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The Kerala Cabinet has taken an in-principle decision to introduce a permanent, photo-embedded nativity card to replace the existing nativity certificate.
The Cabinet, which met on December 24, approved the proposal to issue the card as a legally valid identity document that can be used permanently for accessing State government services and meeting various social requirements.
The Revenue Department has been asked to prepare a draft law, in consultation with the Law Department, to provide statutory validity to the proposed card. Tahsildars will be responsible for issuing the cards, which are also intended to function as beneficiary identification documents for government schemes.
Explaining the rationale behind the decision, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the move is aimed at preventing situations where people are forced to repeatedly establish their identity or place of residence. “It is alarming that citizens have to struggle to prove their own existence. Everyone should be able to easily establish that they were born and live here, or that they are permanent residents of this land,” he said, adding that no individual should ever face the risk of being excluded.
He pointed out that the existing nativity certificate does not carry legal validity and often has to be obtained multiple times, causing hardship to the public. “The proposed card will be an authoritative document with legal backing that can be used at all times for government services and other social needs,” the Chief Minister said.
The decision has, however, drawn sharp criticism from the BJP. Senior party leader and former Union Minister V Muraleedharan questioned the need for another identity document, arguing that issues related to citizenship fall under the jurisdiction of the Centre. He alleged that the initiative was politically motivated and accused the State government of wasting public funds, claiming that Aadhaar already contains comprehensive personal information.
Muraleedharan also alleged that the Left government has a track record of announcing projects that burden the public exchequer without delivering meaningful benefits, and urged the government to withdraw what he described as an unnecessary move.