HYDERABAD: The Dharani portal was the subject of intense discussion and debate in the run-up to the Assembly elections in 2023. While the Congress claimed the portal had many flaws and wanted to “throw it” into the Bay of Bengal, the then BRS government defended it by saying that scrapping would pave the way for the brokers and middlemen to flourish in the state.
Farmers across the state complain about the struggle they face getting details regarding their properties entered and getting errors corrected. Many who had mortgaged lands before Dharani’s introduction alleged hurdles in obtaining passbooks even after loan repayment. Implementation of court orders faced obstacles, with revenue officials proceeding with government land registrations instead.
The Congress also promised to replace Dharani with the Bhumatha system. Now that it’s been three weeks since the Congress government took charge, farmers across the state are awaiting the introduction of the new portal. Kanuku Venkateswarlu, a marginal farmer from Narasapuram village in Dummugudem mandal, Kothagudem district, said his lands have not been recorded in Dharani. He claimed that family members of deceased individuals face difficulties in registering lands under their names on the portal.
B Sudhakar Reddy, a farmer from Kandukur village in Vemsoor mandal, Khammam district, said that he bought 2.5 acres of land but hasn’t been able to enter it into the portal. He said that the officials haven’t been of much help either.
80% of complaints at Prajavani related to Dharani
In the past, land issues that were resolved at the tahsildar level are now addressed by the district collector after the introduction of Dharani, forcing farmers to apply online and spend months running from pillar to post. The absence of a mechanism for investigating land disputes at the village level has resulted in prolonged resolutions for even minor issues, farmers noted.
Officials said that complaints about discrepancies in land records, such as mismatches in owned land or records not reflecting recent ownership changes, cannot be resolved at the mandal level. The removal of VROs after the implementation of Dharani has meant less scrutiny of government land at the village level, which has led to land grabbing.
A district-level revenue officer from Sangareddy said the errors in land details are the responsibility of the collector, who then refers complaints back to the tahsildar for investigation. The collector takes
action upon receiving the report.
Critics argue that the government’s directive to computerise the entire revenue records into Dharani within 100 days contributed to errors. Temporary computer operators were forced to work for days without rest, they added.
Officials in Sangareddy said that about 80% of the grievances they received during the Prajavani, a public grievances forum, are related to Dharani. Complaints range from discrepancies in land area records to incorrect ownership transfers.
Earlier, if a farmer complained about discrepancies in land records, a surveyor would conduct a survey, and corrections would be made in the presence of both parties. However, the portal’s implementation has introduced new challenges, as computer operators and tahsildars enter only the information available in their respective offices. Consequently, issues arise when buyers fail to update their names in records after purchasing land, he pointed out.
A portal to chaos
Several farmers lamented the high registration costs associated with Dharani. B Ravi, a farmer from Jangaon, said that there were no such charges for name changes and registrations in the past. The introduction of Dharani has resulted in high registration costs, said Ravi. B Hari Lal said that the removal of Dharani would simplify the registration process for agricultural lands. Officials in Sangareddy said that about 80% of the grievances they received during the Prajavani, a public grievances forum initiated by the new Congress government, are related to Dharani.
Inputs from B Satyanarayana Reddy, S Raja Reddy, P Krishna, U Mahesh