Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the operational guidelines for the Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme (DILRMP) 3.0 on 10 September 2026 at Krishi Bhawan in New Delhi. The third phase will run from 1 April 2026 to 31 March 2031 with a central outlay of ₹565.5 crore. It moves land governance from simple digitisation to an integrated, map-based system where records, registrations and courts speak to each other.
What Is DILRMP 3.0 and Which Ministry Implements It?
The Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme (DILRMP) is the central programme for digitising and modernising land records. It is run by the Department of Land Resources (DoLR) under the Ministry of Rural Development. DILRMP 3.0 is the third phase of this programme, and its operational guidelines were released to guide states from 2026 to 2031.
DILRMP 3.0 is a Central Sector Scheme. This means the Union government provides 100 percent funding, and states do not have to share the cost. The total approved outlay is ₹565.5 crore. Funds will not be released at once. They will be released in stages based on performance, and progress will be tracked live through an upgraded DILRMP Management Information System (MIS) dashboard. The system will work through the Public Financial Management System (PFMS), which is the central platform for tracking government fund transfers.
The core idea of DILRMP 3.0 is integration. Earlier phases put the Record of Rights (RoR), which is the textual record showing who holds what rights over land, and cadastral maps into computers. DILRMP 3.0 links these separate pieces together. It connects the RoR, the map of the parcel, the registration deed and the court case status through a Geographic Information System (GIS) based digital framework. GIS is a computer system that stores, checks and displays data linked to exact locations on the ground.
From NLRMP to DILRMP 3.0: How Land Digitisation Evolved
Land is a State Subject under Entry 18 of the State List in the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution. This means states maintain land records, while the Centre gives money and technical help. Computerisation started in the 1980s with two schemes, Computerisation of Land Records (CLR) and Strengthening of Revenue Administration and Updating of Land Records (SRA and ULR).
In August 2008, the Cabinet merged these two schemes to create the National Land Records Modernisation Programme (NLRMP) as a Centrally Sponsored Scheme. On 1 April 2016, it was revamped as DILRMP, a Central Sector Scheme with full central funding and brought under the Digital India umbrella. It was later extended for 2021-22 to 2025-26 with an outlay of ₹875 crore, when two new parts were added, computerisation of revenue courts and consent based linking of Aadhaar with the RoR.
By early 2026, basic digitisation was nearly complete. About 99.8 percent of Records of Rights had been computerised, about 97.4 percent of cadastral maps had been digitised, about 95.7 percent of sub-registrar offices had been computerised, and about 88.6 percent had been linked with revenue offices. Cadastral maps are detailed village and town maps that show the boundary of each plot. More than 37 crore land parcels in 29 states and Union Territories had received a Unique Land Parcel Identification Number. Yet surveys and resurveys, modern record rooms, linking of maps with text records, and automatic mutation remained incomplete in many states. Mutation is the process of updating the ownership record after a sale, inheritance, partition or court order. DILRMP 3.0 is designed to finish these gaps and join the pieces into one usable system.
What Is Bhu-Aadhaar ULPIN and How Does It Work?
Bhu-Aadhaar is the public name for the Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN). It is a 14-digit alphanumeric number given to one single land parcel. It is not the 12-digit Aadhaar number given to a person. ULPIN identifies the plot, not the owner.
The number is generated from the geo-referenced coordinates of the plot. Geo-referencing means fixing the map image to its true latitude and longitude on the earth. The system records the latitude and longitude points of the corners of the parcel and uses a formula to create the number. The formula follows the Electronic Commerce Code Management Association (ECCMA) standard and the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) standard, which are international methods for keeping digital codes unique and map friendly.
Once created, the same ULPIN stays with that piece of land. It links the ownership record, the map shape, the size and the land type to one reference. This helps banks, registrars and revenue officers point to the same plot with the same number. It also helps catch errors like sale of the same plot under two survey numbers or shifting of boundaries. State portals show the number on the RoR or the map view. In Maharashtra it appears on the 7/12 (Satbara) extract, in Karnataka on the Bhoomi RTC (Pahani), and in Telangana on the Bhu Bharati portal.
ULPIN by itself does not prove ownership and does not give a clean title. Ownership still has to be checked in the RoR, the registered deed, the encumbrance certificate and the mutation history. The government has also kept linking of a person’s Aadhaar with the land record fully voluntary and consent based.
GIS-Based Land Stack: The Core of DILRMP 3.0
The central idea of DILRMP 3.0 is the Land Stack. A Land Stack is a digital foundation where all land related information sits around the map of the parcel. The cadastral parcel becomes the base layer. Over it, the system layers the RoR, registration data, circle rates, land use, building plans and public restrictions. Circle rate is the minimum official price fixed by the government for registration of property in an area.
Each state will build its own Land Stack by joining its datasets through Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). An API is a secure software bridge that lets two different computer systems share data. These state stacks will then join to form a federated national Land Stack. Federated means states keep ownership and control of their data, but the data can still be searched and verified across systems using common standards.
