Land remains one of India’s most contested and complex assets. Managing it efficiently, across temple trusts, industrial corridors, or expanding cities, requires a digital system that is precise, auditable, and dynamic. With increasing focus on transparency and accountability, GIS and GeoAI-based land management platforms are emerging as strategic tools for sustainable land governance.
Policy Momentum & Institutional Reforms
The Digital India Land Records Modernization Programme (DILRMP) and National Geospatial Policy 2022 have laid a strong foundation for transparent and standardized land governance.
- As of December 2024, 98.5% of Records of Rights (RoR) are digitized and nearly 70% of cadastral maps have been integrated.
- The (Unique Land Parcel Identification Number (ULPIN) initiative ensures every parcel has a unique spatial identity.
- Integration with registration offices (NGDRS) and e-courts has accelerated data sharing and dispute resolution.
This national policy ecosystem supports the transition to intelligent, GIS-driven land banks, capable of linking ownership, utilization, and change detection into a unified spatial system.
SPARC’s Digital Approach: Integrated Land Asset Management
SPARC’s GIS-based Land Asset Management System unifies cadastral data, ownership records, utilization patterns, and imagery analytics within a Spatial Data Infrastructure (SDI) environment. The platform ensures interoperability across departments and delivers a single source of truth for administrators, decision-makers, and field teams. It replaces manual reconciliation with automated, verifiable, and location-accurate workflows, enabling proactive monitoring rather than reactive record-keeping.
Key Modules
Land Information System (LIS):
Consolidates georeferenced cadastral maps, DGPS-based boundaries, and RoR integration for complete parcel-level visibility. Tracks utilization, ownership status, and mutation progress across jurisdictions.
GeoAI Surveillance:
AI-driven change detection analyzes periodic satellite imagery to identify land-use changes and encroachments. Automated alerts trigger field verification through mobile applications.
Centralized Document Repository:
Houses acquisition files, court orders, sale deeds, and payment records in a version-controlled, searchable digital archive. Metadata-based search and access governance ensure secure retrieval.
Land Dashboard & Analytics:
Provides real-time insight into utilization ratio, encroachment zones, pending mutations, and legal case status. Enables executive decision-making through visual and spatial intelligence.
Mobile Field Application:
Allows on-site users to navigate plots, collect evidence, and update records instantly. Field-to-server synchronization keeps the database continuously current.
Case Studies: From Temple Trusts to Transport Corridors
Shree Jagannath Temple Administration (SJTA), Puri
- Developed a Web-GIS-based Land Bank System encompassing more than 60,000 land parcels across six districts of Odisha.
- Scanned, digitized, and reconciled 100% of temple land maps and RoR records with the state’s Bhulekh database, achieving parcel-level accuracy above 95%.
- Integrated 0.5 m high-resolution satellite imagery and GeoAI-based encroachment monitoring, detecting over 1,200 unauthorized land-use instances for swift administrative response.
- Deployed a mobile application for field verification and record updating, reducing manual reconciliation time by approximately 40% and ensuring real-time visibility for administrators.
East Coast Railway (ECoR)
- Implemented a centralized GIS-based Land Information System covering around 17,000 hectares of railway land across the Khurda Road, Sambalpur, and Waltair divisions.
- Unified cadastral maps, RoR details, and asset inventories into one digital platform, ensuring real-time visibility for over 85% of railway-owned plots.
- Adopted GeoAI-driven change detection with 97% accuracy, automating encroachment alerts and field verification.
- Digitized more than 25,000 land-related documents, improving compliance tracking, operational transparency, and audit readiness.
Conclusion: From Legacy Records to Living Land Banks
India’s policy ecosystem is now aligned with the vision of intelligent land governance. By integrating GIS, GeoAI, and centralized workflows, SPARC’s solution turns static records into living digital assets, capable of guiding decisions, ensuring compliance, and protecting land resources for generations. From temple towns to mega cities, this approach represents the next phase of India’s digital land management journey.