Pune document registration was disrupted at several sub-registrar offices on Monday and Tuesday after a technical failure in the online Aadhaar authentication system coincided with confusion over the implementation of a new government circular, according to a report by Sakal – Pune.
Citizens visiting offices including Haveli Nos. 2 and 12 faced delays in completing property and other document registrations. The disruption affected people who had arrived after arranging the required paperwork, stamp duty, witnesses and other formalities. Some applicants were also required to wait for the Aadhaar verification system to become operational before their documents could proceed.
The disruption created additional pressure at the offices because documents left pending from earlier appointments added to the next day’s workload. Crowds increased at registration centres, with around 80 to 100 citizens reportedly waiting at each office. Applicants who had travelled from outside Pune faced the possibility of making another trip if their registration could not be completed.
The impact was particularly severe for senior citizens, women and people with health or mobility difficulties. At the Haveli No. 12 sub-registrar office in Kondhwa, 63-year-old Savarna Jaykumar Shah travelled from Belsar in Purandar taluka to register a sale deed for agricultural land. She uses a wheelchair because of her health condition.
Shah’s registration process began in the afternoon, but the Aadhaar authentication system stopped working before the process could be completed. She remained at the office for several hours while staff waited for the system to be restored. Even after the technical system became operational in the evening, she was reportedly told that the registration could not be completed because of the new government circular. Her work therefore remained unfinished despite the full day spent at the office.
Advocate Ravi Sambhaji Kamthe, who represented Shah, said citizens arrive at government offices after making all the necessary preparations and should not be required to return repeatedly because of technical failures or uncertainty over new rules. He said additional sensitivity was necessary when dealing with senior citizens and people with disabilities.
Advocate Rashmi Surana also called for stronger systems to manage technical problems and communicate procedural changes to citizens at Haveli No. 2 and other sub-registrar offices. The disruption showed how a failure in a digital verification system can interrupt a process that still requires physical attendance, documents, witnesses and payment arrangements.
Abhay Singh Mohite, Deputy Inspector General of Registration, Pune, said the registration service had not remained closed for two days. He said the problem arose on Monday afternoon because of a failure in the internet router used by the state government’s Aadhaar service provider, and that registration services were restored by the evening.