Georeferencing of cadastral maps is a key task in this stack. It connects the drawn map to real ground coordinates, so officials can compare the paper boundary with drone or satellite images and Global Positioning System readings. This reduces boundary disputes and helps in planning, disaster response and credit checks. For a farmer, it means a bank can match the loan application to the exact mapped plot faster, with fewer visits to offices.
Registration Seva Kendras, Revenue Courts and Urban Property Cards
DILRMP 3.0 gives special attention to registration and dispute systems. About 75 high-footfall sub-registrar offices will be modernised as Registration Seva Kendras, modelled on Passport Seva Kendras. A dedicated amount of ₹37.5 crore has been kept for this work. These centres will offer cleaner waiting areas, token systems and end to end paperless registration. Paperless registration is supported by the National Generic Document Registration System (NGDRS), which lets people submit documents online and take appointments. Seventeen states have adopted this system, and five states have already gone fully paperless.
The programme will also create a central Registration Repository and complete scanning of legacy land and registration records. Legacy records are old paper jamabandis, field books and deed volumes that still guide ownership checks. Easy search of these records will help buyers confirm the chain of past transfers.
Computerisation of revenue courts is another major part. Revenue courts are special courts that decide cases on mutation, partition, tenancy, land revenue and correction of records. Under DILRMP 3.0, a paperless Revenue Court Case Management System (RCCMS) will be linked with land records. This will show at the time of a sale whether the plot is under dispute and will cut delays in mutation cases. It will not decide the case by itself. The court will still examine evidence, but tracking and disclosure will improve.
For cities, DILRMP 3.0 will use the NAKSHA programme. NAKSHA stands for NAtional geospatial Knowledge-based land Survey of urban HAbitations. It was launched as a pilot in 2024-25 under DILRMP in about 150 to 157 Urban Local Bodies in 27 states and 3 Union Territories, with an outlay of about ₹193.81 crore. The Survey of India, which is India’s central mapping agency headquartered in Dehradun and set up in 1767, is the technical partner. It supplies aerial photos and orthorectified images taken by drones. States then do field surveys and ground checks, link ownership, tax and deed details, and issue draft maps for claims and objections. The final output is an urban property card, which is a city equivalent of a rural RoR and helps fix ownership in towns where maps were missing or outdated.
How DILRMP Differs From SVAMITVA
DILRMP and SVAMITVA are often confused, but they cover different land. SVAMITVA stands for Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas. It was launched in 2020 by the Ministry of Panchayati Raj to map inhabited village areas, called abadi land, with drones and Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS). Its output is a rural property card for houses. By mid-2026, drone surveys had covered about 3.30 lakh villages and more than 3.24 crore property cards had been prepared.
DILRMP is wider. It is run by the Department of Land Resources and covers all farmland and urban land records, maps, registration and courts. SVAMITVA data on abadi houses feeds into the state data centres built under DILRMP. In simple terms, SVAMITVA creates new records for village houses, while DILRMP digitises, links and maintains all land records of the state.
| Feature | DILRMP | SVAMITVA |
|---|---|---|
| Full form | Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme | Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas |
| Nodal ministry | Ministry of Rural Development, Department of Land Resources | Ministry of Panchayati Raj |
| Started in | 2008 as NLRMP, revamped as DILRMP in 2016 | 2020 |
| Coverage | All rural farmland, urban land, registration and revenue courts | Inhabited rural abadi houses |
| Main output | Computerised RoR, digitised maps, ULPIN, Land Stack | Drone map and village property card |
Significance and the Way Forward
Clear land records cut disputes, check benami deals and speed up credit. Nearly two-thirds of pending civil cases in India relate to land, so a single map-linked reference can save years of litigation. For farmers, a verified Bhu-Aadhaar linked plot can be used as collateral for bank loans without repeated visits to tehsils. For cities, correct maps improve property tax collection and planning of roads, drains and housing.
The next steps will test execution. States must finish survey and resurvey, complete modern record rooms, now about 72.5 percent complete, and adopt automatic mutation where registration itself creates the mutation request, now active in only 17 states. Common standards for APIs, consent based identity checks, training of patwaris and registrars, and help desks for people without digital access will decide whether the Land Stack works on the ground.
Key Takeaways
- DILRMP 3.0 operational guidelines were launched on 10 September 2026 with an outlay of ₹565.5 crore for 2026-2031.
- DILRMP is implemented by the Department of Land Resources under the Ministry of Rural Development as a Central Sector Scheme with 100 percent central funding.
- Bhu-Aadhaar (ULPIN) is a 14-digit parcel number generated from geo-referenced coordinates under ECCMA and OGC standards.
- 75 sub-registrar offices will be upgraded as Registration Seva Kendras with a dedicated ₹37.5 crore provision.
- NAKSHA stands for NAtional geospatial Knowledge-based land Survey of urban HAbitations and supports GIS mapping and urban property cards with the Survey of India as technical partner.
