not accepted | No draft to any controller, in Jharkhand or elsewhere, since October 2018 |
| Speed Post to Delhi | At actual cost | Two to four working days from Sahibganj |
| Birth certificate correction | The block's or town body's own small fee | Section 15; a margin correction, the original entry is never erased |
| 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 Sahibganj
The myths the state pages carry
- "You must have no pending legal issues or criminal cases"; no such eligibility rule exists, and the only real limit is that a gazette is not a cover for fraud.
- "Apply online through the e-Gazette portal"; that portal shows published gazettes, it does not take applications.
- "A demand draft in favour of the Controller of Publications, Jharkhand"; drafts stopped in October 2018 and there is no Jharkhand controller.
- "Published in ten to fifteen days"; a Part IV notice commonly takes 30 to 45 days after a complete file arrives.
The local mistakes
- Going to the town body for a birth registered in a block or a census town.
- Applying in Pakur for an entry written before January 1994, when Pakur was part of Sahibganj.
- Applying in Sahibganj for an entry written before May 1983 under the old Santhal Pargana district.
- Correcting the khatiyan to match an Aadhaar card on Damin-i-koh land.
- Letting the ST certificate and the school certificate keep different spellings.
Sahibganj Name Change Terms Explained
- Statutory town
- A town with its own municipal body; Sahibganj district has only two, alongside six census towns.
- Census town
- A place counted as urban by the census but without a municipality; its births are registered by the block.
- Block and circle
- Each of the district's nine blocks is also a revenue circle, so the same name covers the birth register and the land record office.
- Damin-i-koh
- The hill tract covering the Borio, Barhait, Taljhari and Pathna blocks, with its own land history.
- Paharia and Mal Paharia
- Communities of the Rajmahal hills whose names cross from Malto into Hindi and English records, producing written variants.
- Khatiyan
- The record of rights in land; on tenancy land its spelling governs and other documents are aligned to it.
- Old Santhal Pargana district
- The district run from Dumka out of which Sahibganj was formed on 17 May 1983.
- 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.
- Anchor certificate
- The Class 10 certificate for a person's name, read alongside the ST certificate here; the khatiyan for land.
- Bihar board certificate
- A school certificate from before 2000, corrected by that board and not by JAC.
- 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 and downloaded free.
Name Change Help Across Sahibganj 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 Sahibganj documents on WhatsApp
Photograph the Class 10 certificate, the Aadhaar, the birth certificate with the office that issued it, and the ST certificate or khatiyan where they carry 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 your certificate names Pakur or the old Santhal Pargana district, we will tell you where to apply before you travel. 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 Sahibganj: Frequently Asked Questions
Is there a gazette office in Sahibganj?
I live in Pakur. Why would my record be in Sahibganj?
My certificate is from the 1970s. Where is that record?
Where do I correct a birth certificate in Sahibganj district?
My name is spelt one way in Paharia or Santali and another in Hindi. Do I need a gazette?
Is there a rule that I must have no pending court case?
Should I send a demand draft with the file?
My khatiyan and my Aadhaar spell my name differently. Which do I change?
Where do I make the affidavit in Sahibganj?
Which newspapers should I use in Sahibganj?
How long does it take from Sahibganj?
Do you have an office in Sahibganj?
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Official Sources for Sahibganj Name Changes
- Sahibganj district, about the districtThe 1983 formation, the Pakur carve-out and the block list in the administration's own words.
- Sahibganj subdivisions, blocks and circlesThe nine blocks and their circles, 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.
- BharatKoshThe only channel for the Government fee since October 2018.
Name Change in Sahibganj in Eight Lines
The short version
- Two statutory towns only; nine block registrars hold almost everything else.
- Pre-1983 entries belong to the old Santhal Pargana district at Dumka.
- Pakur entries from before January 1994 may sit in a Sahibganj register.
- Paharia, Santali, Urdu and Bengali spellings in Hindi registers are corrections.
- Get the ST certificate and the Class 10 certificate to agree first.
- On Damin-i-koh tenancy land the khatiyan spelling governs.
- No gazette counter here, no demand draft, no eligibility rule about court cases.
- Three to seven weeks end to end; Government fee commonly Rs 1,100, our charge quoted separately.
Two towns, nine blocks, two boundary changes: one register that matters
Send your documents on WhatsApp and hear which office wrote your entry before you travel to it.