Property Mutation (Dakhil-Kharij) in Odisha

Property mutation in Odisha, known locally as dakhil-kharij, is the Tahasildar's act of correcting the Record of Rights so that the person who bought or inherited a plot becomes the recorded tenant of it. Odisha runs this as an online service: the Revenue and Disaster Management Department publishes a step-by-step instruction sheet directing applicants to odisharevenueservices.nic.in, and the same portal carries mutation alongside land conversion under Section 8A of the OLR Act, demarcation, and partition on mutual agreement under Section 19(1)(c).

What is mutation in Odisha and which office does it?

Mutation in Odisha is done by the Tahasildar of the tahasil in which the land lies, under the Revenue and Disaster Management Department. Odisha's land record is organised by district, tahasil and village, and within a village by khata number (the holding) and plot number. Mutation splits a plot out of the seller's khata and either adds it to the buyer's existing khata or opens a new khata in the buyer's name. Once the order is given effect, the Record of Rights on Bhulekh shows the new tenant, and the rent demand for that plot moves to the new name.

The two portals do different jobs and it is worth keeping them straight. Bhulekh Odisha, at bhulekh.ori.nic.in, is where you view the Record of Rights, the khata and plot details, and the mutation case status. Odisha Revenue Services, at odisharevenueservices.nic.in, is where you actually apply, upload documents, pay and download receipts. DWIST, at dwistodisha.nic.in, is where the department directs you to follow a case once the Tahasildar has instituted it.

Who can apply for mutation in Odisha, and who cannot?

Any person who has acquired land in Odisha under a registered sale deed, a gift deed, an exchange or a partition can apply for mutation of that land. Legal heirs of a deceased recorded tenant can apply for mutation by inheritance, supported by the death certificate and proof of heirship, and in inheritance cases the Tahasildar records the heirs in their respective shares. A co-sharer who has taken a share under a registered partition can apply for a separate khata for that share.

You cannot apply for mutation on an unregistered agreement, a general power of attorney or a receipt of payment, because the Tahasildar's record change follows a registered transfer. You cannot mutate government land, communal land, or land recorded as ceiling-surplus into a private name through this route. Transfers of land recorded in the name of a member of a Scheduled Tribe to a person who is not a member of a Scheduled Tribe are restricted under the Odisha Land Reforms Act and cannot be mutated without the permission the Act requires. Land under an injunction or a court stay is left as it is until the court order is vacated.

How to apply for property mutation in Odisha online

The steps below follow the Revenue and Disaster Management Department's own published mutation procedure.

1. Visit odisharevenueservices.nic.in and click the "Land Record Services" link on the home page.
2. Click the "Apply for Mutation" link to open the mutation application form.
3. Fill in the applicant details, name, father's or husband's name and present address, and give a valid PIN code and a correct mobile number, because the department sends SMS updates to that number.
4. Fill in the permanent address if it differs from the present address, or select the option to reuse the present address.
5. Enter the land details: tahasil name, village name, khata number, plot number and area, copying them from the current Record of Rights on Bhulekh.
6. Click Submit, and note the application number the portal returns — the department describes it as important for all future correspondence with the tahasil.
7. Upload the requisite documents, including the registered sale deed or an interim deed as applicable.
8. Pay the fee shown, using net banking or a debit or credit card. The portal takes you to the Treasury portal of Odisha for the payment.
9. Download the Acknowledgement-cum-Payment Receipt. If the money is debited but no receipt is generated, check the payment status on the portal using the transaction ID and generate the receipt from there.
10. Wait for the SMS confirming that the Tahasildar has instituted the case after verifying your documents, then track the case on DWIST at dwistodisha.nic.in.

How do I apply for mutation offline in Odisha?

1. Go to the Tahasil office of the tahasil in which the plot lies, and ask at the mutation section for the application.
2. Carry the original registered deed with photocopies, a Bhulekh copy of the current ROR, your identity proof, the latest rent receipt and, in inheritance cases, the death certificate and legal heir certificate.
3. Submit the application and collect the receipt bearing your application or case number.
4. Attend when the Tahasildar's office issues notice, the Revenue Inspector's field report and the hearing of any objection are the stages where a case stalls if the applicant is absent.

Many applicants also use a Common Service Centre to file the online form, which is a fair option when you do not have a scanner or an online payment method. What a Common Service Centre may charge is its own service charge; it is not a government mutation charge, and it does not replace the Treasury receipt.

What does mutation cost in Odisha?

The mutation fee in Odisha is the amount the portal itself displays before payment, and it is collected through the Treasury portal of Odisha, which issues an Acknowledgement-cum-Payment Receipt in your name. Because the payable amount is computed by the application and paid into the Treasury, that receipt is the only proof of payment that matters. Do not hand cash to anyone against a promise to "get the case instituted". The process is free to file and costs only the government amount the portal computes and the Treasury collects.

Rent arrears are a separate head. Where the khata carries unpaid rent, clearing it is part of getting a clean record in your name, and it is billed separately from the mutation application.

How do I check my mutation status in Odisha?

Odisha gives you three points of visibility. The application portal at odisharevenueservices.nic.in shows application status, payment status and receipt downloads. SMS alerts go to the mobile number in the application, including at the point where the Tahasildar institutes the case. DWIST at dwistodisha.nic.in shows the case after institution. Bhulekh's mutation case status view lets you select district, tahasil and village and see the case.

Once the mutation order is given effect, download the fresh Record of Rights from Bhulekh and check the khata number, plot number, area and tenant name against your deed. An error caught in the first week is a correction; the same error found two years later during a loan sanction is a re-opened case.

Why do mutation applications fail in Odisha?

Odisha mutation cases most commonly fail because the khata number or plot number entered does not match the Record of Rights, because the person who executed the deed is not the recorded tenant of the khata, or because the plot has already been sold in part and the areas no longer reconcile. Poor-quality uploads of the sale deed are another routine cause, since the Tahasildar's office verifies documents from the upload. Cases are also dropped where the land is government or communal land, where the transfer is barred under the Odisha Land Reforms Act, and where an objection raises a genuine question of title that only a civil court can settle.

Where do I complain if my Odisha mutation is stuck?

Escalation runs from the Tahasildar to the Sub-Collector and then to the Collector of the district, and the Revenue and Disaster Management Department is the administrative head above them. Take your application number, the mutation case number, the Acknowledgement-cum-Payment Receipt and the date of filing to every stage. Odisha's payment problems have their own remedy on the portal. The transaction ID lets you re-check payment status and regenerate a receipt rather than paying twice. Where the dispute is about who owns the land rather than about delay, the correct forum is a civil court, because the Tahasildar records rights and does not decide title.