Bhu Bharati, Telangana’s new land records portal, is a genuine improvement over Dharani. It has better architecture, a proper legislative backing, and features that Dharani never had. But there is one thing Bhu Bharati inherited from Dharani that no amount of new technology can fix automatically: the data.
When Dharani was shut down and Bhu Bharati took over in April 2025, the land records migrated as they were. If your survey number was wrong in Dharani, it is wrong in Bhu Bharati. If your privately owned patta land was classified as “prohibited” in Dharani, it carried that classification into Bhu Bharati. If your name was misspelled, or your co-owner was missing, or your land extent did not match your sale deed, those errors came along for the ride.
The Telangana government knows this. That is why the Bhu Bharati Act includes a one-year correction window. Under Sections 4(5) and 4(6) of the Telangana Bhu Bharati (Record of Rights in Land) Act, 2025, any person affected by an incorrect entry in the Record of Rights can apply for rectification “within the prescribed period.” The Rules (G.O. Ms. No. 39, dated 14 April 2025) set that period at one year from commencement.
The Act commenced on 14 April 2025. The deadline is 13 April 2026.
After this date, uncorrected entries become final for the next survey cycle. Changing them after that will be significantly harder, likely requiring a legal route rather than an administrative correction.
If you own land in Telangana and have not checked your records on Bhu Bharati, now is the time. This guide walks you through exactly what to check, how to spot discrepancies, and what to do if you find them.
Why Errors Exist in the First Place
The Dharani portal, launched in October 2020, was supposed to be Telangana’s unified land records system. It became one of the most problematic property digitisation projects in the country. When the Congress government took power in December 2023, the system had 6.46 lakh pending grievances and a growing list of documented failures.
A government-ordered code audit found what Revenue Minister Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy described as systemic irregularities: “This is not a routine technical issue. The flaws appear to have been created within the system.” Sensitive login credentials were compromised, transaction data was concealed, and the portal’s maintenance had been outsourced to TerraCIS Technologies (formerly IL&FS Technologies), which had come under foreign ownership after being acquired by Falcon SG Holding, a Philippine subsidiary of Singapore-based Falcon Investments. The firm’s role came under investigation.
The specific data problems were extensive.
Wrong land classifications. The single biggest category of errors. Privately owned patta lands were listed as “prohibited” or “assigned land,” effectively blocking owners from selling or transferring their property. The prohibited lands list ballooned from about 20 lakh acres to over one crore acres (out of Telangana’s total 2.5 crore acres). Over 60,000 grievances were filed about this alone.
In S. Mukund Reddy v. State of Telangana (2024), land held for over ten years was shown as “Assigned Land” in Dharani when it should have been “Patta Land.” The Telangana High Court directed authorities to consider the reclassification application and pass orders within four weeks. In another case (Sri G. Sathyanarayana v. State of Telangana, 2021), land the petitioners claimed to have held since 1948 was listed as prohibited, blocking registration entirely. The court directed the District Collector to examine and resolve the claim.
Missing or wrong owner details. Dharani had no provision to register land in the name of multiple owners. For inherited property, where two or three siblings are legal heirs, only one name would appear. In Vangala Bharat Reddy v. State of Telangana (2024), a registered sale deed holder applied for mutation and passbook correction, but was rejected because “the applicant and pattadar as per Dharani are two different persons.” The court set aside the rejection, noting the portal had simply not considered the registered sale deed.
Data entry errors. Wrong survey numbers, missing sub-divisions, and mismatches between recorded and actual land measurements. The portal offered 33 correction modules, each with a Rs 1,000 fee, and applicants often did not know which one to use. Lakhs of applications were rejected.
These are not hypothetical risks. These are documented errors that the Telangana High Court has intervened to correct, repeatedly. And many of them migrated directly into Bhu Bharati.
What to Check on Bhu Bharati
Go to bhubharati.telangana.gov.in and use “Know Your Land Status.” You can search by survey number, pattadar passbook (PPB) number, Aadhaar (first four digits), or passport number. Select your district, mandal, and village from the dropdowns.
The portal displays a Pahani record with 11 columns. Here is what to verify, field by field, and what documents to compare against.
