Odisha now provides online death-registration and certificate services through the Odisha Birth & Death Registration System (OBDRS). The portal serves rural and urban registration units across the State and provides certificate applications, registration status, corrections, domiciliary registration and certificate download/status facilities.
How to Apply for a Death Certificate Online in Odisha
A death certificate can be applied for after the death event has been registered with the concerned Registrar. OBDRS provides a dedicated online service for applying for birth and death certificates using available registration details.
Visit the official Odisha Birth & Death Registration System.
Choose the death-certificate service and select the district and concerned registration unit.
Provide the date of death and the identifying information requested by the portal.
Depending on the current portal screen, you may be able to search by registration number, institutional request number, registered mobile number or other permitted details.
Verify the record, enter the applicant information requested and complete any applicable payment or submission steps displayed by OBDRS.
Save the application/reference number for checking status and downloading the certificate later.
Check Application Status and Download Death Certificate
OBDRS has a dedicated Death Application Status/Download Certificate service. The current form asks users to select the district and registration unit and enter the date of death. A search can then be made using one of the available identifiers.
| Search option shown by OBDRS | What to keep ready |
|---|---|
| Application Number | The application number generated when the certificate request was submitted |
| Registration Number | The official death registration number |
| Registered Mobile Number | The mobile number linked with the request, where applicable |
| Request Number | The relevant online/institutional request number, if available |
| Other Details | Details such as deceased name, parent details, gender or hospital, as requested by the portal |
Check Status / Download Certificate
Check Death Registration Status
The separate Registration Status service can be used to verify whether the death event itself has been registered. This is useful where a certificate has not yet been applied for or where the family first needs to confirm that the registration record exists.
Correction of an Odisha Death Registration
OBDRS provides a Registration Correction service for correcting a registered event. Use the correction facility rather than creating a duplicate registration. The portal may ask for the district, registration unit, date of death and an application or registration number.
Domiciliary / Home Death Registration
OBDRS also provides Domiciliary Registration. The portal describes this facility as enabling a household to submit a report of a birth or death event to the concerned authority for registration. It is relevant where the death occurred outside an institution and the event has not already been reported through an institutional registration process.
Latest Law Governing Death Registration
Death registration in India is governed principally by the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969. The Act was amended by the Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2023, which came into force on 1 October 2023.
The amended law supports digital registration and electronic delivery of birth and death certificates. It also strengthens the framework for medical certification of cause of death and modernises procedures for delayed registration.
Under the amended framework, delayed reporting of an event occurring more than thirty days but less than one year earlier may be supported by prescribed self-attested documents rather than the older notarised-affidavit requirement. For reporting delayed beyond one year, the authorising authority is the District Magistrate, Sub-Divisional Magistrate or an Executive Magistrate authorised by the District Magistrate, subject to the applicable State rules and verification.
Medical Certification of Cause of Death
The amended statutory framework also contains provisions relating to medical certification of the cause of death. Odisha OBDRS publishes the prescribed forms, including a medical certificate of cause of death for non-institutional deaths. The death certificate and the medical cause-of-death certificate are distinct documents and should not be treated as interchangeable.
| Topic | Current position |
|---|---|
| Principal law | Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 |
| Major amendment | Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2023 |
| Effective date of amendment | 1 October 2023 |
| Odisha portal | Odisha Birth & Death Registration System (OBDRS) |
| Key online services | Apply certificate, registration status, correction, domiciliary registration, application status and certificate download |
Information to Keep Ready
Keep the date of death, deceased person's name and relevant registration/application details ready. Depending on the service, the portal may also require the district, registration unit, registered mobile number, institutional or online request number, hospital details and applicant information. For a physical certificate application at a registration-unit counter, Odisha also publishes an application form that asks for deceased details, place of death, applicant relationship and applicant ID proof.
OBDRS Central Helpdesk
The official OBDRS portal lists its Central Helpdesk at the Directorate of Health Intelligence & Vital Statistics, Government of Odisha, Heads of Department Building, Bhubaneswar - 751001.
| Phone | +91 7064224290, +91 8260016906, +91 8984289770 |
|---|---|
| obdrs.helpdesk@odisha.gov.in | |
| Phone support | 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM, excluding Sundays, State Government holidays and declared holidays |
Important Tips
- Use OBDRS instead of relying on old ULB Odisha screenshots or legacy URLs.
- Confirm that the death event has been registered before applying for a certificate.
- Keep the application, registration or request number for future tracking.
- Use the correction process for errors in an existing registration instead of submitting a duplicate registration.
- For delayed registration, follow the current statutory procedure and the directions of the concerned Registrar.