India, July 21 -- In a shocking case of alleged administrative error, a resident of Ranalai village under R. Udayagiri block in Odisha's Gajapati district has been declared "dead" in government records despite being alive, leaving him unable to access essential welfare benefits.

The affected resident, Jakhariya Pal, approached the Gajapati District Collector after discovering that his Aadhaar had been deactivated because he was mistakenly marked as deceased in official records.

According to the complaint, Pal came to know about the error when he was denied food grains under the Public Distribution System (PDS) through his ration card. Although he possesses a valid Aadhaar card, an online verification showed him as dead, leading to the ...