How to get the land sketches for a plot in Meghalaya
Meghalaya has no Bhu-Naksha and no state-wide cadastral map. What maps a plot does have, who holds them, and how to join sketches drawn at different times into one plan.
If you have searched for a Meghalaya land map and found nothing, that is not a gap in your searching. Most land in Meghalaya is owned by clans, communities and individuals under Khasi, Jaintia and Garo customary law, and there is no state-wide cadastral survey behind it. There is no Bhu-Naksha to download. The maps that exist are sketches, and the job is to find the right ones.
What sketches a plot usually has
- Surveyor's plot sketch
- Drawn by a licensed surveyor when the plot was measured, often for a sale. It shows the plot's shape, its measurements and its neighbours.
- Sketch with the land holding certificate
- Many certificates from the traditional authority come with a sketch of the boundaries they certify.
- Locality plan
- A plan of a village or locality, sometimes drawn for the Dorbar Shnong, showing how plots sit against roads and each other.
- Government survey map
- Where land was surveyed for a public purpose, such as a road or an acquisition, the department or the Deputy Commissioner's office holds that map.
Start with who holds the land
Before chasing a map, establish what kind of land the plot is. In the Khasi and Jaintia Hills, is it Ri Kynti, privately owned by a person or clan, or Ri Raid, community land? In the Garo Hills, which A'king is it in? That tells you whose record and whose sketch count: the owner's, the clan's, or the community's through its headman.
Collecting the sheets
- Ask the seller or the holder for every sketch they have: the one on the deed, the one with the land holding certificate, and any older survey.
- Ask the Rangbah Shnong, or the Syiem, Dolloi or Nokma for the area, whether the village keeps a locality plan and whether your plot has been sketched for a certificate.
- Where the land touches a road, a river or government land, ask the Deputy Commissioner's office or the department concerned for its survey map of that stretch.
- If nothing reliable exists, commission a licensed surveyor, and ask for the neighbouring plots' boundaries to be shown, not only yours.
Joining sketches drawn by different hands
The common problem in Meghalaya is not a sheet edge but sketches that were never meant to meet: your plot on one surveyor's drawing, your neighbour's on another, the road on a department map. Put them on one canvas, scale them to each other, and line them up along the boundary they share. Where they disagree, you have found the question to take to the Dorbar or the surveyor before it becomes a dispute.
🔗 Meghalaya land records: documents, districts and blocks →Frequently asked questions
Is there an online land map for Meghalaya like Bhu-Naksha?+
No state-wide one. Most land in Meghalaya is under customary tenure and has no cadastral map series. The maps that exist are sketches held by the owner, the traditional authority, a surveyor or a government department for land it has surveyed.
Who can give me a sketch of my plot in Shillong?+
Start with the sketch on your deed or land holding certificate, then ask the Rangbah Shnong of the locality. For land touching a road or government land, ask the Deputy Commissioner's office. A licensed surveyor can draw one where none exists.
Can I join sketches drawn at different scales?+
Yes. Scale each sketch against a boundary you can measure on both, then line them up on one canvas. Where the sketches still disagree, that disagreement is worth raising before a sale.