1. Owner Name (Pattadar Name)
What to check: Is your name correct and fully spelled out? If the property is jointly owned or inherited, are all co-owners listed?
Compare against: Your registered sale deed, succession certificate, or legal heir certificate. If the property was inherited, the names of all legal heirs should appear.
Common Dharani error: Only one heir listed for jointly inherited property. Missing co-owners entirely. Misspelled names that do not match the sale deed.
2. Survey Number and Sub-Division
What to check: Does the survey number on the portal match the survey number on your registered sale deed? If the land was subdivided, does the sub-division number match?
Compare against: Your registered sale deed. The survey number is always mentioned in the deed.
Common Dharani error: Wrong survey numbers from data entry mistakes during initial digitisation. Missing sub-divisions where a larger plot was divided among heirs.
3. Land Extent (Area)
What to check: Does the recorded area match what your sale deed says? This will be in acres, guntas, or square yards depending on the property.
Compare against: Your sale deed and, if available, any survey or measurement reports.
Common Dharani error: Mismatches between recorded and actual land measurements. This is particularly common where old manual records were digitised with errors.
4. Land Classification
What to check: Is your land shown as “Patta” (private ownership) or something else? If it says “Prohibited,” “Assigned,” “Government,” or “Endowment” and you hold a registered sale deed for it, that is an error.
Compare against: Your sale deed and any previous RDO or Collector orders confirming private ownership.
This is the most critical field. If your land is classified as prohibited, you cannot register any transaction on it. You cannot sell it, gift it, or mortgage it. More than 60,000 Dharani-era grievances were about this exact problem.
5. Mode of Acquisition
What to check: Does it correctly show how you acquired the property? The options include purchase (registered sale deed), inheritance (succession), gift, partition, or government assignment.
Compare against: Your sale deed, gift deed, succession certificate, or partition deed, whichever applies.
Common Dharani error: Mode of acquisition not updated after transfer, still showing the previous owner’s acquisition details.
6. Enjoyment Column (Actual Occupant)
What to check: This column shows who is actually cultivating or occupying the land. If you are the owner but someone else is shown as the occupant and you did not authorise that, flag it.
Why it matters: The enjoyment column provides legal protection for whoever is listed. If someone else’s name appears here without your knowledge, it could be the first step in an adverse possession claim.
7. Bhudhaar Number
What to check: Has your land parcel been assigned a Bhudhaar number? This is the new unique identifier (like Aadhaar for land) that Bhu Bharati uses.
Two types exist: A temporary Bhudhaar (geo-referencing not yet completed) and a permanent Bhudhaar (geo-referencing done). You will need a permanent Bhudhaar to register any future transactions.
How to Get Your Comparison Documents
If you do not already have copies of the documents you need to compare against, here is where to get them.
Registered Sale Deed: If you do not have the original, you can get a certified copy from the Sub-Registrar’s office where it was registered, or search for it on the IGRS Telangana portal.
Encumbrance Certificate: Apply through IGRS Telangana for a 30-year EC search. This will also show any unexpected transactions registered against your property.
Succession Certificate / Legal Heir Certificate: If the property was inherited, this is the document that establishes your right. If you do not have one, you will need to obtain it from the relevant court or revenue authority before filing a correction.
Old Pattadar Passbook: Your pre-Bhu Bharati passbook. If you have a physical copy, keep it. It serves as evidence of what your records used to show.
For NRIs managing documents from abroad, Assetly provides a platform to store and organise all your property documents digitally, which makes cross-referencing much easier when you are sitting in London or San Francisco trying to compare a portal entry against a sale deed from 2005.
What to Do If You Find an Error
If any field on Bhu Bharati does not match your ownership documents, file for correction before 13 April 2026. Here is the process.
Step 1: File a Correction Application
You can file through the Bhu Bharati portal’s ROR Corrections module or visit your mandal revenue office (Tahsildar’s office) in person. The portal has a Digital Data Management System (DDMS) module for passbook data corrections.
