Indian Land Terms Glossary: A to Z Reference

A

Abadi Land (आबादी भूमि)

Land classified in village revenue records as habitation or homestead land, as distinct from agricultural (krishi yogya) land. Abadi land generally sits outside the ownership-eligibility restrictions that apply to agricultural land purchases, though transfer rules still vary by state. Often shown as "Gair Mumkin Abadi" in a khatauni's land-classification column — see Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Adverse Possession

A doctrine under the Limitation Act, 1963 by which a person in open, continuous, and hostile possession of land — without the true owner's permission — for a statutory period (commonly cited as 12 years for private land, 30 years for government land) can, in principle, acquire ownership rights over it, even against the recorded owner. A highly fact-specific and frequently misunderstood doctrine: occupying land for years, on its own, does not automatically confer ownership.

Agricultural Land

Land classified in state revenue records as used, or usable, for cultivation. The classification determines who may legally purchase it, which stamp duty and circle rate category applies, and whether Change of Land Use approval is needed before non-agricultural use. See Agricultural Land vs Commercial Land and Who Can Own Farmland in India.

Allotment Letter

A document from a developer, housing authority, or government body confirming a specific unit or plot has been provisionally allocated to a buyer, ahead of sale deed execution and registration. Not, by itself, proof of ownership — it precedes and is superseded by the registered sale deed.

Ancestral Property

Property inherited up to four generations of male lineage in an undivided Hindu family, without any intervening partition, in which qualifying family members acquire a right by birth rather than by gift or bequest. Distinct from self-acquired property, which an owner can dispose of freely. Ancestral property carries automatic coparcenary rights — see Coparcenary, below.

B

Bainama (बैनामा)

The colloquial Hindi/Urdu term, still in everyday and regional use across North India, for a registered sale deed. Legally identical to a Sale Deed — the word itself carries no separate legal meaning beyond the document it names.

Banjar Land (बंजर भूमि)

A land-classification entry for uncultivable wasteland, recorded in the khatauni's land-classification column. Land recorded as banjar generally cannot be sold or represented as productive farmland, and typically carries a different valuation than land classified krishi yogya (cultivable). A banjar classification on land being marketed as farmland is a red flag worth independently verifying — see Land Fraud in India.

Benami Transaction (बेनामी संव्यवहार)

A transaction where property is held by one person (the "benamidar") but paid for by, and intended to actually benefit, another person whose identity is concealed. Substantially restricted by the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amendment Act, 2016, which allows confiscation of benami property and criminal penalties, subject to specific statutory exceptions. See Land Fraud in India and NRI Land Fraud.

Bhumidar (भूमिधर)

The Uttar Pradesh revenue-record tenure classification for a cultivator holding full, heritable, and transferable rights over agricultural land — broadly equivalent to full ownership. Other states use different terms for the equivalent status (see Khatedar, below). See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Bigha (बीघा)

A traditional North Indian unit of land area, in active use across the corridor. Its exact conversion to acres or hectares varies meaningfully by state, and even within a state by region — a Rajasthani bigha and a UP bigha are not the same size. Full conversion tables are covered in our dedicated guide, Land Measurement Units in India (coming soon).

Biswa (बिस्वा)

A sub-unit of the bigha, where 20 biswa traditionally make one bigha in most conventions — though, like the bigha itself, the exact area varies by state and locality. See Land Measurement Units in India (coming soon).

C

Ceiling (Land Ceiling Laws)

State-specific statutory limits on the maximum area of land a single person or family can hold, enacted through state land ceiling legislation following independence-era land reform, and for urban land, briefly reinforced nationally by the since-repealed Urban Land (Ceiling and Regulation) Act, 1976. Ceiling limits directly affect how much land a single buyer, including a family office aggregating multiple parcels, can legally hold in a given state. See Who Can Own Farmland in India and State-Wise Agricultural Land Purchase Rules.

