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District guide
Buying Land in Bilaspur
A Satluj-valley district in Himachal Pradesh: Section 118 permission, a four-lane highway open since 2023, a stalled rail line and thin price evidence.
1,167 sq km
Area
3.82 lakh
Population (Census 2011)
Open since Aug 2023
Kiratpur-Nerchowk four-lane
Section 118 permission
Outsider access
*Indicative range across districts and land types. Stamp duty, registration and conversion charges are additional. Local measurement units vary — every listing states the unit it is priced in. Not a valuation or an offer.
Himbhoomi — Himachal Pradesh Land Records PortalDistrict land record — Bilaspur
Rev. 2026 · Farmland India desk
State
Himachal Pradesh
Sub-divisions
2 sub-divisions (Sadar, Ghumarwin), 4 tehsils (Sadar, Ghumarwin, Jhandutta, Sri Naina Devi Ji at Swarghat) and 2 sub-tehsils (CGWB brochure, 2013); the district portal home page does not list them
Key markets
Bilaspur town · Ghumarwin · Jhandutta · Swarghat (Sri Naina Devi Ji)
Demand anchors
AIIMS at Kothipura (The Tribune, May 2023) · Kiratpur–Nerchowk four-lane, open since August 2023 · Gobind Sagar lake · Bhanupalli–Bilaspur–Beri rail line under construction
Rail and air
No train reaches the district; the portal says buses are the only public transport and names Bhuntar and Gaggal as the nearest airports (Bilaspur district portal, Oct 2026). The Bhanupalli–Bilaspur–Beri line is under construction
Size and population
1,167 sq km · 3,81,956 people, Census 2011 (Bilaspur district portal, Oct 2026; CGWB, 2013)
Pricing unit
₹/acre or ₹/hectare (farm land) · ₹/sq m (house sites, the unit used in Rule 38A)
Local units
Vary by revenue estate; read the unit in the jamabandi and convert to acres or hectares
Land records portal
Himbhoomi (NIC; mHimBhoomi application page, NIC); the portal itself was not opened for this page
Land law is state law. These rules are maintained on the Himachal Pradesh page and apply to every district within it.
Bilaspur — land purchase legal rules (Section 118)
⚠ Under Section 118 of the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Act, 1972, a non-agriculturist cannot acquire land in the state without prior State Government permission (Section 118 text, Indian Kanoon). Stamp duty on permitted transfers was raised from 6% to 12% by an ordinance of 18 February 2025 (Legitquest copy).
Who can buy without permission? Only an agriculturist, which the Act defines as a person who cultivates land personally in the state (section 2(2), PRS copy of the Act). Out-of-state buyers do not qualify. Nor, according to The Tribune, October 2025, do Himachalis who hold no agricultural land; they need Revenue Department relaxation too.
Section 118 permission: the Act makes a transfer to a non-agriculturist invalid without it, and the section covers sale, gift, exchange, lease and mortgage with possession (Indian Kanoon). In Ajay Dabra v. Pyare Ram (31 January 2023) the Supreme Court held that land cannot pass to a non-agriculturist without prior State permission (LiveLaw, February 2023). The application goes to the Collector on Form LRXIV, with caps of 4 acres for farming, 500 sq m for a house and 300 sq m for a shop (Rule 38A, Rules of 1975). The rules allow the Collector 10 days and the State 10 days; The Tribune (October 2025) describes the process as lengthy, with several NOCs and some cases going to Cabinet, and gives no timeline.
The 12% duty: the Indian Stamp (Himachal Pradesh Amendment) Ordinance, 2025, dated 18 February 2025, sets duty at 12% of the higher of market value or consideration where the State grants permission under section 118(2)(h), regardless of gender (Legitquest copy). UNI reported in March 2025 that the rate had doubled from 6% as a bill was tabled (UNI, March 2025). Budgets drawn up before 2025 on a 6% basis are out of date.
A pending amendment: Bill 25 of 2025 would change Section 118, including a 3 plus 2 year use period and flats in RERA-registered projects up to 500 sq m (PRS bill text). The Assembly sent it to a select committee on 5 December 2025 (The Tribune, December 2025). We found no report that it has passed; until it does, the 1972 text applies.
