Can application of information technology (IT) to government functions lead to better governance? Published in Economic and Political Weekly, this 9-page evaluation explores the extent to which computerisation of land records - required to obtain a bank loan, conduct a land survey, apply for government benefits, make land transactions, help resolve a land-related dispute, and so on - can solve multiple problems of farmers in rural India.

The strategy of using IT to foster economic development among farmers is a key issue in a country where nearly 63% of the population is dependent on agriculture. In this context, and with the objective of streamlining the maintenance and updating of land records, the Ministry of Rural Development sanctioned a scheme for computerisation of land records (CoLR) in 1991 in many states of India, with the assistance of the National Informatics Centre (NIC). The state government legally abolished all hand-written records after the implementation of this project.

This evaluation focuses on the implementation of CoLR in Karnataka, which has 67 lakh owners of rural land spread across 177 talukas in nearly 30,000 villages. Together, they account for 20 million records of records of rights, tenancy and cultivation (RTC). (A printed copy of the RTC can be obtained online from a computerised land record kiosk (Bhoomi centres) in 177 taluka offices, for a fee of Rs 15.) With a view to understanding how this project is working, the Centre for Rural Studies, with the help of Karnataka Rajya Vijana Parishat (KRVP), conducted a field study in all 10 talukas of Gulbarga during the period of February 25 to March 15 2002.

As the evaluation shows, computerisation in the Gulbarga district benefits farmers in many ways: the record of rights of tenancy and cultivation is immediately accessible, online mutation keeps the records current, there is greater transparency, and the system is less prone to manipulation. The authors provide several figures indicating strong awareness of the new system, and endorsement of it, such as:

• Overall, 85% of respondents were aware of the computerisation of RTC at taluka headquarters.
• 78.8% knew that the taluka has one computer kiosk at which they can take computerised RTCs and khata details after paying Rs15 per holding.
• 50.6% of the total respondents had obtained RTCs directly from the kiosk.
• 86.8% of the persons who had obtained RTCs opined that this system is less time consuming as compared to old system because they did not have to search for the village accountant. 22.7% who had not obtained RTC until the field study also had a positive opinion about the availability of RTCs after computerisation.
• Overall, before computerisation 68% of the respondents were able to get land-related information for sale and purchase purpose within a day. After the computerisation, 97.29% either got or have a hope of getting the information within a day.

The authors identify some of the factors that have made the CoLR programme successful in Karnataka:

• An online mutation module incorporated into the software has ensured that the database is dynamic and current.
• The work flow automation process has been well designed and synchronises the manual process with the computerised system.
• The project team at the state government level has been proactive in clarifying and sorting out issues and overcoming problems that have arisen. In fact, the role of officials in charge of the project, "has been one of the major factors which has resulted in the successful conceptualisation, design and implementation of the project."
• The project conceptualisation and design in terms of security features, training, overcoming resistance to change, hardware configuration, etc, has been carried out "in a meticulous manner after a thorough study of the existing system."

Depite the many positive outcomes of this strategy, "computerisation is no panacea. There are operational problems arising from power breakdowns that lead to delays and the long distances farmers have to travel to obtain certificates result in very limited net savings to farmers." For example, in Chincholi taluka, the system broke down in October 2001 for a period of 10 days. Whenever any such problems related to software as well as hardware occurred there, no expert was available at the taluka office. Other delays relate to the increased time required for corrections and changes in the records due to land transactions (there is greater dependence upon village accountant to change land records), as well as to the necessity of acquiring the tehsildar's thumbprint for entries (he is often unavailable). Furthermore, computerisation does not seem to aid land reforms: "The field survey did not find a single case of tenancy or surplus land that had been unearthed by computerisation."

A number of recommendations are advanced here to resolve some of the difficulties that have impeded the success of CoLR. Some of the communication-focused strategies include: providing more training - e.g., to survey and revenue officials, including village-level functionaries - so that problems that arise in the system can be resolved in a timely manner; digitising maps (at present the CoLR in Karnataka is restricted to non-spatial data); empowering farmers through touch screen kiosks in all talukas; and web-enabling land information data to provide easy access via internet.

Should these recommendations be implemented, the authors expect that "CoLR will result in easy and timely availability of usable data for planning process....In the end, CoLR...is a successful application of information and communication technology to government work. It has succeeded in making a 'closed' system 'open'. The CoLR programme has succeeded in bringing about administrative accountability, check corruption and harassment and has provided equitable access to all concerned."