SOURCE :- SIASAT NEWS
Hyderabad: Two civil society organisations have written to Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy seeking urgent measures to ensure the timely issuance of permanent residency, caste and family member certificates in the wake of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls that began in the state on June 25.
In a joint representation, the Association for Socio-Economic Empowerment of the Marginalised (ASEEM) and the Adalah Access to Justice Network told the Chief Minister that the limited timeframe for the SIR exercise had made it necessary for the state to intervene immediately to ease documentation-related hardships faced by vulnerable sections.
The organisations said their field-level interactions had shown that elderly people, women, migrant workers, economically weaker sections and other vulnerable groups who had applied, or were planning to apply, for essential certificates were likely to struggle to establish their age, identity, continuity of residence and family linkage.
Delays in obtaining such records, they said, could unintentionally hinder people’s electoral participation.
The letter pointed out that permanent residence or nativity certificates, which used to be issued in the erstwhile united Andhra Pradesh to establish continuity of residence, are currently not being issued in Telangana. This, the organisations said, has created a documentary gap for people whose old family records are incomplete or untraceable.
Demand for fast-track counters, relaxed norms
The two organisations sought the restoration of permanent residence certificates, or an equivalent mechanism, along with the setting up of Tatkal or fast-track counters dedicated to issuing residence, caste, family member and other certificates required for the SIR process.
They also asked the government to ensure that minor documentary deficiencies did not result in hardship for applicants, and that alternative records be accepted wherever legally permissible. They also sought statewide instructions from the government to ensure uniform and fair implementation of the certificate issuance process during the SIR exercise.
ASEEM and Adalah said timely intervention at this stage would help strengthen public confidence in the process and ensure that citizens were not denied their rights due to delays or procedural hurdles beyond their control.
SOURCE : SIASAT
