Property Mutation (Dakhil-Kharij) in Andaman and Nicobar Islands

What is property mutation in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands?

Property mutation in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands is the change of the recorded holder's name in the revenue record after land changes hands. The Revenue Department of the Andaman and Nicobar Administration carries it out through the Tehsildar of the tehsil in which the land lies, and the record it updates is the computerised Form-F extract, the islands' equivalent of a jamabandi or a 7/12 extract elsewhere in India.

Registration and mutation are two separate things, and confusing them is the single most expensive mistake an island buyer makes. Registering a sale deed at the Sub-Registrar's office proves that a transaction happened. Mutation is what makes the Revenue Department treat you as the holder of that survey number for land revenue, for compensation on acquisition, for a bank loan against the plot, and for every future sale. A registered deed with no mutation behind it leaves the previous owner's name sitting on the government record.

The Administration runs the whole land record system on Dweep Bhoomi, at dweepbhoomi.andamannicobar.gov.in. Dweep Bhoomi describes itself as a web application devised by the Revenue Department to enable online integration with the Registration and Survey departments. It covers mutation, sub-division, land acquisition and diversion, and it issues the computerised Form-F extract.

Who can and cannot apply for mutation in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands?

You can apply if:

• You have bought land in the islands under a registered sale deed.
• You have inherited land, either under a will or as a surviving family member where no will exists.
• You have received land by registered gift deed.
• You hold land whose recorded particulars have changed; though note that several of those corrections are offline services, not mutation.

You cannot apply if:

• The transfer was never registered. A plain agreement to sell, a receipt or an unregistered writing is not a basis for mutation. Get the deed registered first.
• Title to the plot is under challenge in a civil court or before a revenue authority. The Tehsildar will not decide a disputed title through a mutation file; mutation records possession and revenue liability, it does not create ownership.
• You are seeking a transfer that island land law does not permit. The Andaman and Nicobar Islands have long-standing restrictions on the transfer of tribal land, particularly in the Nicobar group and in the tribal reserves, and land inside a protected tribal area cannot simply be bought and mutated.
• You are applying for a service Dweep Bhoomi lists as offline, sub-division, mortgage entry, owner correction, soil classification correction, land category correction or record entry. Those go to the Tehsildar office directly, not through the mutation module.

How to apply for land mutation online in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands

Dweep Bhoomi lists mutation as one of its three online services, alongside demarcation and diversion. The portal sets out its own three-stage flow, sign up, log in, apply.

1. Get your registered deed in hand first. The mutation file is built on the registered sale deed, gift deed or will, together with the death certificate for an inheritance case. Nothing moves without it.
2. Look up your existing Form-F record. Open the RoR view page on Dweep Bhoomi and pull up the current record of rights for your survey number. Check the recorded holder's name, the area and the land category against your deed before you file, because a mismatch here is what stalls files later.
3. Create a citizen account on Dweep Bhoomi. Click New Registration Form on the portal and fill in the mandatory fields. The portal issues you a User ID and password on completion.
4. Log in through Citizen Login. Enter your User ID, password and the captcha shown.
5. Select Mutation from your dashboard and fill in the application; survey number, tehsil, the nature of the transfer (purchase, gift or inheritance) and the details of both the outgoing and incoming holder.
6. Upload the supporting documents. Registered deed for a purchase or gift; will deed plus death certificate for a testate inheritance; family member certificate from the Tehsildar plus death certificate where there is no will.
7. Pay the prescribed fee online. The portal states that fees apply to its online services and publishes a Fee Structure PDF: read the current figure there rather than trusting any third party's quote.
8. Note your application number and track the file from your dashboard.

The application is routed to the concerned Tehsildar, who verifies the documents, has the field position checked, and passes orders on the mutation.

How to apply for mutation offline at the Tehsildar office

The counter route remains open, and for anyone without a smartphone or a reliable connection on the outer islands it is still the practical one.

1. Identify the correct Tehsildar office. In South Andaman district the offices are at Port Blair, Ferrargunj and Little Andaman. In North and Middle Andaman district they are at Mayabunder, Diglipur and Rangat.
2. Carry the original and a photocopy set of the registered deed, the existing Form-F extract, your identity proof and — for inheritance. The death certificate with either the will or the Tehsildar's family member certificate.
3. File the mutation application at the counter, pay the prescribed fee and collect the acknowledgement with your file number.
4. Attend the field verification if the Tehsildar orders one, and answer any notice issued to the other party or to a co-sharer.
5. Collect the fresh Form-F extract once the mutation order is passed.

You can also use the CSC / e-corner at the Deputy Commissioner's Office, South Andaman, Port Blair, which the district administration lists as the point for computerised land record services.

How do I check my mutation status?

Log in to Dweep Bhoomi with the same citizen credentials and open your dashboard, applications filed online are tracked there against the application number issued at submission. For an offline file, quote the file number at the Tehsildar office counter. The definitive confirmation in either case is the Form-F extract: pull it up on the RoR view page, and if your name is on it, the mutation is done. If the old holder's name is still showing, the file is not closed no matter what you have been told verbally.

For portal problems, a login that will not work, a payment that did not register, an upload that failed, Dweep Bhoomi publishes a helpdesk email at dweepbhoomi.helpdesk@gmail.com.

Why do mutation applications get rejected in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands?

• The deed is unregistered. The commonest single reason. An agreement to sell is not a conveyance.
• The area or survey number does not match between the deed and the existing Form-F record. Reconcile it before filing, or apply for the relevant correction service first.
• Inheritance papers are incomplete. A death certificate with neither a will nor a Tehsildar's family member certificate leaves the Tehsildar unable to identify who the heirs are.
• A co-heir objects. Where one heir tries to mutate the whole plot into their own name, the others will be heard, and the file stops until the objection is resolved.
• The land is in a tribal reserve or otherwise restricted, so the transfer is not one the Revenue Department can record at all.
• Land revenue arrears are outstanding on the plot.
• Uploaded scans are unreadable. Scan the whole page, right way up, and check the file before submitting.

What does mutation cost, and should I use an agent?

Dweep Bhoomi states that fees apply to its online services and publishes both a fees page and a downloadable Fee Structure PDF. That published figure is the whole cost. Pay it through the portal or at the Tehsildar counter against a receipt, and nowhere else.

No private agent, tout or "land consultant" has any standing in a mutation file. The Tehsildar decides it on the documents. Anyone who offers to make your file move faster for a payment on the side is selling you something the Revenue Department gives you anyway, and you have no recourse when the file then sits. If you genuinely need help with the portal, use the government helpdesk email or the e-corner at the Deputy Commissioner's Office rather than a private shop.

Does a mutation entry expire?

No. A mutation entry in the record of rights does not lapse and needs no renewal. It stands until the land changes hands again, at which point the next holder files a fresh mutation. What you should do is pull a fresh Form-F extract once a year or before any transaction, a loan application, a sale, a building permission, because that extract is what a bank or a buyer will ask to see, and it is free to view on Dweep Bhoomi.