NRI & OCI buyers: the RBI Master Direction under FEMA 1999 bars NRIs and OCIs from buying agricultural land, plantation land or a farm house (RBI Master Direction FED 12/2015-16). A Section 118 permission is a state matter and does not lift that bar.
- Section 118 required
- Stamp duty: 12% (Section 118)
- Rule 38A application
- No open-district carve-out
- NRI agri: barred (FEMA)
- Himbhoomi
Bilaspur — district-specific notes
The Himachal Pradesh state page applies to Bilaspur in full. The notes below are specific to this district and are not repeated from the state page. Law was read from the Act and Rules on Indian Kanoon and PRS, one Supreme Court report and Tribune reports; where an official page did not open, the note says so.
⚠ Section 118 of the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Act, 1972 applies in Bilaspur as it does across the state: a non-agriculturist cannot acquire land without prior State Government permission (Section 118 text, Indian Kanoon). The Act defines an agriculturist as a person who cultivates land personally in the state (section 2(2), PRS copy). The application goes to the Collector, who is the Deputy Commissioner (State of H.P. v. Vinod Gupta, High Court, 2023), on Form LRXIV, with caps of 4 acres for farming, 500 sq m for a house and 300 sq m for a shop (Rule 38A, Rules of 1975). In Ajay Dabra v. Pyare Ram the Supreme Court held in January 2023 that land cannot pass to a non-agriculturist without that prior permission (LiveLaw, February 2023). We found no carve-out for Bilaspur in the sources read. Bill 25 of 2025 would amend Section 118 (PRS bill text); the Assembly sent it to a select committee on 5 December 2025 (The Tribune, Dec 2025). We found no report that it has passed, so the 1972 text is the one to rely on until it does.
⚠ The HP Land Revenue Act governs mutation and the jamabandi, and the 1972 Act also carries a land ceiling. We did not read the Land Revenue Act or the ceiling schedule for this page, so ask the Tehsildar for the current record and the family's total holding before a large purchase.
⚠ Bilaspur holds the Gobind Sagar reservoir on the Satluj, and its land has a displacement history. In December 2019 the Government told the Assembly that 245 Bhakra Dam oustees were yet to be rehabilitated and that land identified to settle them was forest land under litigation (The Tribune, Dec 2019). That report is six years old and we found no later one, so where a parcel has oustee, reservoir-boundary or forest history, ask for the title chain and the boundary status in writing.
⚠ The state records 66.52% of its area as forest and shows 27.72% forest cover (Forest Survey of India, 2019). We found no district-level forest or sanctuary list for this district, so ask the Divisional Forest Officer in writing whether a khasra is recorded forest. We read no Scheduled-area or tribal-area rule that applies here; those rules concern other districts such as Kinnaur, Lahaul and Spiti, Pangi and Bharmour.
Read the full Section 118 explainer for buyer eligibility, duty and NRI rules.
- Section 118 required
- Rule 38A application
- Gobind Sagar reservoir
- Bhakra oustee land
- Forest status to check
District overview
Bilaspur — a Satluj-valley district with a four-lane highway, a hospital campus and a rail line in progress
Bilaspur is an outer-hills district of 1,167 sq km with 3,81,956 people at the 2011 Census. The Satluj runs through the middle and divides it into two nearly equal parts, and the district borders Una, Hamirpur, Mandi and Solan (Bilaspur district portal, Oct 2026). The CGWB brochure lists two sub-divisions, four tehsils, two sub-tehsils and three development blocks (CGWB, 2013). The portal describes the New Township Bilaspur as the country's first planned hill town.
We publish no per-acre price band for Bilaspur because no collector rate or registered-deal series for this district could be sourced. The Tribune reported in September 2025 that circle rates in several Himachal districts had not been revised for five years, with a 7.5% cap on annual increases (The Tribune, Sep 2025); it did not name Bilaspur. Treat any per-acre figure you are quoted as unconfirmed until it matches registered deeds nearby.
