Glossary

Delhi land & survey glossary

Plain-language meanings for the words on your Khatauni / Jamabandi and Shajra / village map, what each one is, and which of them you actually need before joining your sheets.

Shajra Kishtwarशजरा किश्तवार

The field map of a revenue village: every Khasra number drawn with its boundaries, at survey scale. A village is drawn across several sheets, and one holding's Khasra numbers routinely straddle two of them — which is why joining the sheets is usually the first job in Delhi land work.

Khasra numberखसरा नंबर

The identifier for one parcel in a revenue village — Delhi's equivalent of a survey number. Even under city streets, land in Delhi's ~360 revenue villages is still described by Khasra number, which is why urban-village and acquisition files read off a village map rather than a city map.

Khatauniखतौनी

The record of holdings for a revenue village: who holds which Khasra numbers, under which Khata, and how much area. It is the text record that goes with the Shajra, and the two are read together.

Lal Doraलाल डोरा

The abadi — settled — area of a revenue village, marked historically with a red line on the village map, and left outside municipal building rules. Land inside it is treated differently from the agricultural Khasra numbers around it, which is why buyers and lenders ask where the line runs. The Shajra is what shows you.

Musaviमुसावी

The scaled village map prepared at settlement, from which the Shajra sheets derive. Where a measurement is in question, the Musavi is the drawing the revenue office works from, because it carries the survey scale.

Khasra Girdawariखसरा गिरदावरी

The seasonal inspection recorded against each Khasra — what was grown and who was in possession. In Delhi it matters far beyond farming: it is often the record relied on to show possession of a parcel at a particular time.

Jamabandiजमाबंदी

The periodic record of rights for the village, listing holders, their Khasra numbers, areas and the revenue payable. In Delhi it is used alongside the Khatauni rather than instead of it; the names overlap with Haryana and Punjab practice because the record-keeping shares an origin.

IntkalMutationइंतकाल

Entering a transfer against the record so the Khatauni names the new holder. Until it completes, the record still shows the seller. A buyer checking a Khasra number is, in practice, checking whether Intkal has happened.

Gair Mumkinगैर मुमकिन

Land classified as not cultivable — roads, drains, built-up plots, ponds. On a Delhi Shajra a great deal of the village is Gair Mumkin, and the sub-classification (Gair Mumkin Abadi, Gair Mumkin Rasta) tells you what is actually there.

BandobastSettlementबंदोबस्त

The survey and settlement operation that fixed the village's Khasra numbers, boundaries and revenue. Delhi's records rest on settlements carried out long before the city grew over them, which is why a Khasra number can sit under a modern colony and still be the legal description of the land.

Patwariपटवारी

The village-level revenue official who maintains the Khasra, the Girdawari and the local map records for a halka (a group of villages). For a Shajra sheet that is not available online, the Patwari is where the request starts.

Tehsildarतहसीलदार

The revenue officer for a sub-division, who decides mutations, corrections and certificates. Delhi's 11 revenue districts contain 33 sub-divisions, and the one your village falls in is what a record request is keyed on.

The full Delhi guide · Tamil Nadu's glossary