Earlier, physical presence at the Sub-Registrar office for marriage registration was mandatory
The Uniform Civil Code (UCC) in Uttarakhand is going to complete one year on the upcoming January 27. Along with establishing empowerment for women, protection of child rights and equality in civil rights, a significant contribution of the UCC has been in the form of the simplification of processes. This is the reason why 4,74,447 marriages have been registered in less than a year since the implementation of the UCC. Now, husband and wife are getting their marriage registration done through the online method from anywhere. Previously, they were forced to appear at the Sub-Registrar office with two witnesses on a scheduled date.
Before the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code, marriages were registered under the ‘Uttarakhand Compulsory Registration of Marriages Act, 2010’. This entire process was offline; therefore, the husband and wife had to be present at the Sub-Registrar office with two witnesses for marriage registration. However, under the UCC, nearly 100 percent of marriage registrations are being done through the online medium, in which the couple or witnesses can apply for registration by recording their records and video statements from anywhere. This is why, in less than a year after the implementation of the UCC, 4,74,447 marriage registrations have been completed by the afternoon of Monday, January 19, 2026. In this way, the average number of daily registrations is reaching close to 1400, whereas under the previous act, the daily average for marriage registration was 67. Not only this, during this period, 316 people have obtained certificates for divorce through the online medium, 68 for entering a live-in relationship, while 2 have obtained certificates for terminating a live-in relationship.
Registration in five days on average
Although a 15-day time limit is fixed for issuing a marriage registration certificate after application under the UCC, the registration certificate is being received within an average of five days after applying. In contrast, under the old act, the applicants had to be physically present at the registration office and there was no fixed time limit for marriage registration.
“By implementing the Uniform Civil Code, Uttarakhand has shown the way to other states. The transparency and simplicity with which the provisions of the UCC have been implemented in the past year have increased people’s trust in the entire process. This is the reason why a large number of people are now registering under the UCC. The Uttarakhand Uniform Civil Code has proven to be a model law in every way.”Pushkar Singh Dhami, Chief Minister Uttarakhand
