MODERNISING LAND RECORDS THROUGH E-GOVERNANCE INITIATIVES IN HIMACHAL PRADESH

Abstract

Historically land disputes have been a serious challenge to the administration, economic growth and security of property rights in India because of incomplete record keeping, delays during the administration procedures and inaccessibility of transparency in land administration systems. This theoretical paper analyses the success of Digital India Land Records Modernisation Programme (DILRMP) in curbing land related conflicts through enhancing transparency, managerial productivity, and judicial clarity. The study analytically investigates such structural reforms as digitization of Records of Rights (RoR), merging registration and mutation processes and the introduction of Unique Land Parcel Identification Numbers (ULPIN), solely based on the secondary source of data including government reports, policy documents, and scholarly literature. The results demonstrate that digital transformation has greatly reduced documentation-related conflicts, minimized transactions of fraud and enhanced access to land information. Nevertheless, the socio-legal issues and the lack of implementation have remained obstacles to the full removal of the disputes. The paper finds that DILRMP is a proactive governance reform that would help improve the institutional accountability and the protection of property rights in India.