SVAMITVA Scheme: How Property Cards Are Set to Unlock ₹100 Lakh Crore for Rural India"

SVAMITVA Scheme: How Property Cards Are Set to Unlock ₹100 Lakh Crore for Rural India"

 The Prime Minister was speaking at an event where over 65 lakh property cards were distributed to property owners in more than 50,000 villages across 230 districts via video conferencing.

Describing the property cards distributed under the Centre's SVAMITVA scheme as a "guarantee of economic security," Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Saturday that once issued across all villages in the country, these documents will unlock economic activity worth more than Rs 100 lakh crore.

The Prime Minister was speaking at an event where over 65 lakh property cards were distributed to property owners in more than 50,000 villages across 230 districts through video conferencing.

Describing it as a "historic day for the villages and rural areas of India," he highlighted that nearly half of the country's 6 lakh villages had been surveyed using drones as part of the property survey program, which was launched in 2020. He also mentioned that 2.25 crore people in villages had received legal documents for their homes under the scheme.

The Prime Minister said, "After receiving legal documents, lakhs of people have secured loans from banks using their homes and property as collateral. With this funding, they have started small businesses in their villages. Many of these are small and medium-sized farming families, and for them, these property cards have become a significant guarantee of economic security."

He added, "Our Dalit, backward, and tribal families were the most affected by illegal occupations and prolonged court disputes. Now, with legal proof in hand, they are finding relief from this crisis. It is estimated that once property cards are issued in all villages, economic activity worth over Rs 100 lakh crore will be unlocked. Just imagine the amount of capital that will be added to the country’s economy."

The beneficiaries who received property cards on Saturday hailed from 10 states and 2 Union Territories — Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Odisha, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, as well as Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. During the event, the Prime Minister also interacted with five SVAMITVA beneficiaries.

In his speech, the Prime Minister referenced a UN study highlighting that reducing poverty requires individuals to have property rights. Quoting a renowned economist's book on the challenges of property rights, he explained that the small property owned by villagers often remains "dead capital." "This means the property cannot be used for transactions and does not contribute to increasing the family’s income," the PM stated. Emphasizing that India was not exempt from the global challenge of property rights, he noted that despite having property "worth millions of crores," many villagers lacked legal documents, leading to disputes and illegal occupations by powerful individuals. "Banks too kept their distance from such properties," he added.

Criticizing previous governments, the Prime Minister stated that they "did not take concrete steps to address this issue." Referring to SVAMITVA and Bhu-Aadhaar—a unique land parcel identification number (ULPIN) for each piece of land—as foundational systems for village development, the PM highlighted that 23 crore Bhu-Aadhaar numbers have been issued so far.

The Prime Minister stated, "Over the past 7-8 years, nearly 98% of land records have been digitized, and most land maps are now available digitally." According to an official statement, "Drone surveys have been completed in over 3.17 lakh villages, covering 92% of the targeted villages." The scheme has achieved full saturation in Puducherry, Andaman & Nicobar Islands, Tripura, Goa, Uttarakhand, and Haryana. Additionally, drone surveys have been completed in Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, and several Union Territories, the statement added.