Dharani portal since its introduction four years ago, the Telangana government has introduced a new Record of Rights (RoR) Bill. This move aims to address the concerns of farmers and landowners who have been facing challenges with land records management. The government has identified 10 key issues, including appeals in revenue courts, prohibited land parcels, corrections in land records, mutations, succession, and other related matters, and has incorporated them into the new bill.
One of the major concerns has been the backlog of over two lakh applications related to Dharani issues, many of which were pending in the revenue department. Additionally, lakhs of acres of land were placed on the prohibited list, preventing land transactions. Farmers often had to navigate bureaucratic hurdles, such as repeatedly visiting district collectorates and the Chief Commissioner of Land Administration (CCLA) offices for even minor corrections. The new Bhu Bharati Bill, part of the RoR Bill, seeks to streamline the process by incorporating new clauses, delegating powers to revenue officials, and reviving provisions from previous laws. These changes aim to resolve nearly all of the issues tied to the Dharani portal. The government has emphasized the introduction of a new appellate mechanism at various levels, allowing applicants to track the status of their applications directly through their mobile phones.
Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy highlighted that one of the key focuses of the bill is resolving issues related to Part B land entries, which cover around 18 lakh acres. These land entries, which had digital signatures from revenue officials, were not receiving pattadar passbooks or access to subsidies like Rythu Bandhu. Once the issues are resolved, these farmers will be eligible for their passbooks and input subsidies. Previously, the process to correct land records on the Dharani portal could only be done through a court order. The new bill introduces provisions to correct errors in land records, including resolving disputes between private parties for Part B lands. Additionally, the bill aims to address complaints related to succession and mutation of properties. Under the existing system, auto mutation occurred immediately after land sales, gifts, or inheritance, without sufficient checks for fraud. The new RoR Bill allows tahsildars to initiate an inquiry into suspected fraud before processing the mutation.
Furthermore, the new bill expands the scope of the RoR Act, 2020, which previously applied only to agricultural land. The bill now includes Abadi land (land set aside for dwelling purposes) and Gram Kantam (village lands), allowing them to be registered. The introduction of these provisions, along with a clause to regularize Sada Bainamas (land sale transactions on plain paper), is expected to resolve over 9.24 lakh pending applications. The Telangana government is hopeful that the new Bhu Bharati Act will offer a comprehensive solution to longstanding land issues and improve land records management, ultimately benefiting farmers and landowners across the state.
