How Digital Land Records Are Reshaping Rural Ownership in Vidarbha

thenewsdirt
6 days ago
5 min read

Land disputes have plagued rural Vidarbha for decades, with farmers caught in legal battles that stretch for years.

The Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme (DILRMP), launched in 2016, promised to transform this landscape by bringing transparency and efficiency to land ownership documentation.

In Vidarbha, this digital transformation carries particular significance. The region's complex land tenure systems and historical disputes have created a web of ownership confusion that affects thousands of farmers.

As Maharashtra moves towards a fully digital system by August 2025, Vidarbha's experience offers insights into both the potential and limitations of this ambitious modernisation effort.

Digital Leap Forward for Vidarbha

Maharashtra has positioned itself as a leader in land record digitisation, with efforts tracing back to 1990 when a pilot project was initiated in Wardha district.

The state achieved a remarkable milestone by December 2023, completing over 99% computerisation of Record of Rights (RoRs), the essential documents that establish land ownership. This achievement covers nearly all villages across the state, making land records accessible through the Mahabhulekh portal.

The financial commitment to this transformation has been substantial. Reports from 2018 indicated the state had invested ₹90 crore in the initiative, with plans to digitise land maps and approximately 2.5 crore revenue documents.

By 2024, national figures showed 95% of maps and 98.5% of rural land records had been digitised, with Maharashtra among the top performers.

Districts within Vidarbha have witnessed significant progress. Nagpur's district administration has implemented comprehensive measures ensuring land records are accurate and accessible, allowing residents to view and download digitally signed 7/12 extracts and property cards online.

This development has reduced reliance on physical visits to government offices, streamlining processes that once required multiple trips and long queues. The transformation across Vidarbha's 11 districts demonstrates the programme's potential to modernise rural land administration.

The state has also made substantial progress in digitising cadastral maps, which define land boundaries, and integrating these with RoRs to ensure consistency between textual and spatial data.

A July 2025 announcement indicated that paper-based applications for land record corrections would be discontinued from August 2025, signalling confidence in the digital infrastructure's robustness.

Training programmes for local officials and citizens have been launched to facilitate the adoption of digital platforms, particularly in rural areas.

The introduction of the Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN) or Bhu-Aadhaar, with 23 crore land parcels assigned nationwide by 2024, further enhances system efficiency by providing a unique identifier for each land parcel.

Implementation Challenges in Tribal Areas

Despite impressive progress statistics, Vidarbha faces significant implementation challenges, particularly in areas with complex land tenure issues.

The most striking example is the Jiwti block in Chandrapur district, where land record mutations have been suspended for two years due to historical disputes and discrepancies in land classification. This situation highlights the unique complexities that Vidarbha's rural communities encounter in the digitisation process.

The region comprises 83 villages and is home to Adivasi communities, including Gond, Pardhan, and PVTG Kolam tribes.

These communities face a peculiar predicament. Their lands have been deemed forest by court orders, despite being used for agriculture and industrial activities. This legal ambiguity stems from cases like the Ulhas Bommewar Writ Petition (No. 3669/2009), which has prevented both manual and computerised mutations.

The suspension has created a cascade of problems for Adivasi communities. They cannot update records to reflect rights granted under the Forest Rights Act, 2006, leaving them unable to access crop loans from institutions like Vidarbha Konkan Grameen Bank, which require updated 7/12 records.

Villages such as Bhuri Yesapur, Tatakohad, and Singarpathar face particular difficulties in accessing financial services essential for agricultural activities.

Similar challenges likely exist in other Vidarbha districts with significant tribal populations, such as Gadchiroli and Yavatmal, where historical land tenure systems and forest land classifications complicate digitisation efforts.

These areas often have overlapping claims between revenue and forest departments, creating discrepancies that hinder record integration into digital systems. The experience across Vidarbha's tribal belt underscores the need for specialised approaches to address these complex issues.

Technological barriers further impede progress in rural areas. Limited internet connectivity and low digital literacy among residents, especially older generations and marginalised groups, make it challenging to navigate online portals like Mahabhulekh.

Many rural citizens lack access to smartphones or reliable internet, and those who do may struggle with the technical skills required to use digital platforms effectively.

Administrative challenges also play a significant role. Digitising land records requires meticulous verification to ensure accuracy, and discrepancies between physical and digital records can lead to confusion and potential disputes.

In Jiwti block, a proposal to address mutation issues has been forwarded to the Settlement Commissioner in Pune, but no response has been received, highlighting administrative delays that frustrate communities seeking resolution.

Impact on Disputes and Ownership Clarity

The digitisation of land records under DILRMP is positioned to significantly reduce land disputes and clarify ownership in Vidarbha, where such issues are prevalent.

Land disputes in India account for a substantial portion of civil litigation, with 66% of civil cases related to land or property and an average pendency of 20 years for land acquisition disputes.

By providing accurate, up-to-date records online, DILRMP enhances transparency and reduces scope for fraudulent transactions. In the Amravati district, farmers can verify ownership details before transactions, preventing fraudulent sales and reducing legal conflicts. The integration of land records with registration systems ensures that changes in ownership are promptly reflected, minimising disputes arising from outdated information.

The Mahabhulekh portal's provision of digitally signed 7/12 extracts and property cards allows citizens to access reliable records without intermediaries, saving time and reducing corruption risks.

The National Generic Document Registration System (NGDRS), implemented in Maharashtra, further streamlines deed registration, enhancing efficiency.

The ultimate goal of DILRMP is a conclusive titling system with title guarantees that promises to secure land ownership, a critical asset for agricultural communities in Vidarbha.

This system would replace the current presumptive title system, reducing litigation by providing legal certainty. In districts like Nagpur, where urban and rural land transactions are common, this could facilitate smoother property transfers and support economic development.

By reducing land disputes, DILRMP enables farmers to focus on productive activities, contributing to social stability and economic growth. The programme's success in areas where it has been fully implemented demonstrates its potential to transform land management, though challenges in tribal areas highlight the need for tailored approaches to complex historical and legal issues.

As Maharashtra prepares to fully digitalise its land record system by August 2025, the experience in Vidarbha offers valuable lessons about the complexities of modernising land administration.

The region's farmers and landowners stand to benefit significantly from reduced disputes and clearer ownership documentation, but challenges such as historical disputes, technological limitations, and administrative delays require targeted interventions.

The success stories from districts like Nagpur and Amravati demonstrate the programme's potential to transform land management, while the difficulties in places like Jiwti block in Chandrapur highlight the need for specialised approaches to resolve complex legal and administrative issues.

The integration of revenue and registration systems, while showing progress, still requires further development to achieve full efficiency.

The Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme represents a significant step towards modernising land administration in Vidarbha, offering a pathway to greater transparency and efficiency in land management.

The programme's impact on reducing corruption, streamlining processes, and providing legal certainty positions it as a crucial component of rural development in the region.