When the ePahani or online RTC (Record of Rights, Tenancy and Crops) system was launched early this year, it was feared that people in rural areas, especially farmers, may not benefit much from the system.
Almost six months down the line, ePahani has turned out to be a big hit. An average of 45,000 people are directly downloading RTC document online every day. It is over and above what the state Revenue department has been issuing through its Naada Kacheries across the state. The online system was launched in January this year.
“We are impressed with the response. The epahani system is well taken as more and more people are making use of it. Online RTC is a first-of-its-kind initiative in the country. One can take a printout of RTC from anywhere by logging on to the Bhoomi website (http://landrecords.karnataka.gov.in/service38),” Commissioner for Survey Settlement and Land Records department Munish Moudgil said.
The department has linked the system with State Bank of India (SBI) gateway for online payment of the fee for taking the printout. A nominal fee of Rs 10 is fixed for it. One can also view RTCs free of cost. The new system has considerably brought down the pressure on Naada Kacheries, he pointed out. RTC is an important document to prove ownership rights over land in rural areas. Farmers also use this document for availing crop loan from cooperative societies and nationalised banks. Similarly, the Revenue department has created an online database of other commonly used documents such as income and caste certificates.
The ePahani system has also thrown up a lot of business opportunity. Nearly 10,000 people have registered themselves across the state for providing the online service (to generate printouts of RTC). Any person can take up distribution of RTC over the counter after the registration.
The Commissioner said the government is considering regulating the fee registered vendors collect from people for generating these documents. Currently, there is no control over them. A proposal has been made to the government to fix a nominal charge the vendors can collect. Action will be taken against those who collect the exorbitant fee, he added.