• India
  • Oct 28

Explainer - Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP)

• Union Minister of Rural Development Shivraj Singh Chouhan said that nearly 95 per cent of land records, covering over 6.26 lakh villages, have been digitised in rural India since 2016, marking a critical advancement towards ensuring secure and accessible land ownership in rural areas.

• Rural India is undergoing a significant transformation with the digitisation of land records, modernising the management of land ownership. This initiative enhances transparency and efficiency in land administration, empowering millions of rural households. 

• The Department of Land Resources is implementing the Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP) through state/UT governments specifically to accelerate digitisation of land records, both textual and spatial to facilitate land related information to the citizens.

• Digitisation of cadastral maps has reached 68.02 per cent at national level. Additionally, 87 per cent of Sub-Registrar Offices have been integrated with land records. The government extended DILRMP until 2025-26, adding new features like Aadhaar-based integration with land records and computerisation of revenue courts.

Importance of digitisation process of land records

• Land, a finite natural resource, is not only the main source of livelihood of the majority of rural population but is also connected with the pride, emotions, and socio-economic values of the land owners and as such the land record showing their rights over land has immense value. 

• While the various welfare services and benefits of the government schemes primarily depend on the land records, a person, to avail these services/benefits based on land rights and also for transactions of land, has to visit various offices and places several times. 

• In our country, land administration and its management are diverse on account of language, culture, regions, topography, nomenclature and socio-economic factors. 

• In this milieu, digitisation of land records with accuracy and updated status and access to these by the public in easy and online mode becomes very important. 

• The land and its management is under the State List of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution.

• The Union government has always been assisting the states/UTs by way of financial assistance and technical support to digitised the land record and place the same in the public domain.

• Digitisation process of land records and registration will help mitigate the huge pendency of court cases involving land disputes, cutting down the loss to the country’s economy due to projects being stalled over such litigations.

• By leveraging modern technologies like geospatial mapping and unique land parcel identification, this initiative seeks to establish a more organised and efficient approach to managing land records. 

• This change is especially important for marginalised communities, as it empowers them with secure and accessible proof of ownership which is an essential factor for economic growth and stability. 

• As land records become clearer and more accessible, they pave the way for a more inclusive and equitable society, where every individual can claim their rightful place and contribute to the nation’s progress.

• It is expected to increase the effectiveness and efficiency of various services and benefits of the programmes of central and state departments related to agriculture and farmer welfare, chemical and fertilizer, public distribution system (PDS), Panchayati Raj and financial institutions.

• During land acquisitions or disasters, digital records ensure fair and timely compensation.

• Digitisation of land records have enabled people to get loans against their property, which was earlier not easily available. 

Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP)

The digitisation of land records initially started in the 1980s. There were two schemes under the Department of Land Resources (DoLR). They were:

i) Computerisation of Land Records (CLR).

ii) Strengthening of Revenue Administration and Updating of Land Records (SRA & ULR).

• In 2008, these two schemes were merged into one modified scheme in the shape of National Land Records Modernisation Programme (NLRMP), combining the key components of the two schemes and adding new components.

• Later, this scheme was made part of Digital India bouquet as a Central Sector Scheme and revamped and restructured as Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP) with 100 per cent central grant with effect from April 1, 2016.

• The scheme has now further been extended up to 2025-26 (co-terminus with Fifteenth Finance Commission) with the overall aim to place all the information available in respect of a piece of land at one place and make them easily accessible to the public trough Integrated Land Information Management System (ILIMS).

• The main objective of the DILRMP is to modernise the land records system in the country and to build up an integrated land information management system with up-to-date and real time land records on a continuous basis. 

• For this purpose, the two main systems of land records management and registration were integrated with the help of modern technology. 

• The system aims to provide real-time land information, optimize land use, benefit landowners and potential buyers, support policy-making, reduce land disputes, prevent fraudulent transactions, eliminate physical visits to offices, and enable data sharing with various organisations.

Components of DILRMP:

• Computerisation of land records.

• Survey/Re-Survey and updating of the survey & settlement records.

• Computerisation of registration.

• Modern record rooms

• Training and capacity building.

• Core GIS

• Legal changes

• Programme management.

Key initiatives under DILRMP:

i) Unique Land Parcel Identification Number: The ULPIN or ‘Bhu-Aadhaar’ provides a 14-digit alphanumeric code for each land parcel, based on its geo-coordinates. Implemented in 29 states/UTs, it helps streamline real estate transactions, resolve property disputes, and improve disaster management efforts.

ii) National Generic Document Registration System: NGDRS or e-Registration provides a uniform process for deed/document registration across the country, allowing online entry, payments, appointments, and document searches. So far, 18 states/UTs have adopted it, and 12 others share data with the national portal.

iii) e-Court Integration: Linking land records with e-Courts aims to provide authentic land information to the judiciary, aiding in faster case resolution and reducing land disputes. Integration has been cleared in 26 states/UTs.

iv) Transliteration of Land Records: To overcome language barriers in accessing land records, the programme is transliterating land documents into any of the 22 languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Indian Constitution. This is already in use in 17 states/UTs.

v) Bhoomi Samman: Under this initiative, 168 districts across 16 states have achieved “Platinum Grading” for completing over 99 per cent of the programme’s core components, including land record computerisation and map digitisation.

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