<p>Aligarh (UP): For three years now, 58-year-old Saroj Devi has been 'dead' -- at least according to official records.</p><p>During this time, the woman -- very much alive -- ran from pillar to post to get the clerical error rectified, only to meet "official apathy", she claimed.</p>.Uttar Pradesh cops take shoes as bribe.<p>Now, after years of ordeal, the administration has finally taken up Saroj Devi's case on priority to rectify the error, an official said.</p><p>What began as a routine application for her husband's death certificate in 2022 turned into a bureaucratic nightmare when officials mistakenly issued Saroj Devi her own death certificate.</p><p>The error, recorded on January 1, 2022, triggered a cascade of problems: her <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/search?q=aadhar">Aadhaar</a> was deactivated, while the basic services tied to identity verification also became inaccessible, plunging her into daily hardships.</p><p>A resident of Chamar Nagaria village in Khair tehsil, Saroj Devi lost her husband, Jagdish Prasad, in 2020. But the clerical blunder while seeking closure over her husband's passing pushed her into an administrative limbo where she "ceased to exist" on official records.</p><p>Her ordeal came to public attention on November 15 when she raised the matter at a Tehsil Diwas grievance forum, pleading before senior officials to restore her identity, and her 'life'.</p><p>Saroj Devi told officials she had been running from one government office to another ever since the erroneous certificate was issued, but 'administrative laxity' stalled the correction process.</p><p>Khair Sub-Divisional Magistrate Shishir Kumar said the matter has now been taken up on priority.</p><p>"The issue is being rectified with urgency," he said, assuring that necessary corrections are being made.</p><p>For Saroj Devi, the cogs of the administrative machinery may finally turn -- bringing hope that she will soon be 'alive' again, officially. </p>
<p>Aligarh (UP): For three years now, 58-year-old Saroj Devi has been 'dead' -- at least according to official records.</p><p>During this time, the woman -- very much alive -- ran from pillar to post to get the clerical error rectified, only to meet "official apathy", she claimed.</p>.Uttar Pradesh cops take shoes as bribe.<p>Now, after years of ordeal, the administration has finally taken up Saroj Devi's case on priority to rectify the error, an official said.</p><p>What began as a routine application for her husband's death certificate in 2022 turned into a bureaucratic nightmare when officials mistakenly issued Saroj Devi her own death certificate.</p><p>The error, recorded on January 1, 2022, triggered a cascade of problems: her <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/search?q=aadhar">Aadhaar</a> was deactivated, while the basic services tied to identity verification also became inaccessible, plunging her into daily hardships.</p><p>A resident of Chamar Nagaria village in Khair tehsil, Saroj Devi lost her husband, Jagdish Prasad, in 2020. But the clerical blunder while seeking closure over her husband's passing pushed her into an administrative limbo where she "ceased to exist" on official records.</p><p>Her ordeal came to public attention on November 15 when she raised the matter at a Tehsil Diwas grievance forum, pleading before senior officials to restore her identity, and her 'life'.</p><p>Saroj Devi told officials she had been running from one government office to another ever since the erroneous certificate was issued, but 'administrative laxity' stalled the correction process.</p><p>Khair Sub-Divisional Magistrate Shishir Kumar said the matter has now been taken up on priority.</p><p>"The issue is being rectified with urgency," he said, assuring that necessary corrections are being made.</p><p>For Saroj Devi, the cogs of the administrative machinery may finally turn -- bringing hope that she will soon be 'alive' again, officially. </p>