Housing Minister Launches 'E-Dharti Geo Portal'

Union Housing and Urban Affairs Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Wednesday launched the 'e-Dharti Geo Portal' that will integrate legacy drawings such as maps and lease plans in the management information system and make it geographic information system (GIS)-enabled, a statement said. Puri said the land & development office (L&DO) is dealing with around 60,000 properties that are commercial, residential, industrial as well as institutional. According to the ministry, the L&DO has devised a property certificate incorporating details and the outline map of the property which is available online on the portal. The minister urged all organisations to undertake efforts to identify more activities that need to be automated and made free of human interface. "The power of technology is immense and there is no reason that India, which has a formidable capacity in the area of software technologies, cannot harness this strength to our advantage," he also said. The Union minister said the move will integrate legacy drawings such maps and lease plans in the management information system (MIS), namely e- Dharti, and make it GIS-enabled. Union Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Durga Shanker Mishra, Land & Development Officer Amit Kataria and other senior officers of the ministry were present at the online event. The property certificate, which will give all the relevant details about the property to the lessee as well as a prospective purchaser, will be available by paying a nominal fee of Rs 1,000 and can be accessed by the public by visiting the L&DO website - www.ldo.gov.in. This measure will benefit the general public, particularly the elderly, it said, adding that the move will also help in avoiding unnecessary litigations.