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However Based on her own experience, Sylvia Murphy advised:'Within the general set of copies of presidency ecclesiastical records, is also to be found evidence that some British Subjects actually registered their children’s births. These are identified by the use of forms headed “Office of the Marriage Registrar, Calcutta” (for example), and although a baptism date is given, there is no Church name included to show where the child may have been baptised. It may be the case that such entries reflect births and baptisms of children whose parents belonged to a non-conformist denomination which did not make its own returns to the India Office. Other indications of Birth Registration occur in the 1940s and after independence. Lists of names and dates of birth of infants registered are to be found at least in the N/3 (Bombay) ecclesiastical returns for this period, but no detailed copies of actual registration information are available. Presumably these have been retained in the office(s) of the Registrar(s) in India'. The following India List post indicates that some records of European Births may be obtained from the Birth Registers held by Indian authorities, namely the local municipality. The [http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/INDIA/2009-12/1261288775 post] says ‘I was born in the Govt. Hospital in Ootacamund, and all I have as evidence is a birth register. No Birth certificate was issued, because they did not have such things. (Basically, this is a form that is filled out and copied from their register.) From what I understand, this is the norm and you would probably have to investigate the local government office of BMD's to get a copy’. This India List [http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/india/2007-07/1184123043 post] indicates that the local municipality is the responsible body.
→Birth Registration
==Birth Registration==
This British Library link [http://www.bl.uk/reshelp/findhelpregion/asia/india/indiaofficerecordsfamilyhistory/ecclesiastical/eccrecords.html Ecclesiastical Records] mentions Birth Registration in the context of those records. It says “Registration of births was not compulsory and very few are entered in the records. Registrations do not generally appear until the 1920s. Entries show date and place of birth, child's name, parents' names and their nationality and religion, father's occupation, date of registration.” An example of European Children entered in the Birth
Register, appearing in the Ecclesiastical Records at the British Library, is given in this India List [http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/INDIA/2009-12/1260877078 post].
It appears that Birth Registration has existed since the mid 19th century in some areas, but it is unknown to what extent records are available in India.
Births and deaths of British Subjects were registered with the British Residents of various Native or Princely States in India. These records form the N/5 series of the Ecclesiastical Records. For details, refer [[Princely States]]
Also refer [[Researchers and Document Services in India and the UK]]
