Property Mutation (Intkal / Dakhil-Kharij) in Himachal Pradesh

Property mutation in Himachal Pradesh, intkal in local usage, dakhil-kharij elsewhere in north India; is the entry of a change of ownership in the revenue record so that the Jamabandi shows the new owner. Himachal runs mutation through its Revenue Department at the tehsil, with the Patwari of the patwar circle making the entry and the Revenue Officer attesting it, and it now accepts an "Online Mutation Request" through HimSeva at himseva.hp.gov.in, the portal that replaced eDistrict Himachal Pradesh.

What is intkal in Himachal Pradesh and which office does it?

Intkal in Himachal Pradesh is the mutation of the Record of Rights maintained under the Himachal Pradesh Land Revenue Act, 1954. Himachal's record is organised by district, tehsil, patwar circle and revenue village (mauza), and within a village by khasra number for the field, khata for the ownership holding and khatauni for the cultivating holding. The Jamabandi, prepared periodically, is the standing Record of Rights; mutations are entered between Jamabandis in the mutation register and then carried into the next Jamabandi.

The chain of officers is worth knowing before you apply. The Patwari records the mutation entry when a registered deed or a report of death reaches the patwar circle. The field Kanungo checks it. The Revenue Officer. A Naib Tehsildar or Tehsildar, attests it, and attestation is a public act, commonly done at a gathering in the revenue halqa where parties are identified. Only after attestation does the record change; a mutation "entered" but not attested has no effect on the Jamabandi.

Who can apply for mutation in Himachal Pradesh, and who cannot?

Any person who has acquired land in Himachal Pradesh under a registered sale, gift, exchange or partition deed can seek mutation of that land. Legal heirs of a deceased recorded owner can seek mutation by inheritance, supported by the death certificate and a legal heirs certificate, which HimSeva itself issues as a Revenue Department service. Co-sharers who have divided a joint holding by a registered partition can seek separate khatas. A mortgagee whose charge is created against the land is dealt with through HimSeva's Charge Creation Request, and the release through Charge Vacation Request.

You cannot get mutation attested on an unregistered agreement to sell, a power of attorney by itself, or possession without a document. The most important Himachal-specific bar is Section 118 of the Himachal Pradesh Tenancy and Land Reforms Act, 1972, which restricts the transfer of land to a person who is not an agriculturist of Himachal Pradesh. Where the buyer is not a Himachali agriculturist, the transfer needs the State Government's permission first, and HimSeva carries separate applications for sale or purchase permission under Section 118 for residential purposes, for commercial purposes only, for construction of a shop only, for sale permission to a Himachal agriculturist, for change in land use, for a name change of a firm, company or organisation under Section 118, and for extension of time under a permission already granted. A purchase made without the required permission cannot be regularised at the mutation stage. Government land, forest land and land under a court stay cannot be mutated into a private name.

How to apply for property mutation in Himachal Pradesh

1. Get the deed registered at the Sub-Registrar of the tehsil, or use HimSeva's Online Land/Property Registration service. For an inheritance, obtain the death certificate and apply for a Legal Heirs Certificate, which HimSeva issues under the Revenue Department.
2. Obtain a current Nakal Jamabandi through HimSeva's "Copy of Land records / Nakal Jamabandi" service, and note the khasra numbers, khata, khatauni and shares exactly as recorded.
3. Open himseva.hp.gov.in, register or log in as a citizen with your mobile number, and go to the Revenue Department service list.
4. Select "Online Mutation Request" and fill in the district, tehsil, patwar circle, village, khasra number, khata and khatauni details along with the registered deed particulars.
5. Upload the supporting documents — the registered deed, the Nakal Jamabandi, your identity proof, a tatima where part of a khasra is being transferred, the Section 118 permission where it applies, and the death certificate with the legal heirs certificate for an inheritance case.
6. Submit and note the application number. Pay the notified government fee, and where you file through a Lok Mitra Kendra or CSC, pay only the LMK charges Himachal publishes in its own rate list of notified charges for G2C services.
7. Attend when the mutation is put up for attestation. The Patwari enters the mutation, the Kanungo checks it, and the Revenue Officer attests it after identifying the parties, so someone who can identify the transferor and transferee should be present.
8. After attestation, apply for a Digitally Signed Jamabandi or a Copy of Record of Rights with Digitized Map through HimSeva, and verify the khasra numbers, area and share against your deed.

How do I get mutation done offline at the tehsil?

1. Report the transfer or the death at the patwar circle, giving the Patwari a copy of the registered deed or the death certificate.
2. Carry the Nakal Jamabandi, your identity proof and, in inheritance cases, the legal heirs certificate.
3. Ask for the mutation number entered in the mutation register, this is the number to quote for every follow-up.
4. Attend the attestation before the Naib Tehsildar or Tehsildar with the identifying witnesses.
5. Collect the attested mutation and check that it has been carried into the Jamabandi.

What does mutation cost in Himachal Pradesh?

Himachal publishes a rate list of notified charges for G2C services on HimSeva, which sets out, service by service, the government fee, the processing charges and the Lok Mitra Kendra or CSC charges. For land records the rate list records issuance of Nakal Jamabandi at Rs 10 per page for citizens, and shows the government fee for the Copy of Nakal service as "As notified by Government" rather than a fixed number. Because Himachal states some of these fees as "as notified" rather than as a printed figure, the reliable practice is to pay the amount HimSeva displays against your own application and to insist on the receipt.

State the point plainly to anyone offering to arrange things: the process is free to file, or costs only the government's listed fee on the official portal plus the published LMK charge if you use an assisted counter. Any amount demanded outside a receipt is not a government charge, and stamp duty and registration fee, which are real and substantial, are paid at the registration stage to the Sub-Registrar, not to an intermediary at the mutation stage.

How do I check the status of my mutation in Himachal Pradesh?

Track the application in your HimSeva login using the application number. For the record itself, HimSeva offers Copy of Land records / Nakal Jamabandi, Copy of Record of Rights with Digitized Map, and Application for Digitally Signed Jamabandi. The last of these is the version to keep, because a digitally signed Jamabandi is accepted without a manual attestation. For portal problems, HimSeva publishes a helpdesk support number of 0177-3525111 and an officers' digital helpline on 0177-3525101 and 0177-3525102, and each district has a named e-District Manager in the published escalation matrix.

Why do mutations get rejected or stuck in Himachal Pradesh?

Himachal mutations most often stall because Section 118 permission was needed and not obtained, because part of a khasra number was sold without a tatima so the split cannot be shown, because the share being transferred does not reconcile with the share recorded in the khata, or because the transferor is not the recorded owner as an earlier transfer was never mutated. Inheritance mutations stall where the legal heirs certificate does not name all the heirs, or where a co-heir objects. Attestation is also deferred where nobody appears to identify the parties, where a court stay is in force, or where the land is shamlat or common land in which individual shares are restricted.

Where do I complain if my Himachal mutation is delayed?

For service-delivery problems, HimSeva's helpdesk on 0177-3525111 and the district e-District Manager listed in HimSeva's published escalation matrix are the first stop, with the application number in hand. Within the revenue hierarchy, an order of attestation or refusal by a Revenue Officer is appealable to the Collector, then to the Divisional Commissioner, and then to the Financial Commissioner (Revenue), under the Himachal Pradesh Land Revenue Act. Where the real contest is about who owns the land rather than about delay, the remedy is a civil suit, the Revenue Officer attesting a mutation records possession and the fact of transfer, and does not conclusively decide title.