Documents you will need:
- Old pattadar passbook (PPB)
- Registered sale deed (certified copy if original is lost)
- For inheritance corrections: succession certificate or legal heir certificate, death certificate of previous owner
- For classification corrections: any previous RDO or Collector orders confirming private ownership
- For survey number corrections: old PPB plus sale deed for re-indexing
- Identity proof (Aadhaar, PAN, or passport for NRIs)
Step 2: Wait for Processing
The Tahsildar processes the application. This involves sending notices, requesting information via affidavit, and gathering evidence (which can include speaking to neighbouring farmers and village elders). The government has indicated that orders should be issued within approximately 90 days if no illegality is found, though timelines may vary depending on the complexity of the case.
For properties valued above Rs 5 lakh, only the District Collector can authorise corrections. This is an important distinction. Most urban and peri-urban properties will cross this threshold.
Step 3: If Rejected, Appeal
The Bhu Bharati Act provides a structured appeals process that Dharani never had. For ROR correction orders specifically (under Sections 4(5) and 4(6)):
| Level | Authority | Time Limit to Appeal |
|---|---|---|
| First | Tahsildar | Initial application |
| Second | RDO (if Tahsildar decided) or District Collector (if RDO decided) | 30 days from the order |
| Third | District Collector or Land Tribunal (Section 14) | 30 days from second-level order |
Note: for other order types (registration, mutation under Sections 5, 7, 8), the first appeal window is 60 days. But for ROR corrections, it is 30 days at each level.
This is a significant improvement. Under Dharani, if a District Collector rejected your application, there was no clear recourse short of filing a writ petition in the High Court. Bhu Bharati adds the Land Tribunal as a statutory appellate body.
Step 4: Free Legal Aid
Section 15(8) of the Act states that the government “may take necessary measures to provide free legal services to the farmers who are not in a position to file appeal before the Tribunal or the Appellate Authority.” The government has also announced plans to appoint volunteers at the mandal level to assist with the process.
For NRIs: The POA Question
If you cannot be present in India to file corrections, your Power of Attorney holder can do it on your behalf. Make sure your POA specifically authorises the holder to deal with revenue records, apply for corrections, and represent you before revenue authorities. A general POA may not be sufficient for this purpose. Use a Special Power of Attorney (SPA) that names the specific actions.
If your existing POA does not cover revenue record corrections, you will need to execute a new one, get it notarised and attested by the Indian Embassy or Consulate in your country of residence, and send it to your representative in India. Start this process now if you think corrections will be needed. Two weeks is tight.
What Happens After the Deadline?
The Act does not say you can never correct your records after 13 April 2026. But the one-year window under Sections 4(5) and 4(6) is specifically designed as an administrative correction mechanism. It is meant to be straightforward: file, provide evidence, get corrected.
After the deadline, uncorrected entries become part of the finalised Record of Rights for the next survey cycle. To change them after that point, you will likely need to go through the Land Tribunal or pursue legal remedies, which means lawyers, timelines, and costs that are orders of magnitude higher than an administrative correction.
The difference between correcting a record now and fighting to correct it later is the difference between filling out a form and filing a court case. The legislature set this deadline precisely because it knew the data was migrated from a flawed system and wanted to give people a window to fix things.
A Practical Checklist
If you own property in Telangana, here is what to do before 13 April 2026.
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Log into Bhu Bharati at bhubharati.telangana.gov.in. Look up every parcel you own using “Know Your Land Status.”
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Compare every field against your registered sale deed, EC, and pattadar passbook. Pay special attention to land classification, owner name, survey number, and extent.
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Get a fresh Encumbrance Certificate from IGRS Telangana for the full 30-year search period. Check for transactions you did not authorise.
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If anything does not match, file a correction through the Bhu Bharati portal or your mandal revenue office before 13 April 2026.
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If you are an NRI, check whether your POA covers revenue record corrections. If not, execute a new SPA immediately.
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Save dated copies of everything you check. Screenshots of your portal records, timestamped. If a dispute arises later, your own dated records are evidence of what the portal showed at a given point in time.
The Bhu Bharati system is better than what came before. But better architecture does not fix bad data. The only person who will catch an error in your records is you. The correction window closes on 13 April 2026. Use it.
For a real-world example of what incomplete land records look like in practice, see our deep-dive into the Vattinagulapalli land dispute near Hyderabad’s ORR — where the government admitted in court that the original survey maps for the disputed land do not even exist.
Assetly is a property document management platform that helps Indian property owners organise, verify, and track their property documents digitally. Learn more.
