Ground: 1 Acre to Ground and Ground to Square Feet

1 acre is 18.15 grounds. A ground is a Chennai plot unit of 2,400 sq ft, so to change acres to grounds you multiply by 18.15.

What is a ground?

A ground is a land unit used for residential plots in Chennai and other towns of Tamil Nadu. One ground is 2,400 sq ft, which is a plot of 40 ft by 60 ft. It is also seen in some parts of south Karnataka. In villages of Tamil Nadu people use cents and acres instead, and official records use hectare and are.

The ground value is commonly used local practice and is not stated on an official page, but 2,400 sq ft is the figure every source agrees on.

1 ground in other units

• 1 ground = 2,400 sq ft
• 1 ground = 266.67 sq yd (gaj)
• 1 ground = 222.97 sq m
• 1 ground = 5.51 cents
• 1 ground = 2.23 are
• 1 ground = 0.0551 acre

Acre to ground table

Ground to acre

Divide grounds by 18.15, or multiply by 0.0551. For example, 5 grounds = 12,000 sq ft = 0.2755 acre. 10 grounds = 0.551 acre.

Ground and cent

1 ground is about 5.51 cents, and 1 cent is 0.1815 ground. So a 10 cent plot (4,356 sq ft) is about 1.81 grounds. When a listing in the outskirts of Chennai gives cents, use this to compare it with city plots sold in grounds.

Common plot sizes

• Half ground: 1,200 sq ft, for example 30 ft by 40 ft.
• 1 ground: 2,400 sq ft, 40 ft by 60 ft.
• 1.5 grounds: 3,600 sq ft, for example 60 ft by 60 ft.
• 2 grounds: 4,800 sq ft, for example 60 ft by 80 ft.

Worked example

A family in Chennai owns a plot of 3,600 sq ft and plans to split it between two children. The whole plot is 3,600 / 2,400 = 1.5 grounds. Each child gets 0.75 ground, which is 1,800 sq ft, or about 4.13 cents. If the Patta shows the plot in square metres, the whole plot is about 334.45 sq m.

A builder who offers 2,400 sq ft "super built up area" is not offering 1 ground of land. Ground is a measure of land area only, so always ask for the undivided share of land in sq ft.

Other old Tamil units

Tamil Nadu also has traditional units such as kuzhi, ma, kaani and veli. Their sizes are not uniform. Kuzhi is given as 144 or 145.2 sq ft depending on the source, and kaani as 400 or 100 kuzhi. Sources differ, so confirm the local value before you convert. See the Tamil Nadu guide.

How to convert ground

1. Ground to square feet: multiply by 2,400. Example: 2.5 grounds = 6,000 sq ft.
2. Ground to cent: multiply by 5.5096. Example: 2.5 grounds = 13.77 cents.
3. Square metre to ground: multiply by 0.004485. Example: 500 sq m = 2.24 grounds.

Use ground to square feet, acre to cent or cent to square feet.

Practical tips

• Patta and Chitta show area in hectare, are and square metre. A ground is 222.97 sq m, so a 1 ground plot shows as about 2 are 23 sq m.
• Check the sides on the sketch (FMB). A plot sold as 1 ground may not be a perfect 40 ft by 60 ft.
• Plot prices in Chennai are often quoted per ground. Divide by 2,400 to get the price per sq ft and compare offers fairly.
• For a sale, confirm the extent with the taluk office and check the Patta.