Andhra Pradesh Govt has made a long-pending beginning among States by deciding to re-survey all land records to ensure that all title deeds are clean

Land litigation is a nightmare across the country. Land records are not readily available or updated. Registration of land is a cumbersome affair. Proving land ownership is tough. The Andhra Pradesh Government has decided to rectify the situation by ordering a re-survey of land records in a phased manner so that legal title deeds are handed over to the property owners by the end of 2023.

In the first phase, land was re-surveyed in a set of village and new land records have been made available. The process is to be carried out in a phased manner across the state and completed by June 2023.

The process, initiated by Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, will cost `1000 crore involving thousands of survey teams and the latest geo-tagging and satellite mapping technologies. Once the land is marked afresh, an identity card is issued specific to the coordinates of the land determined digitally. The card will have a QR code along with a map of the land.

The prime reason for land litigation is attributed to the land records dating back to the colonial era which have never been touched for any re-survey to check the authenticity of the ownership. Interestingly, civil litigants had to spend an average of `497 per day on court hearings, according to a survey done some time back.

A World Bank study suggests that these land disputes in courts include those related to the validity of land titles and records, and rightful ownership, and for years together the cases are pending before disposal. A NITI Ayog paper points out that land disputes on an average take about 20 years to be resolved.

Another interesting aspect is benami transactions are taking place in the absence of proper land document. The White Paper on Black Money released in 2012 had noted that black money generated in the country gets invested in benami properties. 

While this is the scenario all over the country, the situation is no different in Andhra Pradesh which prompted Chief MinisterJagan Mohan Reddy to straighten the land records system once and for all.

It may be mentioned here that the system of land records was inherited from the zamindari system and post-Independence, the responsibility for land administration was transferred to states.

Most of the 6.4 lakh villages in the country were surveyed and their cadastral maps prepared during the late 19th and early 20th century. In Andhra Pradesh too survey of lands had taken place during British Rule in 1927-28.

The scheme initiated by Jagan Mohan Reddy is the first of its kind in the country to accord permanent land rights to the legal owners with an aim to providing land protection legally. This initiative is aimed at making land-related transactions convenient and dispute-free, giving owners permanent land rights with the state Government’s assurance. Under the Jagananna Sashwata Bhoohakku (permanent land rights) Bhoo Raksha (land protection) scheme, the land resurvey records are now being digitised and maintained in a transparent manner.

It was during his historic ‘Praja Sankalpa Yatra’ covering 3,468 km walking through 2,516 villages in 134 Assembly segments of the state in a span of 341 days between November 6, 2017 and January 9, 2019 that the YSRCP Chief understood the fate of legal land owners who were facing litigation for years together. He had seen how people rued when their plot, house, farm, and other lands fell into litigation after they had purchased them with their hard-earned money. After taking over as Chief Minister one of his priorities is to attend to the issue and launched the historic scheme.

A beginning was made in Takkellapadu village near Jaggaiahpet in Krishna district on December 21, 2020 when the CM formally commenced survey process. Ten days before formally launching the scheme, the Andhra Pradesh Government signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Survey of India to kick-start one of the largest land and house ownership surveys.

The land resurvey was started with a budget of around `1,000 crores. Around 14,000 surveyors have been appointed by the government and given training by Survey of India for the survey. In exact figures, the survey covers 1.26 crore acres of agricultural land in 17,000 villages, 85 lakh acres of non-agriculture lands of Government and private owners within the limits of 13,371 villages, 40 lakh government and private properties and 10 lakh plots in 110 urban areas. Once the process is done, every land parcel that is surveyed is being given a unique identification number.

Keeping the laborious process in view, the entire programme is scheduled to complete in three phases.  Around 5,000 villages are programmed to be covered in the first phase, 6,500 villages in the second phase, and 5,500 villages in the third phase.

The state Government has also set up mobile tribunals to solve land disputes on the spot.

While launching the initiative the CM had made it clear to the teams that “With every new survey, accurate revenue records are to be prepared for every immovable property with exact latitude and longitude, using advanced instruments like drones, Continuous Operating Reference Stations (CORS) and Rovers”. Survey stones are to be installed once the marking of the land is completed. A digitised cadastral should be prepared after the completion of the survey and all details of the lands in the village are to be reflected in the maps, the CM instructed.

Thus, yet another dream projectJagan Mohan Reddy came into reality on January 18 last when he launched the registration process in 37 villages of Guntur district as part of first phase. He was happy that in the first phase resurvey was completed in 51 villages covering 29,563 acres. On the occasion, the CM asserted that the resurvey would ensure no scope for any future litigation and the land deals can be carried out at village level with the implementation of the scheme.

Mandal Mobile Magistrate teams which are specially drafted have scrutinised 3,304 objections that were registered in 51 villages and resolved them making way for the officials to issue Permanent Land Right Certificates. As per the programme, once resurvey is completed, registrations are done at village secretariat level. 

Even before the first phase process is in progress, the Maharastra government has evinced keen interest in the scheme and has sent a team of 11 senior officials led by Maharashtra survey settlement commissioner Niranjan Kumar Sudanshu to study the land and the survey project being implemented. He appreciated the efforts of the AP Government and felt that the resurvey of lands can be a viable solution to the decades-old survey problems.

Terming the YSR Jagananna Saswata BhooHakku and Bhoo Raksha scheme as a great reform and revolutionary step, the Chief Minister has said that the resurvey of lands has been taken up after 100 years and the Government is committed to providing clear title deeds to the rightful owners after proper and scientific resurvey.

(The writer is Advisor, National Media and Inter-State Affairs,Government of Andhra Pradesh. The views expressed are personal.)