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Land & Property Records

Jamabandi: What the Record of Rights Shows and How to Read It

A jamabandi is the record of rights for farm land: owners, shares, cultivators, fields, area and revenue, revised every five years in Haryana and Punjab.

AS

Written by Aarav Sharma

Published 17 September 2026·6 min read

On this page9 sections
Credsir Land & Property Records guide cover with a land plot icon

A jamabandi is the record of rights for agricultural land in a revenue village. For each holding it lists the owners and their shares, the cultivators, the field (khasra) numbers, the area, the rent and the land revenue. In Haryana and Punjab the patwari prepares a detailed jamabandi every five years, and a revenue officer attests it.

Key facts

Item Detail
What it is Record of rights for a revenue estate: ownership, cultivation and other rights in land
Prepared by Patwari; attested by a revenue officer
How often Revised every five years (Haryana); detailed jamabandis are prepared every fifth year (Punjab Land Records Manual)
Changes in between Entered in the mutation register and referenced in the remarks column
Legal weight (Punjab) Presumed true until the contrary is proved, under Section 44 of the Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887
Online copies jamabandi.nic.in (Haryana), jamabandi.punjab.gov.in (Punjab), apnakhata.rajasthan.gov.in (Rajasthan), biharbhumi.bihar.gov.in (Bihar)

What a jamabandi is

Haryana’s land records portal describes the jamabandi as a document prepared as part of the record of rights in every revenue estate. It carries entries on ownership, cultivation and other rights in land. In law, the Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887 requires a record of rights for each estate (Section 31) and an annual record prepared by the patwari (Section 33). Anyone who acquires land must report it to the patwari, who enters it in the register of mutations (Section 34).

In English, jamabandi is usually translated as “record of rights” (RoR). People also call a copy of it a fard or nakal.

Where the term is used

ItemDetails
Haryana and Punjabthe jamabandi is the main land record, searchable by owner name, khewat or khasra number.
Rajasthanthe Apna Khata portal offers a jamabandi nakal (copy) for agricultural land.
Bihareach raiyat’s holding has a jamabandi number in the jamabandi register, which BiharBhumi lets you view online. Mutation there moves land from one jamabandi to another.

Other states use different names for a similar record, as the comparison table below shows.

Reading a jamabandi column by column

The standard form in the Punjab Land Records Manual has 12 columns. State formats can vary slightly, but most copies follow this layout.

Column Heading What to look for
1 Khewat number Number of the owners’ holding. Co-owners of one holding share a khewat.
2 Khatauni number Number of the cultivator’s holding. Land the owner farms himself (khudkasht) comes first, then tenants.
3 Patti or taraf, with lambardar and revenue Sub-division of the village the holding falls in.
4 Owner, with description Name, father’s name and residence. A mortgagee in possession is named here under the owner.
5 Cultivator, with description Who actually tills the land.
6 Well or other means of irrigation Irrigation source.
7 Field numbers Khasra numbers in the holding.
8 Area and classification of land Area of each field and its soil class.
9 Rent paid by cultivator Share of produce, lump sum, or rate and amount.
10 Share or measure of right Each owner’s fraction of the holding.
11 Demand Land revenue and cesses. Assigned (muafi or jagir) revenue is written in red ink.
12 Remarks References to mutations, collateral mortgages, government loans, surplus-land orders and refused mutations.

Three checks that matter most

  1. Find the seller or owner in column 4 and read their share in column 10. A person with a one-third share cannot sell the whole field.
  2. Read column 12 line by line. The manual says a mortgage debt amount is never entered anywhere, but collateral mortgages, takavi (government) loans and surplus-land declarations are noted here, some in red ink.
  3. Look for “ghair-kabiz” in column 4. It marks an owner who is recorded but not in possession, with the person in possession named alongside.

Jamabandi vs khatauni vs 7/12

Record State What it contains Law or portal
Jamabandi Haryana, Punjab, Rajasthan, Bihar Owners, shares, cultivators, fields, area, rent and revenue Punjab Land Revenue Act, 1887 (Punjab); state portals
Khatauni Uttar Pradesh Tenure holders with plot numbers and areas, their shares, and rent or revenue payable Section 31, UP Revenue Code, 2006
7/12 extract Maharashtra Record of rights built from Village Forms VII and XII Mahabhulekh portal

The word “khatauni” has two meanings. In a Punjab or Haryana jamabandi it is the cultivator’s holding number in column 2. In Uttar Pradesh it is the name of the whole record of rights. Our guides on checking a khatauni online and Maha Bhulekh 7/12 extracts cover those records.

How often it is updated

Haryana’s portal says the jamabandi is revised every five years. The Punjab Land Records Manual adds that detailed jamabandis are prepared in about one-fifth of a district’s villages each year, so each village comes up once in five years.

Sales, inheritances and mortgages between two editions go into the mutation register. Once a revenue officer attests the mutation, it is carried into the next jamabandi. So a jamabandi alone can be up to five years old in what it shows. Check the mutation status as well: Haryana’s portal has a Check Mutation Status option, and its search lets you pick a jamabandi year.

Using a jamabandi for loans, sales and disputes

ItemDetails
Buying landmatch the seller’s name, khewat, khasra and share with the sale deed, and confirm there is no pending mutation. Haryana’s jamabandi page also links to a CERSAI search for charges created by lenders.
Bank loanslenders taking agricultural land as security usually ask for a recent copy. Punjab offers a digitally signed fard, and Haryana a verifiable copy of nakal.
DisputesSection 44 of the Punjab Land Revenue Act presumes an entry is true until the contrary is proved. Section 45 lets a person aggrieved by an entry sue for a declaration of their right.

The record still does not decide title. In Jitendra Singh v. State of Madhya Pradesh (2021), the Supreme Court said revenue entries serve fiscal purposes only. Rely on the registered deed and a full title search; our property legal due diligence checklist lists what to collect. For a contested holding, a local revenue lawyer can advise.

Frequently asked questions

Jamabandi kya hota hai?

Jamabandi is the government register of rights in farm land for a village. It shows who owns each holding, their share, who farms it and the revenue due.

What is jamabandi in English?

It is usually called the record of rights (RoR). A certified copy is commonly called a fard or nakal.

How often is a jamabandi prepared?

Every five years in Haryana and Punjab. Changes in between go into the mutation register.

How can I search a jamabandi online?

In Haryana use jamabandi.nic.in and search by owner name, khewat, khasra or mutation date. In Punjab use jamabandi.punjab.gov.in, and in Rajasthan the Apna Khata portal.

What is the difference between khewat and khatauni?

Khewat is the owners’ holding number. Khatauni, in a Punjab or Haryana jamabandi, is the cultivator’s holding number.

Is a jamabandi proof of ownership?

It is evidence, presumed true until disproved under Punjab law, but not a title document. Ownership rests on the registered deed, will or court decree.

Sources

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