Cess (Land Revenue Cess)

An additional levy charged on top of a base land revenue or stamp duty amount, dedicated to a specific purpose — for example, a labour welfare cess on stamp duty, or a social infrastructure cess. See Stamp Duty and Registration Charges by State for the specific cess amounts levied by each corridor state.

Chakbandi (चकबंदी)

The consolidation of fragmented agricultural holdings, where a cultivator's scattered, non-contiguous parcels in a village are administratively reorganised into fewer, larger, contiguous plots. Consolidation status affects khasra number reliability — a khasra can still be provisional and subject to renumbering where chakbandi hasn't been finalised, particularly in hill districts. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Change of Land Use (CLU)

The formal government approval process for converting land from one notified use classification to another — most commonly, agricultural to non-agricultural. See our full guide, Change of Land Use (CLU) in India.

Circle Rate / DLC Rate / Collector Rate / Ready Reckoner Rate

The government-notified minimum valuation for land in a given area, used as the floor for stamp duty and registration calculations — known as DLC rate in Rajasthan, circle rate in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, collector rate in Haryana, Punjab and Himachal Pradesh, and ready reckoner rate or guidance value outside the corridor. For the full explainer, see our dedicated guide, Circle Rate vs Market Rate.

Coparcenary

The institution under Hindu law by which certain family members — since the Hindu Succession (Amendment) Act, 2005, sons and daughters equally — acquire an automatic, birth-based right and share in ancestral joint family property, without needing a gift, will, or formal transfer. A coparcener can demand partition at any time — a broader right than a mere legal heir, whose right to inherit arises only on the owner's death.

D

Dag Number

West Bengal's equivalent of a khasra number — the unique identifier for a plot within a village's revenue survey records. Not used in Farmland India's own six-state corridor, but worth recognising as the same underlying concept under a different regional name. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Dakhil Kharij (दाखिल खारिज)

The Hindi-belt term for mutation — updating the khatauni to reflect a change of holder following a sale, inheritance, gift, or court decree. Called Intkal in Punjab and parts of Haryana. Registering a sale deed and completing dakhil kharij are two separate steps at two different offices; finishing the first does not automatically finish the second. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

DLC Rate

Rajasthan's official term for the government-notified minimum land valuation used as the stamp duty floor — see Circle Rate / DLC Rate / Collector Rate / Ready Reckoner Rate, above, and our full guide, Circle Rate vs Market Rate.

Due Diligence

The full set of legal, physical, and documentary checks a buyer runs before completing a land purchase — the title chain, khasra and khatauni records, encumbrances, litigation history, land classification, and the seller's identity and authority to sell. See Land Fraud in India and Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

E

Easement

A legal right held by one landowner to make limited use of, or restrict certain use of, a neighbouring parcel they don't own — commonly a right of way or a right to light, water, or drainage. Easements run with the land rather than with any individual owner, so a buyer inherits both the benefit and the burden of any existing ones.

Encroachment

The unauthorised occupation, construction, or extension of use onto land belonging to another party or the government, without legal right or consent. A common and frequently litigated issue along boundary lines, canal or pathway reservations, and government or gram sabha land. See Land Fraud in India.

Encumbrance Certificate (EC)

An official certificate from the Sub-Registrar's office listing all registered transactions — sales, mortgages, gifts, leases, and legal charges — recorded against a property over a defined period, used to confirm it's free of undisclosed liabilities before purchase. A companion deep-dive on obtaining and reading an EC, the Encumbrance Certificate guide, is planned as its own article.

Escrow

An arrangement where a neutral third party holds funds, documents, or both on behalf of a buyer and seller, releasing them only once agreed conditions — due-diligence clearance, registration completion — are met. Increasingly used in higher-value land transactions, including NRI purchases, to reduce the risk of paying before title checks are complete.

F

FAR (Floor Area Ratio)

The ratio of a building's total permissible constructed floor area to the total area of the plot it stands on, set by local development authority or municipal bye-laws. A construction-stage concept most relevant to farmhouse and structure development on converted (non-agricultural) land. See Farmhouse Rules in India.

