Bihar introduces dynamic maps to resolve land disputes

Bihar is the first state in India to introduce a dynamic map for villages, which will get updated every time the land ownership changes hands. It aims at reducing legal disputes. According to the Bihar government, in one year since February 2021, the state had witnessed 37,000 cases of some land disputes and others. Dynamic maps are a part of the series of steps taken by the state government to implement long-pending land reforms. The State Assembly had passed the Bihar Land Mutation Amendment Bill 2021, which made the mutation of maps compulsory. Vivek Kumar Singh, Additional Chief Secretary of the Department of Revenue and Land Reforms, Bihar, told the media that Bihar is the first state to introduce dynamic maps. Therefore, all mutations would be textual mutations and mutations of the survey map. Now mutation will entail three changes, a change in the text, a change in the land parcel and a modification of the survey map. Singh told the media that earlier, only textual records were mutated. There has been a need for making maps digitally dynamic. He added that by the dynamic maps, anyone could see the updated status of the village map and figure out whether a concerned plot belongs to which person. A special survey is in its final stage in 20 districts and will release the final publication and the record of right in maps. He said that the special survey had been done across 20 districts using aerial photography. The image accuracy is very high in aerial photography, and with a 10 cm accuracy level, small plots can be identified on the image. Singh told the media that about 4,869 people were recruited for the survey in 2020 and were given online training during the Covid-19 period. According to him, over 22,000 processed maps were received from aerial agencies, and 5,127 villages are in advanced stages of Special Survey. Image Source Also read: Bihar Government begins environmental audit of sand ghats