For those unfamiliar, dotted lands are disputed territories with no clear ownership documents. Typically, one or more individuals and the government’s Revenue Department claim rights over these lands. The term “dotted lands” traces its roots back to the British era. During land ownership surveys and resettlement of land records, local revenue officials would mark dots in the ownership column when ownership couldn’t be definitively established, or when multiple parties laid claim to the same land.
The Origin of Land Ownership Disputes
Land-related disputes often stem from a failure to establish clear inheritance through wills, leading to multiple heirs staking claim over the same piece of land. In certain instances, the government identifies the land as state-owned but discovers the land occupied by private parties.
Andhra Pradesh Government’s Resolution to Tackle Dotted Lands Issue
In a significant move, the Andhra Pradesh government introduced a Bill to grant land titles to farmers who have been cultivating on dotted lands for over 12 years. This initiative aims to provide approximately 97,000 farmers with clear land ownership documents, effectively removing dots and entries from land registers. Having clear titles allows landowners or farmers to use the land as collateral for obtaining loans, apply for financial aid for crop support, sell or gift the lands.
Significance of Digital Records in Resolving Dotted Lands Disputes
The Andhra Pradesh government has initiated the “Jagananna Saswatha Bhu Hakku Bhu Raksha Scheme”, a scheme dedicated to digitizing land records to prevent tampering in the future. Under this scheme, the government has already issued 7,92,238 permanent title deeds to farmers in over 2,000 villages in the first phase itself.
The Urgent Need for Resolution of Dotted Lands Disputes
The Chief Commissioner of Land Ceiling has received over 1 lakh applications seeking to settle dotted land disputes, indicating an urgent need for resolution. Urban areas are facing challenges related to illegal sale and construction on dotted lands, leading to tax evasion and revenue loss for the government.
Digitization of Land Records: India’s Initiatives to Mitigate Land Disputes
Several initiatives have been launched to digitize land records in India. SVAMITVA is a Central Sector Scheme spearheaded by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj that maps land parcels in rural inhabited areas using drone technology. The scheme aims to map the entire country in a phased manner over four years, from 2020 to 2024.
The PARIVESH portal is a web-based application that allows online submission and monitoring of proposals seeking clearances from Central, State, and district level authorities for environment, forest, wildlife, and Coastal Regulation Zones (CRZ).
Bhumi Samvaad is a National Workshop on the Digital India Land Record Modernisation Programme (DILRMP) that seeks to develop an integrated Land Information Management System (ILIMS) across India.
Furthermore, the National Generic Document Registration System seeks to shift from the existing manual registration system to online registration of all transactions concerning land sale-purchase and transfers. Finally, the Unique Land Parcel Identification Number—akin to Aadhaar for land—uniquely identifies every surveyed parcel of land to prevent land fraud.
Critical discussions around land reforms have previously been part of the UPSC Civil Services Examination. For instance, one of the questions in the 2019 Prelims revolved around the major aim of land reforms in providing agriculture land to all the landless. Meanwhile, the Mains question in 2016 invited discussions on the role of land reforms in agricultural development and the factors contributing to their success in India.
