How To · Puducherry · Land Records
How to Check Land Records (ROR, Khata, Khasra) Online in Puducherry
Puducherry land records are kept by the Revenue Department, and the patta and chitta can be viewed online on the UT's Nilamagal portal at nilamagal.py.gov.in. The patta names the holder of a piece of land, and the chitta records the holding; together they are the records people ask for. Puducherry has four separate regions, Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam, and the office that serves a record depends on where the land is, even though the record type works the same way. This page shows you how to find a Puducherry land record online, how to read the patta and chitta, how to get a certified copy, and what to do when a record or a boundary is wrong. Last verified October 2026.
- Portal: Nilamagal at nilamagal.py.gov.in, run by the Revenue Department.
- What you search: the patta and chitta, by survey or patta number for your region.
- Four regions: Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam, each served by its own revenue office.
- If a record or boundary is wrong: correct a clerical error at the revenue office; a wrong transfer or ownership fight goes to the revenue or civil court.
01The short answer
To check land records in Puducherry:
- Go to the Nilamagal portal at nilamagal.py.gov.in.
- Choose your region and area, then search for the patta and chitta by the details the portal asks for.
- Read the holder name and holding on screen.
- For a certified copy that a bank or registrar will accept, apply through the portal or a Common Service Centre, or at the revenue office.
02What the records are
Puducherry follows a patta-chitta pattern close to Tamil Nadu's:
- Patta: the record that names the holder of a piece of land. It is an extract from the Settlement and Chitta Register.
- Chitta: the account of the holding, including its extent and classification.
- Encumbrance certificate (EC): a separate record of registered transactions on a property, obtained from the Registration Department, needed before most dealings.
A patta is not the same as an encumbrance certificate. A bank or buyer will usually want both the patta and an EC covering a long period, often 30 years.
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03How to check on Nilamagal
Step by step on the Nilamagal portal:
- Open nilamagal.py.gov.in and look for the patta or land records option.
- Select the region (Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe or Yanam) and the local area.
- Search by the survey number, patta number or holder details the portal asks for.
- Read the record on screen; a free online view is for information.
04The four regions
Puducherry is not one block of land. It has four separate regions, and this matters for records:
- Puducherry and Karaikal sit within Tamil Nadu, Mahe within Kerala, and Yanam within Andhra Pradesh.
- The record type works the same, but the revenue office that serves it is different, so identify the region first.
- Local practice and some terms can echo the surrounding state, especially in Mahe and Yanam.
05Getting a certified copy
A free online view is not a certified copy, which is what a bank, a registrar or a court will ask for.
- Apply for a certified copy of the patta through the portal, a Common Service Centre (CSC), or at the revenue office for the region.
- A small fee applies for a certified copy.
- For a dealing, also obtain an encumbrance certificate from the Registration Department.
06When a record is wrong
Land records go wrong in common ways: the patta still names an old holder after a sale or inheritance, two holdings overlap, an extent is misstated, or a transfer of patta is recorded against the wrong person.
- A clerical or data error in the patta or chitta is corrected by applying to the revenue office for the region with proof.
- A wrong transfer of patta, or a boundary or ownership fight, is a dispute. It is decided by the revenue authorities and, where title or possession is in question, by the civil court.
- Keep every document, the sale deed, the patta and chitta, the EC and any order, because the dispute turns on this record.
A patta that still names the old holder is the most common reason a Puducherry land deal stalls. Get the transfer of patta done before you transact, not after.
For a related trap over title, see how to clear a cloud on title.
07Where Claw fits
Claw is an all-in-one legaltech platform for Indian advocates, law firms, and corporate legal teams, combining AI-based case search, an AI legal assistant (Legal GPT), case management, and compliance automation across all Indian courts and tribunals.
Checking a patta is the easy part. The hard part is when a transfer of patta is wrong or a boundary or ownership dispute ends up before the revenue authorities or the civil court, because then you must follow a live case over months or years. Claw is built for that. It searches and monitors matters across 9,102 courts, benches and forums in India, returns results in under 5 seconds, holds 30 crore+ judgments (Supreme Court from 1950 and High Courts from 1990), and does not train its AI models on your documents. You can create a FREE Claw account and track your land matter by party name or case number, so you see each hearing date and order without a trip to the court. A clean search result means only that nothing was found on the forums and date searched, not that no dispute exists, so this is general information, not legal advice. For how a government or service dispute reaches the right forum, see where service matters are heard; regulated firms that screen counterparties can use the same engine, for example litigation screening for stockbrokers.
08Sources and further reading
- Nilamagal land records portal: nilamagal.py.gov.in
- Puducherry Revenue Department: revenue.py.gov.in
- Government of Puducherry: py.gov.in
- eCourts (case status): ecourts.gov.in
- Claw: clawlaw.in
This page is general information for readers in India, not legal advice. Confirm the portal and fees on the official Puducherry pages and with the revenue office for your region.
09Frequently asked questions
Where do I check land records online in Puducherry?
On the Nilamagal portal at nilamagal.py.gov.in, run by the Revenue Department. You select your region, then search for the patta and chitta by survey number, patta number or holder details.
What is the difference between patta and chitta?
The patta names the holder of a piece of land and is an extract from the Settlement and Chitta Register. The chitta is the account of the holding, including its extent and classification. A bank or buyer will usually want both, plus an encumbrance certificate.
Does Puducherry land cover all four regions?
Yes. Puducherry has four separate regions, Puducherry, Karaikal, Mahe and Yanam, spread across Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. The record type works the same, but the revenue office that serves it differs, so identify the region first.
Is the online patta enough to buy land?
No. The online patta is for information. Before a dealing you should get a certified copy, obtain an encumbrance certificate from the Registration Department, and confirm the record at the revenue office. Take local legal advice for anything significant.
What do I do if a transfer of patta is wrong?
A clerical error in the patta or chitta can be corrected at the revenue office for the region with proof. A wrong transfer of patta, or a boundary or ownership fight, is a dispute decided by the revenue authorities and, where title or possession is in question, by the civil court.