What is conversion of agricultural land for the purposes other than agricultural purposes ?

          (i)       What is the conversion of agricultural land?              

                As per Odisha Land Reforms Act,1965, a rayat needs to change the type of use of land in order to use it for purposes other than agriculture. As the said rules aim at improving agriculture, it put some restrictions on the use of agricultural land for other non-agricultural purposes. Section 8(A) of the said Act and corresponding Rule-12A of the Odisha land Reforms Rules,1968 provide details procedures for the conversion of agricultural land. As per the said Rules, the intending rayat (Farmer/owner of the land) will apply to the local Tahasildar in Form-25 enclosing all relevant documents for conversion of land. The Tahasildar will conduct local inquiries as per the provisions of section 8(A) and other related executive instructions issued from time to time.Public notice will be issued simultaneously inviting objections, if any to the proposed conversion. He will also issue a notice to the Town Planning Authority, if the area is situated in a Town Planning Area, in Form-28 inviting their views within 30 days. Then he will issue a demand notice to the applicant if the suit land is found to be suitable for conversion and no objection is received from any quarter. It is noteworthy that if the Town Planning Authority does not convey its objections/suggestions or views within the stipulated period, it will not be a bar for the Tahasildar. On deposit of premium, the case will be allowed and the Kissam (classification) of the land will be changed. New RoR (Kissam having been changed) will be issued to the applicant.

                                     The important conditions that the Tahasildar will take into consideration while allowing conversion are:

1. The proposed conversion doesn't obstruct any natural water course nor it creates problems to the neighboring tenants.
2. It is not near any historical monuments or places of historical importance.
3. No high Tension Electrical transmission line has passed over the applied land.

(ii) How to apply for conversion of land online?

Previously, manual applications were received by the Tahasildars for the conversion of agricultural use of land to purposes other than agricultural purposes. For this applications in Form No. 25 were being filed and the Tahasildars used to dispose of the cases. The time limit allowed for such a case is 60 days. In the year 2022, the Government of Odisha implemented an online facility for conversion cases. The online application (DWIST ODISHA CONVERSION) can be filed as follows:

Step-1:

• (a) Log in to Online Services ll R & DM.
• (b)  Then click on the link odisharevenueservices.nic.in
• (c)  The following page will appear.
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• (d)  Click on the link at Sl. No.2 or you may directly click here.
• (e) The following page will appear.

(2) Step 2: 

 Now fill up your details in the form.

•   (a) Name of the Rayat : Mention the name of the person who is the RT.It is the                                      person whose name is mentioned in Column-2 of the Patta or  RoR.
•   (b) Father/Husband's Name; Fill up the details accordingly. Then we would go to

                             Present Adress

Fill up your address correctly. The field marked with asterisks is mandatory. Since the Patta would be delivered by Registered Post, this field is vital. Against the specific purpose , mention the purpose for which you want to convert the land like Homestead/business establishment or industrial unit, etc. 

(3) Stp-3:   

             Now we will come to Particulars of Land.

• (a)   Please have your RoR or Patta with you. Find the particulars of the location like District,               Tahasil, Village, and Khata No. from the first page of your Patta and accordingly fill up the          data from the available drop downs in each field.
•  (b)   Now from the reverse side of your RoR, find out the Kissam of the land.It is called classification.It may be mentioned like Padar,Berna,Taila Dui, etc.Mention this Kissam in              the blank space against classification.This field is mandatory.
• (c)   If your land is situated within 0.5 km of the National Highways or 0.25 km of either side of           State Highways, select YES/NO accordingly.

(4) Step-4:   

                      In this step, select where your land is situated out of the following options.

                      (a) Municipal Corporation (b) Municipality (c) NAC (d) Developing Area (e) Rural Area

(5)  Step-5:    

                      Next mention whether the land is already used for or intended to be used for non-agricultural purposes.   

(6)   Step-6 : 

                     Here select the source of ownership from the dropdown. In the next column, mention the approximate value of the land.    

(7)   Step-7 :    

                      The government have allowed some exemption in conversion fees for cases like pisciculture   and poultry farming.If you are applying for conversion of and for the purposes as stated   above,then select "Yes",otherwise select "NO.".

(8) Step-8 :   

                      Check the declaration and enter the captcha and click on Submit.Your application                                    will be submitted. 

(iii)     What is the fee structure for conversion case ? 

                  The fee structure for online conversion case is as follows:

                      

 It is to be kept in mind that said fees can be paid through Net banking,Debit card,Credit Card etc.