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Context

• One of the vital factors in land resources-led economic growth is the ownership of the properties, especially in rural areas.
• It is observed that ownership of land in rural areas is based on physical possession of the property and lacks sufficient documentary evidence of ownership.
• To remove this disparity, SVAMITVA Scheme was launched in April, 2020.

What is SVAMITVA Scheme?

• SVAMITVA stands for Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas.
• Under the scheme, the latest surveying technology such as drones will be used for measuring the inhabited land in villages and rural areas.
• The mapping and survey will be conducted in collaboration with the Survey of India, State Revenue Department and State Panchayati Raj Department under the Ministry of Panchayati Raj.
• The drones will draw the digital map of every property falling in the geographical limit of each Indian village.
• Property Cards will be prepared and given to the respective owners.

Broad Objectives

1. Leveraging property as a financial asset by the citizens of rural India
2. Creation of accurate land records for rural planning
3. Provide an integrated property validation solution for rural India
4. Serve as a means of reduction in property-related disputes Facilitate with the determination of property tax
5. Creation of survey infrastructure and GIS (Geographic Information System) maps that can be used by any department or agency

Features of the Scheme

• Accurate survey: SVAMITVA Scheme uses the combination of Survey Grade Drones and CORS network (Continuously Operated Reference Stations) to accurately survey large areas in a very short span of time.
• High resolution: The 1:500 scale maps generated through the drone survey are of very high accuracy i.e., 3-5 cms, which the conventional methodology does not provide.
• Geo-tagging: Moreover, editable and geo-tagged maps are produced at a fraction of the cost without the need for line-of-sight.
• Permanent records: These maps facilitate the creation of the most durable record of property holdings in areas with no legacy revenue records.

Need for digitized land records

• Land as a finite resource: Land is an essential resource for most economic activities aimed at the creation of economic growth in the world.
• Asset to Economy: The management of land resources, therefore, is considered an important component of the economic policies of any country.
• Ambiguous ownership: In the absence of a legal document, the owner of the property in the rural areas is not able to leverage it as a financial asset.
• Credit liabilities: Ambigous records are not accepted by the banks to provide loans and other financial assistance. These residents are left with no other option but to avail loans from non-institutional creditors.
• Debt-trapping: Lack of awareness among the uninformed rural populace leads them into a spiralling debt trap, leaving them at the mercy of the moneylenders.

Significance of Svamitva Scheme

• Villagers can utilize their property as a financial asset to take out loans and other financial benefits under the Svamitva plan.
• People in rural regions would gain from the plan because they will be able to utilise their property as a financial asset to obtain loans and other financial benefits.
• It will also result in the compilation of accurate land records for rural planning and property tax calculation.
• Drone technology will also be used to assess land parcels in rural inhabited areas under the initiative.
• It will save them from the land mafia’s loot of land and help resolve other property-related disputes with the title deeds allotted as well. 

Implementation flow

• Continuously Operating Reference Station (CORS): It is a network of reference stations that will provide a virtual base station and allow access to long-ranging and high accuracy network Real-Time Kinematic (RTK) corrections. It helps in the process of georeferencing, ground-truthing, and land demarcation.
• Large Scale Mapping (LSM) using drone: A drone survey will be used for mapping the Abadi area by SOI. It will produce high-resolution and accurate maps. Based on this data, ownership rights will be conferred and property cards will be issued to the rural household owners.
• Information, Education, and Communication (IEC): It will include running campaigns, circulation of good practices, and other campaigns on the national level through social media platforms. It is upon the state government to develop a comprehensive communication strategy to sensitize the local population.
• Enhancement of Spatial Planning Application “Gram Manchitra”: In order to support the preparation of the Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP), the digital spatial data created using the drone survey shall be leveraged.
• Online Monitoring System: It is important to monitor the activities and their progress for which reporting dashboards and online monitoring systems will be used.
• Program Management Unit: It has two units namely the National Programme Management Unit (NPMU) and the State Programme Management Unit (SPMU). These will assist the departmental mechanism in the implementation of the scheme.                                         

Way forward

• Better planning: The creation of accurate land records and GIS maps will support Panchayats in the preparation of a better-quality Gram Panchayat Development Plan (GPDP).
• Land revenue management: With this, Gram Panchayats can better streamline their property tax determination and collections in States:
• Revenue generation: This will lead to the generation of their own sources of revenue which could’ be gainfully utilized for various developmental works.
• Boost to drone industry: The Scheme has also given an impetus to the drone ecosystem in the country.

Conclusion

• Thus, SVAMITVA Scheme aims for holistic development of Gram Panchayat through the empowerment of villages and their residents which will eventually make rural India Atmanirbhar.