Land Governance and Administration in Bangladesh are divided into three parts. These are ‘Management’, ‘Settlement’ and ‘Registration’. Out of this, ‘Management’ and ‘Settlement’ sections are under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Land. The ‘Registration’ section falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs.
Record updating/Mutation, maintenance, land revenue collection etc. are ‘Management’ related works. Conducting surveys, making, preservation and supplying of after survey Records of Rights and Mouza maps etc. are ‘Settlement’ related works. Land registration and preservation of land registration deeds etc. are ‘Registration’ related work.
The Ministry of Lands has taken initiatives to synchronize the digital system of ‘Management’, ‘Settlement’ and ‘Registration’-system to make citizen land services more functional and efficient in the government’s digital service ecosystem established under Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s special initiative Digital Bangladesh.
Already, the Land Ministry has taken piloting steps to establish a link between e-registration and e-mutation systems to simplify land service and improve its quality in some Mouzas. As a result, sub-registrars will be able to verify the land records from the Digital Record Room System online before land registration. Similarly, the Assistant Commissioners (Land) will get the documents of registration and information about the land sold through the e-mutation system along with the registration, based on which the mutation process can be started automatically. Once the e-mutation is connected with the e-registration across the country, the suffering of the people will reduce and the relevant land records could be updated automatically. As a result, the chances of lawsuits and forgery will reduce significantly.