Bilaspur is farm land and orchard land first. The ICAR-CRIDA plan shows 31.0 thousand hectares sown, mostly maize (27.0) and wheat (25.2), with mango on 3.8 thousand hectares (land use 2008-09; ICAR-CRIDA Bilaspur plan). Only about a tenth of the sown area is irrigated. Road access changed when the Kiratpur–Nerchowk four-lane opened on 6 August 2023, with 44 km of it in this district (ETV Bharat, Aug 2023).
- Gobind Sagar
- Ghumarwin
- Jhandutta
- Swarghat
- Kiratpur–Nerchowk four-lane
- Satluj valley
Transaction costs
Stamp duty & registration in Bilaspur
6–8%
General buyers (reported)
6% to ₹40 lakh, 8% above; women 4% to ₹1 crore, 8% above; Sept 2026 bill
12%
Section 118 transfers
ordinance of 18 February 2025, regardless of gender
2%
Registration fee
of the higher of market value or consideration, minimum ₹100 (2012 notification)
For a transfer under a Section 118 permission, duty is 12% of the higher of market value or consideration (ordinance text, Legitquest; UNI, Mar 2025). The 6% to 8% and 4% to 8% figures come from the Second Amendment Bill passed on 3 September 2026, as reported by ANI, Sep 2026 and Outlook Money, Sep 2026; neither report gives an effective date. The 2% registration fee comes from the Revenue Department notification of 12 January 2012; we found no later table. The state announced in May 2023 that physical stamp paper would be phased out after 31 March 2024 and replaced by e-stamps (The Tribune, May 2023). We found no rate specific to Bilaspur; the Sub-Registrars at Bilaspur, Ghumarwin and the other tehsil offices register deeds locally, and their Registration and Stamps offices were not consulted for this page, so check the table in force on the date of your deed.
Know the belt
What is moving prices in Bilaspur
No price series exists for this district in the sources read. What follows are the market signals that are sourced: a highway, a hospital campus and a policy backdrop.
Bilaspur town and the four-lane bypass
Four-lane opened 6 Aug 2023
The Kiratpur–Nerchowk four-lane, 77 km against 114 km before, opened on 6 August 2023, with 44 km, four tunnels and a toll plaza at Baloh in Bilaspur district (ETV Bharat, Aug 2023). In December 2024 the Technical Education Minister said the town lost connectivity after the highway was built and that business had drifted to the outskirts (The Tribune, Dec 2024).
Check: where the parcel sits against the four-lane and the old town road; access is the price driver here.
AIIMS area, Kothipura
Hospital campus, no price series
The Tribune reported in May 2023 that a railway overbridge at tunnel 16 was holding up the four-lane link to the AIIMS campus at Kothipura, forcing a 5 km diversion; once open it was expected to save about 20 km and 40 minutes on the Hamirpur–Shimla run (The Tribune, May 2023). We found no later report on whether the overbridge opened.
Check: the current road link before paying a premium for hospital proximity.
Ghumarwin, Jhandutta and Swarghat
Tehsils with no sourced price data
The CGWB brochure lists Ghumarwin and Jhandutta as tehsils and sub-divisional or block seats, and Sri Naina Devi Ji tehsil is at Swarghat (CGWB, 2013). We found no collector rate or sale series for any of them.
Check: registered deeds in the same revenue estate, and whether the khasra is recorded agricultural land.
Asking prices
No sourced price series
Listing-site asking prices for Bilaspur could not be traced to registered deals, so none are shown. The Tribune reported in September 2025 that Himachal circle rates lag market values (The Tribune, Sep 2025); a circle rate is therefore a floor for registration, not a guide to what a seller will accept.
Check: registered sale deeds nearby before negotiating.
Units: acres, hectares and local measures
Local units in Himachal vary by district and by revenue estate, so read the unit written in the jamabandi and convert every quote to acres or hectares. Confirm the share of the khata being sold. We did not open a revenue manual for local unit definitions, so the Tehsildar's office is the place to settle them.
Connectivity
How Bilaspur connects — road, rail and air
Distance to Chandigarh is not stated on the portal page we read. Journey times vary with weather, traffic and road works on hill sections.
By road
By air
By rail
The practical question is the last leg from the four-lane to the parcel; ask for the access road in the revenue record. State-wide rules for outside buyers: Section 118 explainer.
