Vacant plot owners pose challenge to Hubballi GIS survey

CH NEWS, Hubballi Identifying owners of vacant plots has emerged as a major challenge for the Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation (HDMC) as it carries out a Geographic Information System (GIS) survey to improve property tax collection and update city records. The corporation has identified nearly one lakh vacant plots within its jurisdiction. However, many owners have purchased land in the twin cities but live elsewhere, making it difficult for survey staff to contact them and collect property documents. According to Municipal Corporation Deputy Commissioner Vijayakumar, around 18,000 vacant plot owners have registered their properties under the e-Aasthi system. Their details can be matched with the GIS survey records. However, identifying owners of unregistered plots remains a major concern. The door-to-door survey began on September 28 and has covered around 32,000 residential and commercial properties so far. The work has progressed slowly due to festivals, government holidays and limited cooperation from some property owners. The corporation has appointed Mumbai-based Genesis International to conduct the survey. The company has been working on the project since April 2025. An aerial survey covering nearly 250 square kilometres has already been completed using helicopter-based technology. The information collected through the door-to-door survey will be compared with aerial survey records through a process called ground truthing. This will help verify property locations, size, usage and tax details. Vijayakumar said the corporation estimates that around 4.5 lakh properties fall within its limits, including residential buildings and vacant plots. Officials aim to complete the door-to-door survey within four months. The GIS survey is expected to help identify properties outside the existing tax network and improve transparency in tax collection. However, locating owners who live outside the district and obtaining their documents remain major hurdles. The corporation is expected to decide on further measures to trace unregistered plot owners after assessing the survey results.