Land measurement in Delhi works on two systems. Village revenue records use the old bigha, biswa and biswansi chain, where 1 bigha = 9,075 sq ft (about 1,008.33 gaj), and 4.8 bigha make 1 acre. Urban plots, flats and colonies are bought and sold in square yards (gaj) or square metres.
Land units used in Delhi
Delhi follows the same old system as the wider Punjab region. A government audit report on land management in the capital lists the chain as 1 acre = 4.80 bigha, 1 bigha = 20 biswa and 1 biswa = 20 biswani (biswansi). The square feet values below are worked out from that chain and the acre of 43,560 sq ft.
| Unit | Square feet | Gaj (sq yd) | Square metres |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 bigha (बीघा) | 9,075 | 1,008.3333 | 843.0951 |
| 1 biswa (बिस्वा) | 453.75 | 50.4167 | 42.1548 |
| 1 biswansi (बिस्वांसी) | 22.6875 | 2.5208 | 2.1077 |
| 1 gaj (गज) | 9 | 1 | 0.8361 |
| 1 acre | 43,560 | 4,840 | 4,046.8564 |
The Delhi bigha is not the UP bigha
The word bigha means very different sizes across India. The Delhi bigha of 9,075 sq ft is exactly one third of the pucca bigha of Uttar Pradesh (27,225 sq ft). So 1 UP bigha = 3 Delhi bigha. If a relative from UP or Bihar reads a Delhi khasra, they can easily overstate the land by three times. The table below shows bigha values in other regions for comparison.
Size of one bigha by region
| Region | 1 bigha in sq ft | In sq m | In acre |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pucca bigha: Uttar Pradesh, central Bihar (Patna, Arrah), east Rajasthan | 27,225 | 2,529.29 | 0.625 |
| Kachha bigha: west Rajasthan; also the Gujarat vigha | 17,424 | 1,618.74 | 0.4 |
| West Bengal, Assam, Jharkhand (Ranchi) | 14,400 | 1,337.8 | 0.330579 |
| Madhya Pradesh (most quoted value) | 12,000 | 1,114.84 | 0.275482 |
| Delhi, Haryana and Punjab (old bigha-biswa records) | 9,075 | 843.0951 | 0.208333 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 8,712 | 809.3713 | 0.2 |
| Uttarakhand | 6,804 | 632.1123 | 0.156198 |
| Bihar: Hajipur and Muzaffarpur | 38,025 | 3,532.64 | 0.872934 |
| Bihar: Chhapra (Saran) | 34,848 | 3,237.49 | 0.8 |
| Bihar: Bettiah (West Champaran) | 65,340 | 6,070.28 | 1.5 |
Size of one biswa by region
| Region | 1 biswa in sq ft | In sq m | In square meter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Uttar Pradesh and east Rajasthan (pucca) | 1,361.25 | 126.4643 | 126.4643 |
| West Rajasthan (kachha) | 871.2 | 80.9371 | 80.9371 |
| Delhi and Haryana (old records) | 453.75 | 42.1548 | 42.1548 |
| Himachal Pradesh | 435.6 | 40.4686 | 40.4686 |
| Uttarakhand | 340.2 | 31.6056 | 31.6056 |
Chain of units in Delhi revenue records
- 20 biswansi = 1 biswa (453.75 sq ft)
- 20 biswa = 1 bigha (9,075 sq ft)
- 4.8 bigha = 1 acre (43,560 sq ft)
- 1 hectare = 2.4711 acre = 11.8611 bigha
People often round 1 hectare to 2.5 acre. The exact value is 2.4711 acre, so do not use 2.5 for a sale or a court matter.
Official records and portal
The Revenue Department of the Government of NCT of Delhi keeps land records for the rural villages of the capital. Its land records portal is known as Delhi Land Records or Indraprastha Bhulekh. In these khasra and khatauni entries, area is written in bigha and biswa, and sometimes biswansi. For plots inside DDA colonies and other urban areas, sale deeds and allotment letters usually give the area in square yards or square metres.
How to read land size in Delhi records
An entry such as 2 bigha 5 biswa is read unit by unit, not as a decimal. Work it out like this:
- 2 bigha = 2 x 9,075 = 18,150 sq ft
- 5 biswa = 5 x 453.75 = 2,268.75 sq ft
- Total = 20,418.75 sq ft = 2,268.75 gaj = 0.4688 acre
Going the other way, a 100 gaj plot is 900 sq ft, which is about 1.98 biswa in the old Delhi measure. Our bigha to gaj converter and biswa to gaj converter let you choose the Delhi value.
Common mistakes
- Using the wrong bigha. Many online charts give 27,225 sq ft for a bigha. That is the UP pucca bigha, not the Delhi one.
- Reading 2.5 as 2 bigha 5 biswa. In records the parts are separate. 2 bigha 5 biswa is 2.25 bigha, because 5 biswa is a quarter of a bigha.
- Mixing gaj and square feet. In Delhi plot deals, 1 gaj means 1 square yard, which is 9 sq ft.
- Trusting rounded factors. Use 4.8 bigha per acre and 2.4711 acre per hectare, not 5 and 2.5.
This page explains common practice and is not an official source. For a sale, partition or court matter, confirm the unit and the area with the local tehsil or revenue office (through the patwari of your village) and check the current land record.
Questions people ask
Delhi mein 1 bigha kitne gaj ka hota hai?
In Delhi revenue records, 1 bigha = 9,075 sq ft, which is about 1,008.33 gaj (square yards). This comes from the official chain of 4.8 bigha per acre. It is much smaller than the UP bigha.
How many bigha are there in 1 acre in Delhi?
There are 4.8 bigha in 1 acre in Delhi. One bigha is 0.2083 acre. A hectare is about 11.86 Delhi bigha.
What is a biswa in Delhi?
A biswa is one twentieth of a bigha. In Delhi, 1 biswa = 453.75 sq ft, or about 50.42 gaj. Twenty biswansi make one biswa.
What land measurement units are used for Delhi city plots?
Plots in colonies, builder floors and flats are sold in square yards (gaj) or square metres, and built up area is often given in square feet. Bigha and biswa appear mainly in the records of rural villages.
Is there a land measurement system from the Delhi Sultanate still in use?
This page covers the units found in present day Delhi land records, not historical systems. Today, village records use bigha, biswa and biswansi on the chain of 4.8 bigha per acre. For old documents, ask the revenue office how the area maps to the current record.
Local units can differ inside a state. Before a sale, partition or court filing, confirm the unit with your tehsil, circle or revenue office and check the land record. How we check our numbers.