Growth catalysts
Upcoming infrastructure & developments
Status labels reflect sources read in October 2026. Government timelines are not guaranteed; items marked unconfirmed rest on a single or an older source.
01Open or inaugurated
04In progress or pending
Agriculture & terrain
Soil, crops & water in Bilaspur
A maize-wheat and mango district in the Satluj valley, with thin irrigation and localised aquifers.
🌾 Valley farm land (Sadar, Ghumarwin, Jhandutta)
The CGWB brochure says alluvial soils cover most of the district and non-calcic brown soils the hills, with maize, paddy and wheat as principal crops on 56,500 hectares cropped (2008-09; CGWB, 2013). ICAR-CRIDA gives 31.0 thousand hectares sown, 57.3 thousand cropped and a cropping intensity of 185%, with maize on 27.0 and wheat on 25.2 thousand hectares (ICAR-CRIDA plan). Both documents are dated.
- Maize
- Wheat
- Paddy
- Pulses
🥭 Mango, citrus and vegetables
ICAR-CRIDA lists mango on 3.8 thousand hectares, citrus on 1.11, pear 0.56 and litchi 0.17, and tomato on 0.8 thousand hectares (ICAR-CRIDA plan). No orchard-land price series was found, so the figures describe use, not value.
- Mango
- Citrus
- Litchi
- Tomato
⛰️ Aquifers and the Beet area
The CGWB did not estimate dynamic groundwater resources because the aquifers are localised, and no block is notified. Six exploratory wells, 31.8 to 115 m deep, yielded 7.7 to 20.75 litres a second; valley dug wells showed water near the surface to 6 m before the monsoon, and the Beet area more than 60 m (CGWB, 2013). Check borewell yield parcel by parcel.
- Localised aquifers
- Beet area
- Siwalik geology
💧 Water & rainfall
Average annual rainfall is 1,106.28 mm in the CGWB brochure, about 81.5% of it in the monsoon, and 1,047 mm normal in the ICAR-CRIDA plan; the two do not agree, so we give both. Net irrigated area is 3.2 thousand hectares in ICAR-CRIDA, about 10% of the sown area, and 3,662 hectares in the CGWB brochure, mostly from sources other than wells and tanks. We did not open IMD normals or a soil-health portal for this page.
📐 Measurement units
Local units differ across Himachal, so convert every quote to acres or hectares and read the unit in the jamabandi before comparing two offers. Crop income is small beside land values, so price a parcel on access, legal status and permitted use, not on maize or wheat yield.
At a glance
Bilaspur vs. its neighbours
| District / belt | Price band* (per acre) | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Bilaspur | No sourced price series | Net sown 31.0 thousand ha, maize and wheat (ICAR-CRIDA, 2008-09) |
| Hamirpur | No sourced price series | Net sown 34.9 thousand ha, wheat and maize (ICAR-CRIDA, 2008-09) |
| Mandi | No sourced price series | No figure used on this page |
| Una | No sourced price series | No figure used on this page |
*No collector-rate or asking-price series was sourced for these districts. See the Hamirpur page for the neighbouring maize-wheat district and the Mandi page for the hill district to the north.
Farmland India view
Why investors look at Bilaspur
Five reasoned points, with an honest note that price evidence is thin and the rail line is stalled on land and funds.
A four-lane already open
The Kiratpur–Nerchowk four-lane has carried traffic since August 2023, with 44 km in the district. That is delivered access, unlike most hill-district catalysts, though the town itself was reported to have lost trade to the highway.
A hospital campus and a planned town
AIIMS at Kothipura and the New Township give the district an institutional anchor. This desk reads that as steady local demand for house sites, not as evidence of a price trend.
A rail line that is delayed, not dead
The Bhanupalli–Bilaspur–Beri line has spent Rs 5,252 crore, but 42 of 124 hectares were still missing in December 2025. Price on today's roads.
A lake district with a title history
Gobind Sagar and the Bhakra oustee settlements mean some parcels carry reservoir or forest questions. A buyer who clears them gets cleaner land than one who skips them.
A market that rewards paperwork
Section 118 permission, record checks and forest status all sit with the parcel. The return case is location and permitted use, not crop yield.