Fard (फर्द)

Punjab's term for the Record of Rights extract — functionally the same combined khasra-khatauni document called a Jamabandi elsewhere in the corridor. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Farmhouse

A residential or recreational structure built on agricultural or designated farmhouse land, subject to state-specific rules on permissible built-up area, minimum plot size, and the underlying land's classification. See Farmhouse Rules in India and Farmhouse Projects and Government Policies.

FEMA (Foreign Exchange Management Act, 1999)

The central legislation governing cross-border financial transactions, including the framework under which NRIs, OCIs, and foreign nationals may or may not acquire Indian agricultural land. FEMA, not the Income Tax Act or a state's own land laws, is the primary reason NRIs generally cannot directly purchase agricultural land, plantation property, or farmhouses in India. See Can NRIs Buy Agricultural Land in India? and NRI Land Investment Guide.

Freehold

A form of land ownership under which the holder owns the land outright, in perpetuity, with the fullest bundle of ownership rights recognised under Indian property law, subject only to generally applicable government regulation. Contrast with Leasehold, below.

G

Gair Mumkin (गैर मुमकिन)

A land-classification term in khasra-khatauni records for land recorded as put to some non-agricultural, non-cultivable use — commonly seen as "Gair Mumkin Abadi" (habitation) or applied to land under a pond, path, or structure. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Gift Deed (दान पत्र)

A legal instrument voluntarily transferring property ownership from a donor to a donee without monetary consideration, requiring registration to be valid for immovable property. Several corridor states offer significantly reduced stamp duty on gift deeds to specific family relations — see Stamp Duty and Registration Charges by State.

Girdawari (गिरदावरी)

The periodic (traditionally twice-yearly) field inspection and crop-recording exercise carried out by the patwari, feeding the khasra register with current crop and cultivation data. A consistent, multi-year girdawari history can serve as corroborating evidence of physical possession in ownership disputes. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Gram Panchayat Land

Land vested in and administered by a village-level Gram Panchayat for community use — grazing grounds, ponds, common infrastructure — that generally cannot be sold or transferred to a private individual through an ordinary sale deed. See Land Fraud in India for how such land is sometimes fraudulently represented as private and saleable.

Gram Sabha Land

Community land vested in a village's Gram Sabha (the full body of village electors), typically used for common purposes and, in most states, statutorily barred from private sale under provisions like Section 22A of the Registration Act. See Land Fraud in India.

Guidance Value

Karnataka's term for the same government-notified minimum property valuation mechanism the corridor states call circle rate, DLC rate, or collector rate. See Circle Rate / DLC Rate / Collector Rate / Ready Reckoner Rate, above, and our full guide, Circle Rate vs Market Rate.

H

Heba (हिबा)

The Islamic law equivalent of a gift deed — a voluntary, immediate, and unconditional transfer of property without consideration, governed by Muslim personal law rather than the Transfer of Property Act's general gift provisions, though registration requirements for immovable property still generally apply.

Hissa (हिस्सा)

A person's fractional share or portion in jointly held land, recorded against their name in the khatauni. Multiple hissa-holders on a single khasra number is the norm, not the exception, for inherited agricultural land that hasn't been formally partitioned. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Holding (Land Holding)

The total area of land, whether in one parcel or several, recorded as owned or held by a single individual or family unit within a revenue jurisdiction — the figure land ceiling laws are applied against.

I

Intkal (इंतकाल)

The term used in Punjab and parts of Haryana for mutation — updating the ownership record following a transfer. Functionally identical to Dakhil Kharij, the term used further south and east in the corridor. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Irrigated / Unirrigated Land (Sinchit / Asinchit)

A land-classification distinction recorded in the khatauni — "sinchit" (irrigated, served by canal, tube well, or another assured water source) versus "asinchit" or "barani" (unirrigated, rainfall-dependent) — that directly affects a parcel's valuation, circle rate category, and productivity.

