THEBUSINESSBYTES
BUREAU
BHUBANESWAR,
MAY 2, 2026
In a significant move aimed at
modernising land administration, the Odisha government has constituted a
high-level committee to comprehensively review and revise the existing Standard
Operating Procedure (SOP) manuals for the recording of government and private
(raiyat) land across the state.
Acting on the State Government’s
decision, Additional Chief Secretary of the Revenue and Disaster Management
Department, Dr. Arabinda Kumar Padhee, has directed the preparation of a draft
of the revised SOPs. The current manuals, last published in 1990, are now
considered outdated in view of the sweeping changes in laws, policies, rules,
and administrative practices over the past three and a half decades.
The committee will be chaired by the
Special Secretary of the Revenue and Disaster Management Department. Its
members include the Additional Secretary (Consolidation and Settlement),
Director of Land Records and Surveys, Odisha, a representative of the Board of
Revenue, and the Joint Administrative Member-Coordinator of the department.
The panel has been entrusted with
examining the 1990 SOPs in detail, incorporating all relevant laws, government
circulars, rules, and official instructions issued since then. It will prepare
a fresh and user-friendly draft of the revised SOP manuals in both Odia and
English to ensure greater accessibility and administrative clarity.
The committee has been given one month
to submit its draft to the government for approval. It has also been authorised
to consult experts and other officials as necessary. The initiative is expected
to strengthen transparency, streamline land record management, and make revenue
administration more efficient and citizen-friendly across Odisha.
