# 3. **LAND SURVEY AND SETTLEMENT OPERATIONS**

Land revenue is a rent fixed on land on the basis of its productivity and income. Land 'settlement' in Indian revenue parlance refers to the assessment of the land revenue demand from each parcel (plot) of land. It is preceded by:

- cadastral survey: a comprehensive survey of plot boundaries conducted upon both the initial formation of the plot (e.g. through partitioning) and any subsequent boundary changes; and

- preparation of Records-of-Rights (ROR): the ROR makes clear all interests in the land. The ROR does not alter existing rights or create new ones, but merely ascertains existing rights in a particular land parcel, and by whom they are exercised.

The survey and the ROR are together used to assess the land revenue.

Prior to Independence in 1947, different principles of rent settlement were followed in different parts of Orissa. The Survey and Settlement Act, 1958 (followed by the Survey and Settlement Rules, 1962) introduced uniform procedures for survey, preparation of RORs and settlement of rent. The term 'settlement' will be used here to refer collectively to these three processes. Settlement is initiated by government in order to update the RORs before determining the land revenue demand. It usually takes place once every 20-25 years although in some places the frequency has been much lower. The settlement operation is organised through field camps<sup>12</sup> at which officers from the settlement section camp are physically based for much of the duration of the survey and settlement operation. Each camp covers a number of villages within the jurisdiction of a particular police station. The notification for a camp is issued by the beat of drum and by posting a copy to the gram panchayat and the RI. A minimum notice of 2-3 months is given prior to setting up the camp at a prominent place in the village. For instance, the settlement camp in Badavema village in Khurda district, one of the 7 camps operating simultaneously in Begunia Police Station at the time of our field study, covered 19 villages in Begunia RI circle, and had hired out part of the gram panchayat building.

The survey and settlement operation consists of three main stages: cadastral survey, preparation or updating of land records, and assessment of revenue demand. Each of these is considered in turn.

# **3.1 Cadastral Survey**

An essential preliminary step to settlement of land revenue is the preparation of a cadastral map of the village. First, trijunctions of survey fields are demarcated with stones and used for theodolite traverses. The owners are notified and ordered to demonstrate their claims on the land to the _amin_ by indicating where boundaries have changed through mutation. In the event of a boundary dispute (e.g. by encroachment), the disputed portion of the plot is shown as representing a new, discrete plot, and remains legally registered in name of the original ownerl<sup>3</sup> .

- 12 Technically, the settlement camp is known as the Attestation, Draft Publication and Objection Hearing (ADP & OH) camp.

- 13 To do otherwise would favor the encroacher and therefore give rise to considerable litigation. In practice such instances of encroachment do not come to the attention of the revenue authoritie **s** ince they are referred to the civil court, which is prohibitively expensive for most people. In this process, weaker and disadvantaged land holders often lose effective control over land which remains legally registered as theirs.

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