J

Jamabandi (जमाबंदी)

The combined khasra-khatauni Record of Rights extract used in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, and parts of Rajasthan; literally "fixing of the rent/revenue." A certified copy is called a Nakal. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Joint Development Agreement (JDA)

An arrangement where a landowner contributes land and a developer contributes construction expertise and capital, sharing the resulting built units, sale proceeds, or both in an agreed ratio, without the landowner selling the land outright.

Joint Ownership / Co-ownership

Property held in two or more names simultaneously, each with a defined or undefined share, requiring the consent of all co-owners — or a formal partition — before the whole property can be validly sold. Distinct from coparcenary, which arises automatically by birth in a Hindu joint family rather than by an act of purchase or gift.

K

Kabza (कब्ज़ा)

Physical possession of land, as distinct from recorded legal ownership. A mismatch between possession and ownership records is one of the most common sources of land disputes in India, and the basis of the adverse possession doctrine. See Land Fraud in India.

Kanal (कनाल)

A traditional unit of land area used predominantly in Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh, roughly one-eighth of an acre in most conventions, though exact conversions vary by locality. See Land Measurement Units in India (coming soon).

Khasra (खसरा)

The unique identifier assigned to a single plot of land within a village's revenue records — the North Indian counterpart to a "survey number" elsewhere in India. For the full explainer, including how to read a real extract, see our dedicated guide, Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Khata (खाता)

The ownership account or holding in village revenue records — the grouping of one or more khasra numbers under a single landholder's name. Often used loosely as a near-synonym for khatauni (the register that lists khata entries in detail). Regional variation flag: in Karnataka's urban municipal context, "Khata" (A Khata/B Khata) refers to a different, property-tax-linked municipal record rather than this rural revenue concept — worth noting rather than assuming one meaning nationwide. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Khatauni (खतौनी)

The ownership and tenancy record listing, against each landholder's name, every khasra number they hold in a village, their share, and the legal nature of their right. See our full explainer, Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Khatedar (खातेदार)

Rajasthan's term for a cultivator holding full, heritable tenancy and ownership rights over agricultural land — broadly equivalent to "Bhumidar" in Uttar Pradesh.

Khewat (खेवट)

A numbering of ownership shares, used in Punjab and Haryana, that groups khatas belonging to the same joint family or ownership unit within a village's revenue records. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Killa (किल्ला)

A traditional unit of land area used in parts of Punjab and Haryana, broadly equivalent to one acre in common usage, though local variation exists. See Land Measurement Units in India (coming soon).

L

Land Revenue

The tax historically, and in some states still nominally, levied by the state on agricultural landholding, assessed against the recorded khatauni holding — largely symbolic in most corridor states today compared to its historical role as a primary source of state revenue.

Lease Deed

A registered document granting a tenant the right to use and occupy land or property for a defined period in exchange for rent, without transferring ownership. See Leasehold, below.

Leasehold

A form of land holding where the holder has the right to use and occupy land for a fixed term (often 30, 60, or 99 years) under a lease from the actual owner — frequently a government body, for many urban and institutional parcels — rather than owning it outright. Check the remaining term, renewal rights, and any transfer restrictions carefully before purchase. Contrast with Freehold, above.

Legal Heir Certificate

A certificate issued by a local revenue or municipal authority identifying the legal heirs of a deceased person, primarily used for administrative purposes such as transferring utility connections or pension benefits. Unlike a Succession Certificate (below), it does not itself establish a legal right to inherit property and is not required, or sufficient, for transferring title to land.

Lien

A legal right to retain possession of, or a claim against, property until a debt or obligation owed against it is discharged — commonly arising from an unpaid loan secured against the land. A lien must be cleared, and its clearance confirmed on a fresh Encumbrance Certificate, before a clean transfer of title can occur.

Lis Pendens

The doctrine, and Latin term for "a pending suit," under which any transfer of property under active litigation is made subject to the outcome of that litigation, whether or not the buyer knew about the case. A buyer who purchases land under undisclosed lis pendens can lose the rights they believed they acquired once the underlying case concludes — a strong argument for a full litigation search before any purchase. See Land Fraud in India.

