The Indian Express 29.10.2013
Plan for digital signatures on birth, death certificates
Birth and death certificates issued by BMC could soon be signed by
the health officers concerned through digital signatures if a proposal
passed on to the administration is passed. The proposal, submitted by
Samajwadi Party corporator Rais Shaikh, came up for review Monday at a
general body meeting.
Shaikh said, “At times, citizens have to wait for hours for
health officials, usually the medical health officer, to get a signature
on applications. With digital signatures, the official can sign and
validate a certificate from anywhere. This will reduce administrative
delay.”
The digital signatures will be password-protected and health
officers can approve applications online at a convenient time, making it
possible to authorise applications faster.
BJP leader Dilip Patel objected to the proposal, saying that use of digital signatures could lead to “fraud and duplication”.
