How do I see and get a copy of my Odisha village map?

What an Odisha village map is

An Odisha village map is the cadastral map of a mouza (revenue village) prepared during survey and settlement operations under the Odisha Survey and Settlement Act, 1958. It shows every plot with its plot number, along with roads, tanks, nalas, village boundaries and other features. The map and the Record of Rights are prepared together: the RoR tells you who holds plot number 245 and its area and kisam, and the map shows where plot 245 lies and what its shape is. Under the Act, a finally published survey record, including the map, is conclusive evidence that it was duly made. In Odia the map is commonly called the village naksa.

A large village may be drawn on several map sheets, each covering part of the mouza. When you ask for a copy, you need the sheet number on which your plot appears, not just the plot number.

How to view the village map on Bhunaksha Odisha

1. Open Bhulekh and use the map view link, or go directly to Bhunaksha Odisha, run by the Revenue and Disaster Management Department and developed by NIC Bhubaneswar.
2. Choose the district, then the tahasil, RI circle and village.
3. Find your plot by entering the plot number or by zooming in on the village map.
4. Click the plot to see its details, such as the khata, area and kisam, and compare them with your RoR.
5. Save or print the view for your own reference, and note the date. Bhunaksha states that its maps are for viewing and not for legal purposes.

Bhulekh also lets you look up a plot by its unique plot ID once you know it. If your village does not appear on Bhunaksha, or the plot shape looks wrong, the paper map at the Tahasil is the reference.

Plot numbers and how they relate to the RoR

• Plot number: the number of a single parcel on the map. Odisha records use plot numbers; other states call them survey or khasra numbers.
• Khata number: the holding in the RoR to which the plot belongs. One khata can contain plots spread across the village and across several map sheets.
• Sub-plots: when a plot is divided after settlement by sale or partition, the record may show sub-divisions (for example 245/1234). Whether the map has been updated to show the new line depends on whether the change has been carried into the map. A mutation changes the RoR; it does not always redraw the map.

For the vocabulary, see the Odisha land terms glossary.

Sabik maps and hal maps

Hal means current: the map and RoR of the latest settlement. Sabik means former: the map and record of the earlier settlement. Between two settlements, plots are often renumbered, merged or split, and khata numbers change. That is why an old sale deed describing "sabik plot 112" may not match anything in today's record.

To trace such land, people usually:

1. get certified copies of the sabik RoR and sabik map sheet, from the Tahasil record room or the district record room at the Collectorate, as the case may be;
2. get the hal RoR and hal map sheet for the same area;
3. match the plot by its position, shape, boundaries (the chauhaddi in the deed) and neighbouring plot holders, using any sabik-hal comparison available in the settlement records; and
4. check that the total area matches, allowing for re-measurement differences.

This exercise is common in partition of family land, in tracing inherited property, and in the checks before buying land.

Getting a certified copy of the village map

A printout from Bhunaksha has no seal or signature. Banks, Sub-Registrars, courts and revenue officers usually want a certified copy of the map sheet, issued by the office holding the record.

• Where: the Tahasil of the area for the current map; for older settlement maps, ask the Tahasil whether the sheet is held there or in the district record room.
• What to give: district, tahasil, mouza, the plot and khata numbers, the sheet number if known, and whether you want the hal or the sabik map.
• Fees: copying and court-fee charges are set by the office and have changed over time; check the current amount at the counter and keep the receipt.
• Collect the copy with the certifying officer's signature and seal. Check that the sheet, mouza and plot are the ones you asked for.

Certified copies of the RoR are a separate service; see the Record of Rights guide.

If the map is wrong

Common problems are a plot drawn in the wrong place, a road or nala missing or misplaced, and a sub-division that was never drawn. The Revenue Department has used the web-based Bhunaksha application for correction of digital cadastral maps since 2018. If the digital map departs from the authenticated paper map, raise it in writing with the Tahasil, attach the certified paper map, and ask how the correction will be processed. A mistake in the map as finally published is a different matter: clerical errors and accidental slips can be corrected under Section 41 of the OSS Act during operations, and other errors need the remedies described in RoR correction in Odisha. If the dispute is about where a boundary lies on the ground, the remedy is demarcation.

Reading the map against a deed

When checking a plot before a purchase, a partition or a building plan, read three documents together: the deed's schedule (plot, khata, area and the four boundaries), the RoR, and the map sheet. Ask:

• Does the plot number in the deed exist in the current record, or is it a sabik number?
• Do the neighbouring plots on the map match the names or features given as boundaries in the deed?
• Does the plot touch a road or path on the map, or is access only across someone else's land?
• Is any adjoining plot recorded as government land, a water body or a road, which may matter for building and conversion?

Any mismatch is a reason to pause and verify before paying money or signing.

Villages under new survey or consolidation

Where a village has been taken up for fresh survey and settlement, or for consolidation of holdings, a new map is prepared and the old one becomes the sabik map once the new record is final. In consolidation villages the map shows chakas, the consolidated blocks; see consolidation (chakbandi) in Odisha. If operations are going on, check the draft map when it is published and object in time.

Related work handled is described under land and property.

Frequently asked questions

Official sources

• Bhunaksha Odisha (Revenue & DM Department, NIC)
• Bhulekh: Odisha land records
• Revenue Department DILRMP circulars, including Bhunaksha map correction (2018)
• Orissa Survey and Settlement Act, 1958 (Revenue & DM Department)

General information, not legal advice. Every matter turns on its own facts and documents, and the law and official procedures change. Check the current position with the concerned office, or take advice on your own facts, before acting.