M

Marla (मरला)

A traditional unit of land area used in Punjab, Haryana, and Himachal Pradesh, smaller than a kanal — one kanal conventionally equals 20 marla in most local usage, though exact conversions vary. See Land Measurement Units in India (coming soon).

Mortgage (बंधक)

The transfer of an interest in immovable property to a lender as security for a loan, without transferring ownership or possession outright in a simple mortgage — released once the loan is discharged. An outstanding mortgage against a parcel shows up on its Encumbrance Certificate and must be resolved before a clean sale.

Musavi (मुसावी)

A village cadastral map used in Punjab, functionally equivalent to the "shajra" map used elsewhere in the corridor, showing plot boundaries and shapes against khasra numbers.

Mutation

The general English term for updating ownership records after a transfer — see Dakhil Kharij (दाखिल खारिज), above.

N

NA Land (Non-Agricultural Land)

Land officially reclassified, through the Change of Land Use process, from agricultural to a non-agricultural use category — residential, commercial, or industrial. NA conversion is typically a prerequisite for legal construction on land originally recorded as agricultural. See Change of Land Use (CLU) in India.

Nakal (नकल)

A certified copy of a jamabandi or khasra-khatauni extract, issued by the tehsil or revenue office (or generated through a state's online portal), used as the document a buyer or lender actually relies on for verification. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Nali (नाली)

A traditional unit of land area used in the hill districts of Uttarakhand and parts of Himachal Pradesh, considerably smaller than a bigha. See Land Measurement Units in India (coming soon).

Nazul Land (नज़ूल भूमि)

Land vested in government ownership — historically taken over from erstwhile princely estates, escheated estates without legal heirs, or acquired under specific state enactments — typically held by government on long-term lease rather than freely transferable in freehold. Nazul land carries specific state-notified rules on lease renewal, freehold conversion where permitted, and transfer; never assume it carries the same transfer rights as privately held freehold agricultural land without checking its specific status.

NOC (No Objection Certificate)

A document from a relevant authority — a development authority, housing society, government department, or in some transactions a co-owner — confirming they have no objection to a specific transaction, construction, or land-use change proceeding. The specific NOCs required vary widely by state, land classification, and transaction type.

O

Occupancy Certificate (OC)

A certificate from the local municipal or development authority confirming a completed building was constructed in compliance with sanctioned plans and is fit for occupation. Relevant to structures built on converted, non-agricultural land, including farmhouse development.

Occupancy Rights

Rights held by a tenant or cultivator to continue occupying and cultivating land under a landowner, short of full ownership — historically significant under various state tenancy reform laws that, in several states, eventually converted long-standing occupancy tenants into full owners.

P

Panchnama (पंचनामा)

A formal written record, prepared in the presence of witnesses, documenting facts observed at a specific place and time — used in land disputes to record the condition of a boundary, an encroachment, or a possession status at a given moment.

Partition Deed (बंटवारा पत्र)

A registered legal document formally dividing jointly or ancestrally held property among co-owners or coparceners into separately owned, demarcated shares, ending the joint holding. It's what converts an unclearly apportioned, jointly held khasra into cleanly separated, individually owned sub-plots.

Patta (पट्टा)

A lease or title document, historically issued by the state or a landlord, granting cultivation or occupancy rights over specific land — in several states, particularly relevant to land originally allotted to landless or tenant cultivators under land reform programmes.

Patwari (पटवारी)

The village-level revenue official responsible for maintaining the khasra, khatauni, and related land records for one or more villages, including conducting the periodic girdawari inspection. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Possession Certificate

A document, typically issued by a developer or authority, confirming physical possession of a specific unit or plot has been formally handed over to the buyer — distinct from, and generally issued before, formal registration of the sale deed.