Confirm Section 118, forest, flood and record status directly; these are not certified by Farmland India’s review.
STRAIGHT TALK
Risks & challenges in Bilaspur
Read these before shortlisting in Bilaspur specifically.
Section 118 permission
An outside buyer needs State permission, and the Tribune (October 2025) described the process as lengthy with no figure given (The Tribune, Oct 2025). Do not plan building or resale dates until it is granted.
Pending amendment
Bill 25 of 2025 went to a select committee in December 2025; we found no report of passage. Rules could change, and so could the 3 plus 2 year use periods.
Oustee and reservoir land
Settlement land for Bhakra oustees involved forest land under litigation in December 2019 (The Tribune, Dec 2019). Ask for the title chain and any reservoir or forest boundary.
Rail land and funds
The Bhanupalli–Beri line is held up by land handover and the state's share, and the Leh extension is only at survey stage. Do not pay a premium for a station that does not exist.
Monsoon and landslide
Himachal recorded 380 deaths and over Rs 4,300 crore in public losses in the 2025 monsoon, as reported by Punjab Kesari citing the state disaster authority (Punjab Kesari, Sep 2025); the Supreme Court has also flagged ecological imbalance in the state (SCC Online, Aug 2025). We found no Bilaspur-specific figure.
Forest and ceiling checks
We found no district forest list and did not read the ceiling schedule. Ask for both in writing before assembling a large holding.
No sourced price series
Circle rates are reported stagnant statewide and no Bilaspur series exists. Collect registered comparables before negotiating.
Who to contact
Local revenue, registration & forest offices
Section 118 applications go to the Deputy Commissioner / Collector at Bilaspur on Form LRXIV (Rule 38A; the Collector is the Deputy Commissioner per State of H.P. v. Vinod Gupta, 2023), and the State Government decides. Mutation and record matters go to the Tehsildar of the relevant tehsil (Sadar, Ghumarwin, Jhandutta or Sri Naina Devi Ji), as listed in the CGWB brochure. Deeds are registered by the local Sub-Registrar, and forest status comes from the Divisional Forest Officer. District information is on the Bilaspur district portal, which opened; the state's Section 118, Himbhoomi and registration portals did not, so we do not link them.
KEEP EXPLORING
Explore more areas
Other districts in Himachal Pradesh
Guides & research
COMMON QUESTIONS
Frequently asked questions
Everything buyers, NRIs and investors ask before their first reviewed farmland purchase in Bilaspur.
Visit full wiki01 of 04
Can outsiders buy agricultural land in Bilaspur?
Only with prior State Government permission under Section 118 of the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Act, 1972, unless the buyer is an agriculturist who cultivates land personally in the state. The application goes to the Deputy Commissioner as Collector on Form LRXIV, and the Supreme Court held in January 2023 that a transfer without prior permission cannot stand. Bill 25 of 2025 would amend Section 118 but went to a select committee in December 2025; we found no report that it has passed.
02 of 04
What does land cost in Bilaspur?
We publish no per-acre band because no collector rate or registered-deal series for Bilaspur could be sourced, and listing-site prices could not be traced to deeds. The Tribune reported in September 2025 that circle rates in several Himachal districts had not been revised for five years, with a 7.5% annual cap, so they are a registration floor and not a market guide. Check registered sale deeds in the same revenue estate.
03 of 04
Which infrastructure affects Bilaspur?
The 77 km Kiratpur-Nerchowk four-lane opened on 6 August 2023, with 44 km in the district. The Bhanupalli-Bilaspur-Beri rail line (63 km) was reported delayed in December 2025, with 82 of 124 hectares handed over and the Bilaspur-Beri stretch blocked. A final survey for a Bhanupalli-Bilaspur-Manali-Leh line was reported in August 2026, and an underwater tunnel in Gobind Sagar was only exploratory in December 2024.
04 of 04
What stamp duty applies to a purchase in Bilaspur?
For a transfer under a Section 118 permission, an ordinance of 18 February 2025 set duty at 12% of the higher of market value or consideration. The Second Amendment Bill passed in September 2026 is reported to set 6% to 8% for other buyers and 4% to 8% for women, with no effective date reported. Registration is 2% under a 2012 notification; check the current table with the Sub-Registrar.
