NALGONDA: Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy on Monday announced the appointment of 6,000 licensed surveyors to carry out land surveys for farmers across Telangana.
Addressing an awareness meeting on the Bhu Bharathi-2025 Act at Chandampet mandal headquarters in Nalgonda district, the minister also revealed that 10,695 Village Administrative Officers (VAOvaos) will be deployed to 10,000 villages starting in the first week of next month.
Highlighting the objectives of the initiative, he said the Bhu Bharathi Act is designed to ensure justice for all landowners — particularly targeting farmers, weaker sections, backward communities, and the poor.
He stated that four mandals across the state have been chosen for a pilot project to address and resolve long-pending land-related issues, with completion expected by the end of this month. From June 2, land disputes in these pilot mandals will be permanently resolved. Moreover, one mandal per district will be included in the pilot from May 1, with Chandampet mandal being given priority due to its classification as one of the most backward in the region.
From June 2 onwards, tahsildar-level officers will begin visiting villages to accept applications related to land issues, offering free-of-cost resolution services to farmers. The minister also announced the introduction of a Bhudhar card — akin to an Aadhaar card — that will include a unique account number for every individual.
The minister further explained that while earlier land transactions lacked mapping, the new Act mandates a survey map at the time of registration. Addressing the issue of ‘Sada Bainamas’ (unregistered sale agreements), he acknowledged that the Dharani portal had failed to accommodate them. However, under Bhu Bharathi, only genuine claims among the 9.26 lakh pending ‘Sada Bainama’ applications will be considered and processed.
He urged officials to ensure strict implementation of the Act, asserting that its success depends entirely on proper execution. The minister also assured that boundaries of forest lands granted as pattas would be re-examined, and genuine cultivators would receive rightful ownership based on actual land usage.
He acknowledged long-standing challenges in identifying and demarcating land for rehabilitation colonies and de-notified lands, and noted that under the previous BRS regime, farmers had to rely on the Dharani portal for redressal. Bhu Bharathi, he said, aims to resolve these issues comprehensively and fairly.