Power of Attorney (मुख़्तारनामा)

A legal document authorising one person (the "agent" or "attorney") to act on behalf of another (the "principal") in specified matters. A General Power of Attorney (GPA) grants broad authority; a Special Power of Attorney (SPA) is limited to a specific, named transaction. A GPA is not, by itself, a valid instrument for transferring ownership of immovable property in most circumstances, following the Supreme Court's settled position on "GPA sales" — a frequent source of land fraud when misused as if it were. See NRI Land Fraud and Land Fraud in India.

Prohibited Land (Section 22A Land)

Land that state governments have statutorily barred from registration — commonly government land, wakf or religious endowment land, ceiling-surplus land, and land under active litigation or specific court restriction — under provisions like Section 22A of the Registration Act, 1908. See Land Fraud in India.

Q

Quit Rent

A historical term for a fixed periodic payment made by a tenant or occupant to a landlord or the state in lieu of services, or as a nominal rent for continued occupancy — largely obsolete in current corridor-state land administration, though occasionally still referenced in older land-grant and lease documents.

R

Ready Reckoner Rate

Maharashtra's term for the same government-notified minimum property valuation mechanism the corridor states call circle rate, DLC rate, or collector rate. See Circle Rate / DLC Rate / Collector Rate / Ready Reckoner Rate, above, and our full guide, Circle Rate vs Market Rate.

Record of Rights (RoR)

The umbrella term for the combined body of village land records — principally the khasra and khatauni, alongside the shajra map — that together establish who holds what rights over which parcel. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Registration

The mandatory legal process of recording a property transaction — sale, gift, a lease above a certain term, or mortgage — with the government's Sub-Registrar, making the document a public, legally admissible record. See our full guide, Stamp Duty and Registration Charges by State.

Relinquishment Deed (त्याग पत्र)

A registered legal document by which a co-owner or coparcener voluntarily gives up their share in jointly held property in favour of one or more other co-owners, without necessarily receiving a fixed price in return — distinct from a sale (which involves consideration to a third party) or a gift (which typically transfers to someone outside the existing group of co-owners).

RERA (Real Estate Regulatory Authority)

The regulatory framework under the Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, requiring most real estate projects above a defined size to register with the state's RERA authority before marketing or sale, with mandated disclosures, escrow requirements for buyer funds, and defined penalties for delay or misrepresentation. Its applicability to raw agricultural land sales, as opposed to developer-led plotted or farmhouse projects, is limited and state-specific. See Farmhouse Projects and Government Policies.

Revenue Record

The general term for any of the government-maintained land records — khasra, khatauni, jamabandi, shajra, and related documents — that together form the official account of a parcel's identity, classification, and holder. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

S

Sale Agreement (Agreement to Sell)

A contract setting out the agreed terms of a future sale — price, payment schedule, conditions — that creates a right to obtain a sale deed but does not, by itself, transfer ownership of immovable property. Ownership transfers only on execution and registration of the actual Sale Deed.

Sale Deed (विक्रय पत्र)

The primary legal document that transfers ownership of immovable property from a seller to a buyer, which must be registered with the Sub-Registrar to be legally valid. Also called a Bainama in everyday regional usage — see Bainama, above. See our full guide, Stamp Duty and Registration Charges by State.

Sanad (सनद)

A historical term for a formal grant, charter, or title document, often issued by a former ruling authority or the state, conferring rights over land — occasionally still referenced in older title chains for parcels with a long documented history.

Shajra (शजरा)

The village cadastral map showing every plot's boundary, shape, and khasra number, used alongside the khasra and khatauni to physically locate and verify a parcel. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Stamp Duty

A state government tax levied on legal documents, including sale deeds, gift deeds, and mortgage deeds, calculated as a percentage of the property's transaction value or its circle rate, whichever is higher, payable before or at the time of registration. See our full guides, Stamp Duty and Registration Charges by State and Circle Rate vs Market Rate.

Sub-Registrar

The government official, and the office, responsible for registering property documents within a defined jurisdiction, maintaining the register of documents, and issuing certified copies and Encumbrance Certificates.

