I have a boundary dispute with my neighbor. What should I do?

Here's a comprehensive guide on how to resolve a boundary dispute with your neighbor for your farmland in Telangana:

Pre-Legal Measures:

Direct Communication:

Approach your neighbor directly and discuss the dispute calmly and respectfully.
Share your perspective and try to understand their point of view.
Aim for a mutually agreeable solution through open communication.

Gather Evidence:
- Collect documents supporting your land ownership:
  - Pattadar passbook
  - Sale deeds
  - Survey reports and maps
  - Other documents
- Witness statements and historical records can also be helpful.
- Organize and document your evidence for future reference.

Engage a Land Surveyor:

Apply for a government/Mandal land surveyor to conduct a professional survey of the disputed area.
The surveyor will determine the accurate boundaries and prepare a detailed report with a map.
This report will serve as strong evidence in any legal proceedings.
Approach court if the neighbor is not letting you conduct a survey.

Alternative Dispute Resolution:

Consider ADR options like mediation or arbitration before pursuing legal action.
These offer a faster, cheaper, and less adversarial approach to resolving disputes.
A neutral third party will facilitate communication and guide you toward a mutually acceptable solution.

Legal Measures:

Seek Legal Counsel:
- Consult a lawyer specializing in land disputes if communication fails or you need legal guidance.
- The lawyer will assess your case, advise on legal options, and represent you in legal proceedings.
File a Civil Suit:
- As a last resort, you can file a civil suit in court to claim your land rights.
- This process can be lengthy and expensive, so consider it only after exhausting other options.

Additional Tips:

Maintain a calm and respectful demeanor throughout the process.
Document all interactions and agreements with your neighbor in writing.
Follow legal advice and comply with government regulations.
Take detailed photographs and videos of the disputed area and your land boundaries.
Be patient and persistent in your efforts to resolve the dispute.

Resources:

Chief Commissioner of Land Administration: https://ccla.telangana.gov.in/Welcome.do
Dharani portal: https://dharani.telangana.gov.in/

Remember, resolving a boundary dispute requires patience, communication, and seeking professional assistance when needed. By following these steps and utilizing available resources, you can increase your chances of finding a fair and lasting solution.

I have some land in Telangana. How do I know if it's encroached or not? And what do I do once I identify the same?

Encroachment is usually a case where your neighbor has moved into your land. This is a very common problem, not only with lands in Telangana but also with those in other states.

In Telangana, there are two ways of looking at this. If your land falls at the boundary of a survey number, it is easy to identify encroachment, by ascertaining the boundaries of a particular survey number. The Mandal govt. Surveyors can identify the survey number boundaries.

In the other case, where your neighbor also falls in the same survey number as yours, the problem is more difficult to identify.

Unlike in a few other states, where it's recorded where your land is, inside a given survey number, the same is not mentioned in any govt. records in Telangana (although neighbors on each boundary are mentioned, it's not very clear and there are too many errors in this). The ownership inside a survey number is based on the possession. So in case of potential encroachment inside the same survey number, the only way to identify, would be to measure yours and every other land in your survey number (while also ascertaining the survey number boundaries) and conclude.

Once the encroachment is identified, there are two possible courses of action - You talk to your neighbor and resolve it amicably and if that does not work, you can seek legal measures!

Also, the Govt. Mandal surveyors only identify the survey number boundaries and would not mark any private land inside a given survey number. To get this done, you can get a survey ordered through a court.

How to prevent my land from being encroached, in Telangana?

The first step is to identify if you are in the right possession. You can look up Cadastral maps on the Dharani portal and verify them against your physical possession to ascertain the same. However, the digitization, not being very accurate in the cadastral maps, you can apply for a govt. Survey and get an understanding of your possession.

Once you ascertain that you are in the right possession, you can go for a good fence/boundary wall, security, and some kind of activity like plantation, etc. or maybe give it on lease, if it's suitable for that.

These activities will not completely eliminate the risk of property litigation but a land with good activity attracts fewer problems.

Since the land prices have skyrocketed in Telangana, it makes sense to spend on developmental activities on your land, to minimize the chance of dispute/litigation and better the chances of sale/returns.

I can’t locate my land in Telangana - I own some land but don't know where it is exactly!? What should I do?

It's a common occurrence. Your ancestors or parents might own land, but they might not be able to take care of it for various reasons, such as not being present or other circumstances.

If you have any document/sale deed wrt to the land, you can identify the district/mandal/village & survey number of your land, the first thing to do, would be to check on the ‘land details search’ on the Dharani portal.

Next, you can check the cadastral maps on the Dharani portal, to identify the location of the survey number. Then, go to google satellite imagery/ or the physical location to check on the possession of the land.

Once you can identify where your land is, you can either take possession or if that is a problem on the ground, you can approach a good lawyer and try to understand how to take possession of your land.

Are you in search of properties in Telangana? Explore the provided link to access a carefully curated list of verified lands - https://www.1acre.in/verified-lands.