Economic think-tank NCAER on Thursday said Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu are the top states in terms of digitisation of land records and their quality.
Releasing the new NCAER Land Records and Services Index (N-LRSI 2020), the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER) said the data will energise land governance in India.
Scoring 60-75 points, Madhya Pradesh, Odisha, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Tamil Nadu were the five best-performing states on the N-LRSI.
West Bengal, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh were the six states in the 50-60 points category.
Those trailing included Ladakh, Jammu & Kashmir, Sikkim, Chandigarh, Kerala, Assam, Manipur, Delhi and Bihar.
"Over the years, different states have made significant progress in making their land records digitally available to citizens," NCAER said in a statement.
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The N-LRSI aims to understand the extent of this progress and existing gaps and to identify measures to improve land records in each state.
The economic research body said access to land is a critical factor for economic growth and poverty reduction. For government, industry, and citizens to be able to use this asset effectively and to minimise disputes, it is important to have access to reliable land and property records.
The 2020 N-LRSI is based on data collected over 2019-20 on two aspects of the supply of land records -- the extent of digitisation of land records and the quality of these land records.
Delivering his keynote remarks at the launch of N-LRSI 2020, Ramesh Abhishek, former secretary, Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade, said: "The N-LRSI is an excellent reality check on the status of land records and their accessibility in various states."