A high-level Indian delegation is set to present the country’s pioneering land governance initiatives — the SVAMITVA Scheme and Gram Manchitra platform — at the prestigious World Bank Land Conference 2025, scheduled from May 5 to 8 at the World Bank Headquarters in Washington DC.
Led by Vivek Bharadwaj, Secretary of the Ministry of Panchayati Raj (MoPR), the delegation includes Joint Secretary Alok Prem Nagar, Additional Surveyor General of the Survey of India Shailesh Kumar Sinha, and senior representatives from Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh. The delegation will highlight India’s success in leveraging cutting-edge technologies to transform rural land administration and planning.
Themed “Securing Land Tenure and Access for Climate Action: Moving from Awareness to Action,” this year’s conference will gather global leaders, policymakers, researchers, and development partners to address land tenure security, modernization of land administration, and climate-aligned governance.
India’s SVAMITVA (Survey of Villages and Mapping with Improvised Technology in Village Areas) Scheme will be featured in two major sessions. This landmark initiative, which uses drone and geospatial technologies to map rural properties, has so far issued legal ownership cards to over 24.4 million households across 160,000 villages. With more than 100 million property parcels surveyed, the scheme has unlocked an estimated land value of USD 1.162 trillion, catalyzing rural development and financial inclusion.
During the Plenary Session on “Good Practices and Challenges in Land Tenure and Governance Reform,” Secretary Vivek Bharadwaj will serve as a Country Champion, discussing SVAMITVA’s role in enhancing rural property rights, promoting gender equality, and facilitating dispute resolution. The session will contribute to global dialogues surrounding Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 1.4.2, which focuses on securing legally recognized land tenure rights.
In a separate Technical Session on “Establishing the Land Foundation for Climate Action and Disaster Risk Management,” Joint Secretary Alok Prem Nagar will lead the Indian delegation in showcasing the Gram Manchitra platform. This digital planning tool utilizes SVAMITVA’s high-resolution spatial data to support climate-responsive village planning, site selection for solar projects, disaster preparedness, and rural infrastructure development.
India’s participation underscores its leadership in digital land reforms and commitment to knowledge sharing through South-South cooperation. The World Bank Land Conference 2025 will also feature an innovation expo, regional workshops, and thematic discussions centered on best practices in land governance, technological innovations, and strategies for scaling up tenure reforms.
Earlier this year, India hosted an international workshop on land governance, drawing participation from 22 countries. The SVAMITVA Scheme garnered significant interest, with several nations expressing a willingness to collaborate and adopt similar models.
India’s showcase at the 2025 conference is expected to reinforce its position as a global leader in inclusive, tech-driven rural development and land governance.
