Sri Lankan authorities on July 22 announced that birth certificates for new born children in future will not mention their parents’ race, religion or the marital status. Registrar General of the Registrar General’s Department, N.C. Vithanage told local media that all details pertaining to marriage, ethnic group and religion will be removed from the application form for the registration of a birth in Sri Lanka although this was mandatory earlier.

Local media reports said that the decision was taken after many children in the country were reportedly facing issues due to the details of the marriage of parents, especially when enrolling a child in school. Under the new system, a 12-digit serial number is to be issued for all new birth certificates and this number can be used to obtain a national identity card when a child completes 15 years of age, Vithanage said.