Land ? Information ? System?
The administrative setup
In India, it is the responsibility of the district administration to maintain all the land records and collect land revenue from the farmers. Everything relating to land and land disputes comes under the charge of Tahsildar, Naib Tahsildar, Kanungo and Lekhpal (Patwari). The patwari is very important as he is the one who maintains the records. These officers assist the Collector in this work. Each district is divided into tahsils. Every tahsil comprises parganas and villages. It is important, for an agricultural country like India, that the classification of agricultural land, its measurement, the assessment of its produce and maintenance of land records are properly maintained and updated.
The hard realities
In the states, land ceiling acts are in force which restrict a person not to hold land beyond a limit. The abolition of the zamindari system could happen without much resistance is not only due to the will power of the government but also due to the fact that in an era of industrialisation people were less attached to land and were more interested in capital which they can invest in business. Also, the powerful people of the villages manage to retain large holdings of land due to their ‘understanding’ with patwaris and by using the loopholes in the ceiling act by keeping huge lands in the names of their relatives. Either the land is in the name of close relatives or in the names of employees and distant relatives. However, in the latter cases, the owner has the power of attorney in his name. It is difficult for the policy makers to take the corrective measures as it would go against the interests of the ruling class. Unfortunately, these vested interests influence politicians and senior bureaucrats who, in turn, undermine the successful creation of an efficient cadastral system. That’s how despite all the big claims of land reforms, certain people still manage to hold hundreds of acres of land. Even the ‘Bhoodan Yagna’ by Vinoba Bhave, could not yield the desired results, as most of the donated lands were fallow.
Technology: A tool, not panacea
A recent study undertaken for the Victoria Government has given the benefit-cost ratio of GIS about 3:1in the Australian context. Another study completed in 1995 for Australian and New Zealand Land Information Council (ANZLIC) for the period 1989-94, signified notable cost savings by the use of existing sources of digital cadastral data as compared to the next-best alternative. The cost savings to cost ratio for cadastral data Australia wide was 2.8:1, excluding all other benefits such as the development of new areas of activities, improved data storage and distribution, and many others. While there is good justification to establish digital cadastral database to support LIS and GIS, it is not to suggest that one should jump into it without realising the constraints and the ground realities. Use of technology is essential in developing an efficient cadastral systems. However, one should keep in mind that mere introduction of technology will not solve the problem.
There may be two approaches to the issue:
Approach 1: If we computerise the existing records without matching them with the existing ground realities, the error will keep on getting magnified with the processing of incorrect data. Worse, we neither have the trained manpower to handle the technology nor have the required infrastructure to accommodate the technology. Technology is not a panacea, but a tool to assist the process of LIS. A mismanaged, mishandled technology will lead to incorrect diagnosis of the problem which, in turn, will result in policy prescriptions which may aggravate the problem instead of solving it.
Approach 2: Instead of working without plans, it is better to work with a wrong plan. How will a policy maker be able to have the basic idea about a problem unless he/she has certain basic information? GIS may help a policymaker to at least realise the extent of the problem. In this context, one may prefer to have an approach to initiate the process of incorporating technology in cadastral mapping and keep on sorting out the problems as and when they are identified.
It is important for the country like India to channalise the existing manpower and infrastructure right from the village level in a proper manner. Introduction of technology, without doing basic groundwork, may slow the cadastral process. The solution probably will be to introduce simple technology slowly and as the infrastructure improves, keep on introducing advanced technologies such as GIS and GPS.
Anyway, it is planning, not the technology that fails.the state governments a defined direction to move.