Govt to launch Abadi Deh Survey; rural land management set for transformation: CM Rekha Gupta
The Delhi Government has moved to resolve long-pending questions of identification, ownership and documentation around Abadi Deh land in the capital's rural areas. A comprehensive survey will be conducted, records prepared, and verification and computerisation undertaken, the Chief Minister's Office said in a press release.
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta said the step is aimed at establishing property ownership rights in rural Abadi Deh areas and settling decades-old boundary disputes. To implement the SVAMITVA Scheme, launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 24 April 2020, the government has prepared a draft of the Delhi Abadi Deh Survey and Record Management Rules, 2025.
The draft defines the whole operational framework — drone-based aerial surveys, field verification, public objection procedures, dispute resolution, creation of digital records and issuance of property cards — with the stated objective of resolving land disputes transparently and within fixed timelines.
Drones first, then ground truthing
The survey will run under the direct supervision of the Revenue Department, with survey teams and technical agencies jointly covering Abadi Deh areas, extended Abadi Deh areas and other notified zones. Digital data will be collected through drones and aerial photography, recording the exact location, size and boundaries of each plot.
Ground truthing is mandatory alongside it. Preliminary maps produced from the drone surveys will be physically verified on site to confirm that the boundaries shown match what exists on the ground.
The Revenue Department signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Survey of India in April 2022 to implement SVAMITVA across 48 rural villages of Delhi. Drone surveys have been completed in 31 villages so far, and 'Map 2.0' for 25 villages has been verified and submitted to the Survey of India for issuance of land parcel maps and geo-based identification numbers.
What the survey has to separate
In the initial phase, Abadi Deh boundaries will be physically demarcated. Survey teams will separately identify jointly owned land, private plots, roads, lanes, drains, community spaces, religious sites, graveyards, cremation grounds, government properties, and areas not clearly visible from the air because of trees or structures.
Where required, support will be taken from municipal corporations, the Delhi Development Authority, other departments and the police to keep the survey running smoothly and prevent tampering with boundaries.
Property cards, and what they unlock
The government has decided to fully computerise Abadi Deh records, with the Revenue Department developing a dedicated digital portal through which citizens can obtain copies of their land records on payment of prescribed fees.
Once the survey and record management process is complete, property cards will be issued. These serve as legal proof of ownership, enabling rural residents to access bank loans, financial assistance and development schemes.
Gupta said the decision will also promote planned development in Abadi Deh areas, supporting preservation of village heritage, improvement of civic amenities, higher land value and rural infrastructure built to urban standards, while resolving long-standing boundary and ownership disputes.
Why Abadi Deh land has no records
Abadi Deh literally means the inhabited area of a village. It refers to the land within a village's revenue boundary where rural residences, threshing floors, cowsheds and other ancillary structures stand.
In pre-Independence surveys, Abadi Deh areas were kept separate from agricultural land, and as a result most states hold no official revenue records — no khasra, no khatauni — for it. That gap is why residents often have no legal proof of ownership of the homes they live in, which produces land disputes and blocks access to bank credit. Surveying this land and issuing property cards under SVAMITVA is the step meant to close it.