Bhubaneswar: Odisha is set to move towards an end-to-end digital registration system with the State Government proposing amendments to the Registration Act, 1908, to facilitate paperless deed registration and integrate registration records with land and other government databases.
A high-level meeting chaired by Revenue and Disaster Management Minister Suresh Pujari at Lok Seva Bhawan discussed the proposed amendments aimed at making property registration faster, simpler, more transparent and convenient for citizens.
The proposed changes include amendments to eight existing provisions of the Act and the insertion of nine new provisions to provide legal recognition to electronic books, electronic signatures and electronic seals. The framework will also enable electronic preservation of registered documents and accord legal validity to their digital copies and records.
Under the proposed system, citizens will be able to submit documents electronically for registration. In specified cases, electronic appearance and enquiry will also be permitted. Registration records will be linked with a Unique Property Identification Number (UPIN) or an identification number integrated with government land records.
Aadhaar-based electronic identity verification will be facilitated with the consent of citizens, but Aadhaar will not be mandatory. The government will also allow identity verification through offline methods, Officially Valid Documents, e-Documents and other prescribed electronic modes.
The proposed paperless system will introduce standard templates for registrable documents and facilitate fully electronic registration of specified categories. Templates will be developed for documents such as sale deeds, agreements to sale, general powers of attorney and mortgages of immovable property.
Electronically issued registration certificates will carry electronic signatures and seals and will have the same legal validity as physical certificates.
A key feature of the proposed system is integration of registration data with land records, cadastral maps, revenue records, Urban Local Bodies, planning authorities, financial institutions and other relevant government systems. Linking registration records with land records and mutation registers will also facilitate electronic initiation and completion of the mutation process.
The amendments further propose a legal framework for the preservation and archiving of electronic records, along with provisions for cyber security and disaster recovery to ensure the integrity, security and long-term availability of digital registration data.
Minister Suresh Pujari said making the registration system citizen-centric, transparent and expeditious is a priority of the State Government. The proposed paperless registration system, he said, would make registration services more convenient while digital integration of land and registration records would improve efficiency and transparency.
The Revenue and Disaster Management Department said the proposed legal framework is intended to create a technology-driven, secure and people-oriented registration system while ensuring seamless integration between property records and other government databases.
