27-04-2025
Haryana goes hi-tech, buys 300 rovers for land demarcation
In a major step towards modernizing land record management, the Haryana government has purchased 300 rovers for land demarcation across the state. The move, part of the Haryana Large Scale Mapping Project (HaLSMP), aims to bring precision, transparency, and efficiency to the process of land marking, traditionally reliant on manual methods.
The rovers, procured through the Government e-Marketplace (GEM) portal, have been distributed to all districts and will be used by revenue officials to carry out accurate demarcation with the help of a network of 19 Continuously Operating Reference Stations (CORS) set up across Haryana. These GPS-enabled devices replace the centuries-old chain-based measurement method, dating back to the time of Raja Todarmal.
The HaLSMP is a collaborative initiative between the Haryana government and the Survey of India, covering approximately 44,212 square kilometres of the state's rural, Abadi Deh, and urban areas. It builds on the Survey of Villages Abadi and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas (SVAMITVA) scheme, and now extends to agricultural lands and properties within Urban Local Bodies (ULBs).
To ensure that field staff can effectively use the new technology, a statewide training programme for Patwaris and Kanoongos has been launched. The training, organized by the Survey of India's Geospatial Directorate at Chandigarh, began on April 23, 2025, and will continue till May 17, 2025. A district-wise schedule has been circulated by the Directorate, based on a communication dated April 21, 2025, addressed to the Director Land Records, Haryana. District officials have been instructed to be ready with two sets of fully charged rovers along with CORS User IDs and passwords for the training sessions.
Under the new system, land demarcation will be based on satellite imagery, drone surveys, and CORS-based geo-referencing. Updated cadastral maps will be overlaid on satellite data and integrated into the Bhu-Naksha portal, allowing citizens to view and verify land boundaries online. Officials said this would significantly reduce the scope for land disputes, manipulation of records, and dependence on intermediaries.
In the first phase of implementation, 22 pilot villages—one from each district—have already completed Tatima (land parcel map) updation. Encouraged by the success, the government has identified 440 additional villages for the next phase. The goal is to achieve statewide Tatima updation and integration onto the Bhu-Naksha portal by 2025-26.
The government is also finalizing a uniform fee structure for demarcation using rovers, which will soon be communicated to districts for implementation.
Officials said the shift to rover-based digital mapping will not only simplify property transactions and land mutation processes but will also enable easier access to bank credit and government welfare schemes. By making accurate, geo-referenced maps publicly available, Haryana hopes to build citizen trust and modernize its land governance system.
'This initiative will empower field-level officials with modern tools, ensure accountability, and make land management participatory and transparent,' an official said.
A rover costs anywhere between INR 6 lakh and INR 10 lakh.
