T.N. govt. to establish five Model Registration Hubs in first phase

CHENNAI The Tamil Nadu government has accorded sanction for setting up Model Registration Hubs (MRH) at five locations across the State in the first phase at a cost of ₹7.84 crore on a pilot basis, with plans to expand the initiative to 20 more locations in subsequent phases. A Government Order to this effect has been issued by the Commercial Taxes and Registration Department. The MRH will be established in the Chennai North, Chennai Central, Chennai South, Chengalpattu and Coimbatore registration districts in the first phase.

The MRH concept expands the single-window, jurisdiction-free registration facility, enabling citizens to register documents and marriages at any MRH of their choice, irrespective of the territorial jurisdiction of the Sub-Registrar Office concerned over the property or the parties involved, the order said. The MRH have been classified into three categories based on the volume of document and marriage registrations, while retaining uniform service standards and a consistent citizen experience.

The Category I MRH will have an area of 8,000 sq. ft., seating capacity for 100 people with 20 workstations. The Category II MRH will have 5,000 sq. ft., with seating for 75 people with 15 workstations, while the Category III MRH will have an area of 3,000 sq. ft., seating for 50 people with 10 workstations. All three categories will be equipped with the necessary IT and non-IT equipment.

The capital expenditure and operational responsibilities for establishing and running the MRH will be entrusted to a Managed Service Provider (MSP) selected through a competitive tendering process. However, all statutory registration processes will remain with the Sub-Registrar concerned. The order also noted no additional posts would be created for establishing these MRHs and District Registrars and Sub-Registrars would be redeployed to staff these facilities.

The MRH will offer two types of services such as standard and premium. The fee for standard document and marriage registration services has been fixed at ₹2,000, while the fee for tatkal standard services will be ₹5,000. The revenue will be shared between the Registration Department and the service provider in an 80:20 ratio. The fee for premium document and marriage registration services has been fixed at ₹5,000, with the revenue shared equally between the department and the service provider, while the fee for tatkal premium services will be ₹10,000, with the revenue shared in a 65:35 ratio, the order added.