Gandhinagar: A 15-year-old error in Gujarat’s digitised ration card database sparked a controversy on Monday after it emerged that the locality of 48 families in Patan district was recorded as ‘Islampura’ instead of ‘Zapatpara’ on official documents. The district administration clarified that the discrepancy stemmed from a data entry error during the digitisation of ration cards in 2011 and said it would be corrected within the next few days.

The issue came to light after the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) raised objections, prompting BJP MP Bharatsinh Dabhi to seek clarification from the Patan district administration amid speculation that the locality had been officially renamed.

However, district officials denied any such move, stating that the error originated during the digitisation and barcoding of ration cards around 15 years ago. They said only 48 ration cards carried the name ‘Islampura’ instead of ‘Zapatpara’, which is now part of Harij municipality but has never been officially renamed.

Patan Collector Prashant Jilova said the state government had not proposed renaming Zapatpara. He explained that during the 2011 digitisation exercise, some residents had provided their address as ‘Islampura’, as the area around the village mosque was locally known by that name. Those details were subsequently reflected in the official database.

Officials said applicants were required to provide their residential addresses while updating ration card records, and those who mentioned ‘Islampura’ inadvertently had it recorded as the village name on their ration cards.

Sub-Divisional Magistrate D.K. Majetar said the Harij Mamlatdar had been directed to examine the matter.

Harij Mamlatdar Virendra Vamdev said the rectification process had already begun, and the incorrect entries were being corrected wherever required. DeshGujarat