Khatiyan, Khata and Jami Patta in Odisha

Khata, Khatiyan and Plot: how they fit together

Think of it as three layers:

• Khata (ଖାତା): the holding or account. It usually groups the plots a tenant (or a group of co-tenants) holds in one village. It has a number.
• Khatiyan (ଖତିୟାନ): the document, the record of rights for that khata. It shows the khatiyan serial number, the tenant(s), their swatwa (right), the rent due and the list of plots.
• Plot (ପ୍ଳଟ): each separate piece of land. One khatiyan can list many plots, each with its own kisam, boundaries and area.

In everyday use "khata number" and "khatiyan number" often mean the same number. On e-Pauti the field is called "Khata No"; on Bhulekh you search by "Khatiyan". Use the number printed on your record for both.

What a Khatiyan contains

The front page gives the khatiyan serial number, the landlord's name and Khewat number, the tenant's name with father's name, caste and residence, the swatwa, the dues (water tax, khajana, cess, nistar cess and total) and special remarks. The back page lists every plot with kisam and boundaries, area in acre, decimal and hectare, and remarks. The record also shows the final publication date and the rent fixation date.

Swatwa tells you the kind of right. One live sample showed ସ୍ଥିତିବାନ (Sthitiban). A 2020 news report (OrissaPOST, Nov 2020) said officials had found 750 different swatwa entries in RoRs and proposed reducing them to 5. A 2025 resolution with 4 swatwas is commonly reported online; confirm at the tahasil office before relying on it. Our kisam guide covers the matching land-type reform.

Sabik and Hal numbers

Older deeds often quote a Sabik (ସାବିକ) khata or plot number, while the current record uses a Hal (ହାଲ) number. The common meaning is that Sabik refers to the earlier settlement record and Hal to the latest settlement record. We found no official page defining these terms, so treat this as commonly reported usage and confirm at the tahasil office.

Why it matters: if your grandfather's deed shows a Sabik plot number, that number may not exist in today's Bhulekh. Ask the tahasil office how the old and new numbers match. Do not assume the numbers are the same.

What about "Jami Patta"?

Many people call any land paper a jami patta. We found no official Odisha page that defines "jami patta". The official documents you can actually get are:

• the Khatiyan (RoR), viewable on Bhulekh and available as a certified copy from the tahasil;
• the registered deed (sale, gift, partition) from the registration office;
• the mutation order from the Tahasildar.

Nationally, the Glossary of Revenue Terms describes "patta" in other states (for example in Assam as the serial number of an RoR, and in Tamil Nadu the RoR itself). In Odisha, "Pattadar" appears only as a swatwa name in a 2025 list that we could not verify on an official page. If someone offers to "make a patta" for a fee, ask exactly which official document they mean.

How to find your khatiyan number

1. Look at any old document: a previous RoR copy, a khajana receipt (it may show the khata number) or the sale deed.
2. If you have none, open Bhulekh, choose District, Tahasil and Village, and search by Tenant (name). See searching by name.
3. If you know a plot number, search by Plot instead. The result should lead you to the khatiyan it belongs to.
4. Note the khatiyan number and the village exactly as shown.
5. Still stuck? The tahasil office can usually help you find it.

Does a Khatiyan prove ownership?

A khatiyan is strong evidence of who is recorded as holding the land, but India follows a presumptive, not conclusive, titling system. The Supreme Court has held that a mutation entry in revenue records is for fiscal purposes and "does not confer any right, title or interest" (Jitendra Singh v. State of MP, 6 Sep 2021). Title flows from registered documents and inheritance law.

So for a purchase, check the khatiyan, the deed chain and an encumbrance certificate. For official use, get a certified copy of the RoR, because the online copy is unsigned. More Odia terms are in our glossary.