Maharashtra’s revenue department is set for a facelift with blockchain technology

A government office with piles of documents strewn about and files gathering dust is a common sight.

But the Maharashtra revenue department will not look like this in a couple of years as it is all set for a transformation by adopting the blockchain technology.

This digital method of storing records in a business network will enable district collectors to have a faster documentation process and also save costs, officials told PTI.

At the Global Fintech Fest held in Mumbai last month, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that the role of governance, especially in the revenue department, is going to change forever in the next two-three years.

“Blockchain technology is going to save a lot of time for a district collector, who has to spend considerable time conducting hearings related to errors in documents. There will be no typical or conventional role left for a collector once we move to blockchain technology-based documentation,” said he.

The revenue department processes, among other things, record keeping of land, ownership/lease of property, registration of sales and purchases.

Residents have for many years been concerned about errors in the registration of names and accurate details of a property.

Human intervention has at times also led to land grabbing and false documentation to buy or sell properties.

An additional collector-ranked official said that the use of computers has increased the speed of documentation and land title records are now available online, but if any changes are made (illegally), it is very difficult to find it and take action.

“The blockchain technology will keep track of every document accessed by an official and changes made to it. Thus, it will check malpractices and also help to find out when changes were made and why,” he said.

The official said that there are more than one crore land title documents in Maharashtra.

Such documents are often used by farmers to obtain crop loans and for other purposes.

The marriage registration process also comes under the revenue department, he noted.

The blockchain technology will significantly reduce the burden on district collectors, he said.

“Financially, this is a win-win situation for the state,” said a senior revenue department official.

When the documentation process becomes error-free, it becomes easier for the administration to focus on using time effectively for governance,” he said.

It will also reduce the concerns of citizens, especially those who are uneducated and economically weak, about the security of their land records and minimize tampering of documents, he said.

“It will also help save crores of rupees spent on paper usage and office staff requirement just for maintenance of records, he said.

The office of the Inspector General of Registration and Stamps (IGR), which registers the sale, purchase or lease of properties, has already started e-registration of newly constructed properties in the state.

It is entirely based on blockchain technology and more than 450 developers have opted for this system so far, an IGR official said.

The department is one of the biggest sources of revenue for the state with an annual contribution of more than Rs 45,000 crore, he said.

According to IGR Commissioner Shravan Hardikar, 28 lakh to 30 lakh real estate deals are registered in Maharashtra every year. Of these, approximately four lakh are newly constructed properties and are registered with the IGR.

Every year, IGR receives several complaints about errors in property registrations, such as errors in the spelling of names and property descriptions. Even if 20 per cent of the total property registrations in a year are to be corrected, it requires a lot of staff time, said a senior IGR official.

Blockchain technology is expected to save this time so that the department can focus on its core work of registration and stamp duty collection, he said.

Like the IGR, other parts of the revenue department will also shift to blockchain technology in the coming days, which will transform the functioning of the administration forever, a senior revenue department official said.

(Only the headline and image of this report may have been reworked by Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is automatically generated from a syndicated feed.)