The Gujarat Revenue Department's Chintan Shibir on Wednesday, 7 May 2025, placed strong emphasis on modernising land governance through digital technologies, with senior officials and domain experts deliberating on artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain, and geographic information systems (GIS) as tools to improve transparency, efficiency and citizen-centric service delivery across the state's revenue administration.

Key Deliberations at the Shibir

Held at Amba Business Park in Adalaj, Gandhinagar, the second day of the Shibir brought together officials divided into seven thematic groups to examine critical areas of land administration and revenue services. Additional Chief Secretary Dr Jayanti Ravi was present during the deliberations, where participants reviewed procedures and accountability mechanisms in revenue operations.

The group discussions spanned a wide range of subjects — from optimising land use change permissions through ILA and mutation procedures, to expanding paperless and faceless property registration systems and strengthening the RCCMS (Revenue Case and Court Management System). Separate groups addressed urban land record management, ethics and integrity in revenue administration, modernisation of survey and re-survey processes, disaster preparedness among government personnel, and challenges associated with land acquisition and allocation.

AI and Blockchain: Transforming Revenue Systems

A major technical session was led by Sameer Kulkarni, Assistant Professor at IIT Gandhinagar, who outlined the transformative potential of AI and blockchain in revenue administration. He explained that blockchain technology can make land records tamper-proof — once data is recorded, it cannot be altered without authorisation, thereby reducing the scope for manipulation and fraud while strengthening ownership clarity and reducing reliance on intermediaries.

Kulkarni further detailed how AI could be deployed for document verification, automatic survey number matching, pattern detection in disputed cases, fraud prediction, and faster processing of citizen services. He also highlighted the use of optical character recognition (OCR) and natural language processing (NLP) to digitise and interpret historical and legal land documents, enabling systems to flag anomalies and assist officials in identifying irregularities in records.

The session also examined implementation challenges, including data security, privacy safeguards, avoidance of algorithmic bias, auditability of digital systems, and the need to maintain human oversight in administrative decision-making. The importance of staff training and adherence to legal and ethical standards was underscored.

ISRO's GIS and Remote Sensing in Land Management

In a separate technical presentation, Pankaj Bodani, Deputy Head of VEDAS (Web Services and Analytics Division) at the Space Applications Centre of ISRO in Ahmedabad, explained how GIS and remote sensing technologies enable accurate land use mapping, continuous monitoring of land conditions, classification of agricultural and forest areas, assessment of water resources, and more precise urban development planning.

Bodani noted that integrating ISRO satellite data with GIS platforms can reduce land-related disputes, support timely updating of revenue records, and provide a scientific basis for development planning — marking a significant step toward data-driven governance in land administration.

What Comes Next

Officials stated that the discussions collectively aimed at combining policy reforms with technological solutions to improve land administration systems. The outcomes of the Shibir are expected to inform future efforts to enhance efficiency, transparency, and reliability in revenue services across Gujarat. With AI, blockchain, and satellite-linked GIS now formally on the reform agenda, the department's digital transition appears set to accelerate in the months ahead.