The government has rolled out the operational guidelines for the third phase of the Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme (DILRMP 3.0), a five-year push running through 2031 that aims to stitch together India's land records, maps, registration systems and revenue courts into one connected digital framework.
The launch
Union Rural Development Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan launched the guidelines on September 10, 2026, at a hybrid event at Krishi Bhawan in New Delhi that connected state revenue and registration ministers, principal secretaries and senior officials via video conference. Chouhan described land as carrying deep social and emotional significance for Indian families and farmers, and said the programme was designed to help farmers access institutional credit while cutting down repeated visits to government offices.
Minister of State for Rural Development Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani said the new phase would tackle persistent legacy problems around spatial accuracy and interoperability between departments, while Department of Land Resources Secretary Narendra Bhooshan called it a step toward building an integrated Digital Public Infrastructure for land administration.
Why a third phase, and why now
DILRMP began in 2008 as the National Land Records Modernisation Programme and was restructured into its current, fully centrally-funded form in 2016. It has now received roughly ₹2,664 crore from the Centre in total. DILRMP 3.0 has been approved as a Central Sector Scheme with an outlay of ₹565.5 crore for 2026–31, funded entirely by the Centre and rolled out through a phased, performance-linked model tracked on the Public Financial Management System.
A Parliamentary Standing Committee on Rural Development and Panchayati Raj, which reviewed the programme's progress and presented its report on August 11, 2026, flagged the core problem the new phase is meant to solve: digitisation is nearly done, but integration lags well behind it.
As of January 31, 2026, the committee found that Records of Rights were 99.81% computerised and cadastral maps 97.42% digitised yet these records had actually been integrated with each other in only 84.32% of villages. The chart above shows this full spread of figures alongside progress on sub-registrar office computerisation and integration with revenue offices.
What changes under DILRMP 3.0
A federated "land stack." Each state will build its own land stack, integrating land datasets and systems through APIs. These state-level stacks are meant to plug into a federated national land stack, giving interoperability across the country while states keep ownership of their own data.
Universal Bhu-Aadhaar (ULPIN). Every land parcel is to get a unique 14-digit identification number, alongside full georeferencing of cadastral maps. More than 37 crore parcels across 29 states and Union Territories already carry a ULPIN, a number that predates DILRMP 3.0 and that the new phase aims to push toward universal coverage.
Registration Seva Kendras. 75 high-footfall sub-registrar offices will be converted into "registration seva kendras," modelled on Passport Seva Kendras, with better citizen facilities and digital queue management.
Digitised revenue courts. A paperless case management system (RCCMS) will be integrated with land records to track property disputes and speed up resolution building on the 26 states and UTs that already have approval to link e-Courts with land and registration databases so buyers can check litigation status before a purchase.
Urban land mapping (NAKSHA). The programme extends the NAKSHA initiative for GIS-based urban land records and Urban Property Cards, moving the same digitisation logic used in rural land records into towns and cities.
Legacy records and paperless registration. The scheme will fund scanning of historical land records and a secure ownership-verification repository. It also builds on the National Generic Document Registration System which already is adopted by 17 states and UTs. This system supports paperless registration through online document entry, payments and appointment booking. Five states (Assam, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab and Madhya Pradesh) have gone fully paperless already.
The bigger picture
Most land records are now digitised. The real gap is that different systems don't talk to each other. The Standing Committee's advice was simple: stop digitising, start connecting. Registration and mutation should link up in every state. So when someone sells land, ownership records update on their own, no extra trip to the revenue office.
That's the core idea behind DILRMP 3.0. For citizens, officials say this should mean:
Fewer office visits
Faster mutation after a property sale
Easier checks on ownership and litigation before buying
Easier access to loans against land, over time
FAQs
What is DILRMP 3.0?
DILRMP 3.0 is the third phase of India's Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme, running 2026–31 with a ₹565.5 crore outlay. It moves beyond digitising individual land records to linking them into one connected, GIS-based system.
What is Bhu-Aadhaar (ULPIN)?
Bhu-Aadhaar, or ULPIN, is a unique 14-digit ID number given to each land parcel in India. It works like an Aadhaar card for land, making ownership records easier to verify and harder to fraud.
How is DILRMP 3.0 different from earlier phases?
Earlier phases focused on digitising records, maps, and registration offices separately — nearly 99% of that work is done. DILRMP 3.0 focuses on connecting these systems so a property sale updates ownership records automatically, without extra office visits.
Who funds DILRMP 3.0?
DILRMP 3.0 is 100% funded by the central government. It will be rolled out across all Indian states and Union Territories, with funds released in phases based on performance.
