How to read the Assam jamabandi, and land records across the North-Eastअसम की जमाबंदी और पूर्वोत्तर के भूमि अभिलेख कैसे पढ़ें

What the records are, and who keeps them

The north-east is the part of India where one guide to land records is least possible. Assam keeps a jamabandi much as the plains states do. Elsewhere, and in parts of Assam itself, a large share of land is held under customary or community tenure — by a village, a clan or a community under its own customary law — and the records work differently, or do not exist in the form a buyer from elsewhere expects. Where a state has special constitutional or council arrangements for land, those govern before anything on this page.

The Glossary of Revenue Terms published by the Department of Land Resources lists the following:

Arunachal Pradesh is absent from both government sources we rely on: neither lists a record format or a portal. We do not fill that gap with a guess.

Assam. The Glossary gives Dag as the plot number and Patta Number as the holder’s account, and names the Assam Land Revenue Regulation, 1886 as the governing law. It gives the language as Assamese, though its own specimen heads the column Bangla; in practice you may see either script. The record is maintained at village level by the mandal and held at the revenue circle office. Parts of Assam fall under autonomous council arrangements; ask the circle office which applies.

Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland. For these states the Glossary names the form but does not give the plot and holder labels, and we do not print any. In Meghalaya, Mizoram and Nagaland, it lists no online portal. For Nagaland it lists two documents, the Chitta and the Jamabandi. Much land in the hill areas of these states is held under customary arrangements, and district councils or village institutions may hold the relevant records. Ask the district revenue office which body holds the record for the land in question.

Andaman & Nicobar. The record is Form F, with 15 fields, in English.

How to read it, part by part

The steps below follow the Assam jamabandi. For the other states, use them as a checklist of what to find on the document you are given, and ask the issuing office to point each item out.

• Header. District, revenue circle, mouza and village. Check each against the sale deed and the map.
• Patta number and type. The patta is the account. Note the number, and note the kind of patta recorded; the kind of patta affects what the holder can transfer. If you do not understand what is written, ask the circle office before going further.
• Pattadars and shares. Each holder is listed with parentage and, where there are several, their share. Every pattadar has to be part of a sale of their share.
• Dag numbers. Each plot is a dag, with its own number. Match every dag to the village map and to the land the seller shows you. See khasra and survey numbers for how plot numbering varies.
• Area. Assam uses bigha, katha and lessa. The Glossary gives one bigha as 14,400 square feet, one katha as 2,880 square feet and one lessa as 144 square feet. These are Assam’s own units; do not apply them to any other state.
• Land class. The kind of land is recorded for each dag. Check it against the ground.
• Remarks. Mutations, orders, encumbrances and notes are recorded here. Read every line.

What it does not prove

A jamabandi, chitta or Form F entry is a revenue record, not a title deed. A name in it is not by itself proof of ownership, and where land is held under customary tenure, an individual record may not exist at all.

• Mutation history. See the orders by which each current holder was recorded.
• Encumbrance. Check separately for loans and charges.
• Registered deeds. Read the chain of deeds behind the holding.
• Who may hold land. In several north-eastern states, special rules govern who may hold or acquire land. Take local advice before you pay anything.

We have written separately about why a revenue entry is not title: see jamabandi and mutation are not proof of ownership, and land fraud red flags for the patterns that show up when a record is used to mislead a buyer.

Where to get a copy

The addresses below are those the Department of Land Resources lists, given as plain text. Type them in yourself and check you are on the official site.

For a transaction, get a certified copy from the office concerned, and work through verify land records in order.

Questions first-time buyers ask

What do dag and patta mean on an Assam jamabandi?

The Glossary of Revenue Terms gives Dag as the Assam term for the plot number and Patta Number for the holder's account. A patta can contain several dags, and a dag can have several pattadars with shares.

Is there an online land record for Meghalaya, Mizoram or Nagaland?

The Glossary of Revenue Terms defines a format for each of these states but lists no online portal. Approach the district revenue office or the relevant council for the area, and ask what record exists for the particular land.

What is the land record called in Arunachal Pradesh?

Arunachal Pradesh is absent from both government sources we rely on: no record format is listed and no portal. We therefore do not name one. Ask the district administration what record exists for the land you are considering.

Does an Assam jamabandi prove ownership?

No. It is a revenue record of who is recorded against a patta and dag. Ownership rests on registered deeds, inheritance and orders. Check the mutation history and encumbrances as well, and confirm the nature of the patta with the circle office.

Why does customary tenure matter to an outside buyer?

Where land is held by a community, clan or village under customary law, there may be no individual record in the form described here, and rules on who may hold or transfer land can apply. Take advice locally before you pay anything.

Related guides

See how to read land documents, or find your state at records by state. Where customary tenure or special land rules may apply, find legal help before committing to anything.

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