Centre Launches Land Stack, Glossary to Modernise India’s Land Governance

Today, citizens must navigate complex, fragmented systems to access land records, ownership details, compliance documents, and property maps.

In a major push to modernise India’s land administration system, Dr. Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani, Minister of State for Rural Development and Communications, launched the ‘Land Stack’ in pilot locations of the Union Territory of Chandigarh and Tamil Nadu, along with releasing the ‘Glossary of Revenue Terms’ (GoRT) on 31 December 2025 in New Delhi. These initiatives mark a decisive shift toward transparent, technology-driven, and citizen-centric land governance under the Digital India Land Record Modernisation Programme (DILRMP).

The launch represents a national effort to align India’s diverse, historically-rooted land records with the needs of a digitised, modern economy—bringing clarity, accessibility and efficiency into the land administration ecosystem.

Land Stack: Enabling Integrated, Informed Land Decisions

Inspired by global best practices in Singapore, the UK, and Finland, the Land Stack is designed as an integrated GIS-based digital platform that aggregates land and property information from multiple government departments into a single-window interface.

Today, citizens must navigate complex, fragmented systems to access land records, ownership details, compliance documents, and property maps. The Land Stack addresses this challenge by offering seamless, consolidated access—empowering citizens and officials alike.

Key Benefits of Land Stack

• Provides integrated land-related information, enabling informed decision-making for buyers, owners, and authorities.

• Enhances transparency, convenience, and public trust in property transactions.

• Reduces risks associated with purchasing unauthorised, encroached, or non-compliant properties.

• Improves inter-departmental coordination, supporting data-driven governance and efficient grievance resolution.

• Represents a major e-Governance reform, modernising India’s land administration architecture.

As the pilot progresses, Land Stack is expected to be scaled nationwide, strengthening the backbone of India’s digital property ecosystem.

Glossary of Revenue Terms (GoRT): Bridging Linguistic and Administrative Diversity

India’s land system has evolved through centuries of administrative reforms—from Todar Mal’s Mughal-era revenue frameworks to British settlement models like Ryotwari and Mahalwari. Consequently, land terminology varies across regions:

• Words like Khasra, Dag, or Pula en may refer to similar concepts.

• Identical terms may have different meanings across States.

To address these discrepancies, the Department of Land Resources (DoLR), in partnership with the Centre of Excellence in Land Administration and Management (CoE-LAM) at YASHADA, Pune, has developed the Glossary of Revenue Terms.

Highlights of GoRT

• Offers meanings of land-related terms in Vernacular languages, Hindi, English, and Roman scripts.

• Harmonises terminology to make land data interoperable and comparable nationwide, without replacing State-specific usage.

• Serves as an authoritative reference for:

  • Revenue officials

  • Policymakers

  • Judicial authorities

  • Researchers

  • Citizens

• Enhances clarity in legal and administrative processes, reducing disputes and improving communication.

Towards a Modern, Coherent Land Governance Framework

Together, the Land Stack and GoRT represent a coordinated national effort to bring coherence, transparency, and digital efficiency to India’s land administration system. These reforms support India's long-term vision of:

• Digitised governance

• Reduced disputes

• Enhanced ease of doing business

• Improved citizen access to reliable land information

By bridging historical complexity with modern technology, the Government is paving the way for 21st-century-ready land governance that is accessible, reliable, and citizen-first.