Succession Certificate

A certificate issued by a civil court under the Indian Succession Act, 1925, establishing a person's right to inherit the movable, and in some contexts immovable, assets, debts, and securities of a person who died intestate (without a will), specifically to enable the heir to collect debts and deal with the estate. Distinct from a Legal Heir Certificate (above), which is an administrative document with narrower evidentiary weight — a succession certificate carries the force of a court order.

Survey Number

The land-parcel identifier used in southern and western Indian states (Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, and others), functionally equivalent to a "khasra number" in the North Indian corridor states this site covers. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

T

TDS on Property (1% TDS)

The requirement, under the Income Tax Act, for a buyer purchasing immovable property valued above ₹50 lakh from a resident seller to deduct 1% tax at source from the payment and deposit it with the government — a compliance obligation on the buyer, separate from stamp duty. A different, generally higher rate applies when the seller is an NRI. See our full guide, Stamp Duty and Registration Charges by State.

Tehsildar (तहसीलदार)

The revenue official heading a tehsil (a sub-district administrative unit), responsible for supervising patwaris, overseeing mutation, and handling several categories of revenue and land-record disputes at the sub-district level. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained.

Title Chain

The documented sequence of ownership transfers for a parcel, traced backward through successive sale deeds, inheritance, gifts, and partitions — typically for a minimum of 12 to 30 years — used to confirm the current seller's ownership derives from a clean, unbroken, legally valid sequence of prior transfers. See Land Fraud in India.

Title Deed

The general term for whichever document — most commonly a sale deed, but also a gift deed, partition deed, or court decree — currently establishes a person's legal ownership of a specific property.

Transfer of Property Act, 1882

The central legislation governing the transfer of immovable property in India through sale, mortgage, lease, exchange, and gift, defining the essential legal requirements for each type of transfer and the rights and liabilities of the parties involved.

U

Undivided Share

A co-owner's or coparcener's interest in jointly held property that hasn't yet been physically demarcated through partition — a defined fractional right in the whole property, rather than ownership of a specific, identified portion of it.

Usufructuary Mortgage (उपभोगबंधक)

A form of mortgage in which the borrower delivers possession of the mortgaged property to the lender, who retains the right to receive rents, profits, or produce from the land — such as crop income — in lieu of interest or in repayment of the loan, until the debt is discharged and possession is returned.

V

Vacant Land

Land with no existing structure or active cultivation — a status that can affect its valuation, applicable circle rate category, and, in some jurisdictions, its tax treatment differently from developed or actively cultivated land.

Valuation (Government Valuation)

The government-determined worth of a property for a specific statutory purpose — most commonly, the applicable circle rate for stamp duty, though separate valuations can also apply for compensation in land acquisition or bank loan security purposes. See Circle Rate vs Market Rate.

W

Wakf Land (वक़्फ़ भूमि)

Property permanently dedicated under Islamic law for religious, pious, or charitable purposes, administered by a Wakf Board and, once validly dedicated, generally not open to private sale or transfer outside the framework of wakf administration. Wakf land disputes and irregular claims are a recognised category of land-title risk requiring specific, careful verification. See Land Fraud in India.

Will (वसीयत)

A legal document by which a person specifies how their property should be distributed after death, which can be registered — though registration is not mandatory for validity in most of India, unlike a sale or gift deed. A validly probated or otherwise established will overrides the default intestate succession rules that would otherwise apply.

Z

Zamindari System

The land-revenue and land-tenure system, prevalent historically in Bengal and parts of Bihar and formalised under British colonial land settlements, under which a zamindar (landlord) held rights over a large estate and collected revenue from cultivating tenants — in contrast to the ryotwari and mahalwari systems that shaped the more cultivator-centric khasra-khatauni framework used across Farmland India's own six-state corridor today. Abolished through state-level zamindari abolition legislation beginning in the 1950s. See Khasra and Khatauni Explained for how this history shaped the corridor's current revenue-record structure.

Frequently Asked Questions