State govt digitises 34.29 crore old land documents in over six months, says Krishna Byre Gowda

The State government has digitised 34.29 crore pages of old land records at taluk offices across the State through scanning in over six months, Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda said in Udupi on Wednesday.

Speaking to press persons after reviewing the functioning of the Revenue Department at a meeting in Udupi, the Minister said that the digitisation project aims to scan 100 crore pages. The digitisation process began in January. Tahsildars have been instructed to complete the remaining work by December-end.

He said that the records were being digitised, as many old paper-based land records are degenerating and brittle due to age. The ownership documents will have to be preserved. Without proper land documents, farmers face disputes and prolonged litigation.

Once digitised, certified copies of land ownership documents will be made available to farmers and landowners through the Bhu Suraksha portal or local Nadakacheris, eliminating the need for unnecessary visits to taluk offices, the Minister said.

Mr. Gowda said that over 1.13 lakh pages of digital land documents have been distributed to farmers now. This process will reduce chances of forgery and enhance record security.

Podi document

The Minister said under the ‘Nanna Bhoomi Darkhast’ campaign, 1,11,754 farmers who had received land from the government have now been issued with podi (land demarcation document) in the State, enabling them to deal with the property legally. With this, farmers will have rightful land documents for formal transactions, the Minister said.

Earlier, speaking at the meeting, the Minister instructed the revenue officials in Udupi to issue podi documents to 10,000 persons in the district.

The Minister said that title deeds under Bagar Hukum should have been distributed to 687 persons in the district. But the deed documents have been issued to only nine persons. They should be given to the remaining by August 15.

Deputy Commissioner T.K. Swaroopa, Chief Executive Officer of Udupi Zilla Panchayat, and Pratheek Bayal were present at the meeting.