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Sources and references
Law and courts
- Section 118, HP Tenancy and Land Reforms Act 1972, Indian Kanoon
- HP Tenancy and Land Reforms Act (section 2(2)), PRS copy, PRS Legislative Research
- HP Tenancy and Land Reforms Rules 1975, rule 38A, Indian Kanoon
- Land in Himachal cannot be transferred to a non-agriculturist without State permission (Ajay Dabra v. Pyare Ram), LiveLaw, Feb 2023
- State of H.P. v. Vinod Gupta, CWP 5554/2020, High Court of Himachal Pradesh, via Verdictum, 19 Dec 2023
- Supreme Court on ecological imbalance in the State of Himachal Pradesh, SCC Online, 5 Aug 2025
- Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms (Amendment) Bill 25 of 2025, PRS Legislative Research, Dec 2025
- Indian Stamp (Himachal Pradesh Amendment) Ordinance 2025, Legitquest (legal database copy), 18 Feb 2025
Government
- Bilaspur district home page, Bilaspur district portal (NIC), Oct 2026
- How to reach, Bilaspur, Bilaspur district portal (NIC), Oct 2026
- Ground water information brochure, Bilaspur district, Central Ground Water Board, 2013
- Agriculture contingency plan, Bilaspur district, ICAR-CRIDA, 2012 (land use 2008-09)
- Revenue Department notification on registration fee, Himachal Pradesh Government portal, 12 Jan 2012
- State of Forest Report 2019, vol. II, Himachal Pradesh, Forest Survey of India, 2019
- mHimBhoomi land records application, National Informatics Centre, Jan 2024
News
- Kiratpur-Nerchowk four-lane thrown open in Bilaspur, ETV Bharat, 6 Aug 2023
- Govt looking to build tunnel in Gobind Sagar lake: Dharmani, The Tribune, 18 Dec 2024
- Incomplete railway overbridge delays 4-lane connectivity to Bilaspur AIIMS, The Tribune, 19 May 2023
- Delay in land transfer, funding hold up Rs 6,783 cr rail project: Vaishnaw, The Tribune, 13 Dec 2025
- Final survey for Bhanupalli-Bilaspur-Manali-Leh railway line begins, ETV Bharat, 25 Aug 2026
- 245 Bhakra Dam oustees await rehabilitation, The Tribune, 14 Dec 2019
- Circle-rate paralysis: Himachal losing crores, The Tribune, 1 Sep 2025
- Government mulls making Sec 118 less cumbersome, The Tribune, Oct 2025
- Vidhan Sabha puts Section 118 amendment bill on hold, The Tribune, Dec 2025
- HP govt hikes stamp duty, UNI, Mar 2025
- Himachal Assembly passes stamp duty bill, ANI, 4 Sep 2026
- Himachal Pradesh sets out new stamp duty structure, Outlook Money, 4 Sep 2026
- Switch to e-stamp by next year, says Sukhu, The Tribune, May 2023
- Himachal monsoon fury: death toll climbs to 380, damages top Rs 4,300 crore, Punjab Kesari (English), 11 Sep 2025
Further reading
- HP Tenancy and Land Reforms Act, record page (metadata only), India Code
- Section 118 to be simplified, The Week (PTI), 2 Dec 2025
- Select committee to review proposed changes to Himachal Pradesh Tenancy Act, The Statesman, Dec 2025
- Non-Himachalis allowed to purchase land in 674 cases, The Tribune, Sep 2020
- Non-Himachalis who changed land use without approval to face the heat, Swarajya, Nov 2018
- State losing crores due to stagnant circle rates, The Tribune, Jan 2025
- SC to pass order on ecological imbalance in state on Sept 23, The Tribune, Sep 2025
- Himachal Assembly passes stamp duty amendment bill, The News Himachal, Sep 2026
Data-currency note: area and population are Census 2011 figures from the CGWB brochure and district portal; crop and groundwater data come from documents dated 2008 to 2013; infrastructure statuses were read in October 2026 and change quickly. Pages marked as not opened are named only as places to check. This is a general guide, not legal advice. Report inaccuracies to wiki@farmlandindia.com.
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