Centre targets December for digitisation of land right records

The central government is aiming for a 100% digitisation of land right records by December across the country, barring north-eastern states and Ladakh, a senior official said. This would be a significant step in paving the way for future land reforms in the country to spur economic growth, he added.

So far, 372.12 million, or 99.8%, of available land records, have been digitised, according to the latest land resources department data. Similarly, 97.3% of cadastral maps have been digitised. As many as 89.7% of revenue courts and all the sub-registrar offices across the country have been computerised.

The Centre is in regular talks with states to remove any remaining hurdles in the digitisation efforts, the official said.

Records are not available in most parts of the north-eastern states due to the community ownership of land. Ladakh started the digitisation of land records a couple of years ago and will need some more time to wrap up the exercise, the official said.

Land reforms are among the most critical measures that the government is planning to initiate to bolster the market and drive up economic expansion over the medium-to-long term amid tariff and other global headwinds.

Senior finance ministry officials have already stated that land reforms would be undertaken without snatching away ownership from people. The digitisation of land ownerships is an absolute prerequisite for that.

The land resources department had launched the Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme in 2016 by revamping an earlier scheme to improve real-time information on land rights, optimise the use of land resources, reduce the scope of disputes and improve transparency in such record maintenance systems. The central government fully funds this programme, which is implemented with the help of states.