Land Measurement in Jharkhand

Land measurement units in Jharkhand are mainly the acre and the decimal (डिसमिल): 1 decimal = 435.6 sq ft and 100 decimal = 1 acre (43,560 sq ft). Katha and bigha are also used in daily talk, but their size changes by area, from 720 sq ft per katha around Ranchi to about 1,742.4 sq ft in Palamu.

Main units in Jharkhand

The decimal values are fixed, because a decimal is simply one hundredth of an acre. The katha and bigha values are commonly used local figures. We found no Jharkhand government page that fixes them.

Katha size varies across Jharkhand

The Ranchi katha of 720 sq ft is the same as the West Bengal katha. Palamu shares the Bihar style katha of about 1,742.4 sq ft, which is exactly 4 decimal. Sources differ on the full range. One widely copied reference says Jharkhand katha runs from 720 to 1,742 sq ft. A newer version of the same reference says 720 to 2,535 sq ft. Neither gives a source, and we could not confirm the higher figure. So treat any katha figure outside Ranchi and Palamu as something to check locally.

The table below shows how katha and bigha differ across states.

Size of one bigha by region

Size of one katha by region

No reliable dhur value for Jharkhand was found, so this page does not give one.

Chain of units

• 100 decimal = 1 acre
• 1 hectare = 100 are = 2.4711 acre
• Ranchi: 20 katha = 1 bigha = 14,400 sq ft
• Ranchi: 1 acre = 60.5 katha = 3.025 bigha
• Palamu: 1 acre = 25 katha

Because the decimal never changes, it is the safest unit to agree on in a written deal. If a price is quoted per katha, convert it to a price per decimal before you compare plots in different parts of the state.

Official records and portal

Jharkhand land records are on Jharbhoomi, run by the Department of Revenue, Registration and Land Reforms. Khatiyan and Register II entries usually show area in acre and decimal. Some khata and khesra records may also show hectare or are. Plot deals are mostly done in decimal.

How to read land size in Jharkhand records

Area is often written as acres with decimals after the point. For example, 0.05 acre means 5 decimal. To convert to square feet and gaj:

1. 5 decimal = 5 x 435.6 = 2,178 sq ft
2. 2,178 sq ft / 9 = 242 gaj
3. In Ranchi katha: 2,178 / 720 = 3.025 katha

If a seller in Ranchi offers 3 katha, that is 2,160 sq ft or 4.9587 decimal. In Palamu, 3 katha would be 5,227.2 sq ft or 12 decimal. Use our decimal to katha converter and katha to decimal converter to pick the right katha.

Common mistakes

• Using one katha for the whole state. A Ranchi katha and a Palamu katha differ by more than two times.
• Mixing decimal and the decimal point. 0.5 acre is 50 decimal, not 5 decimal.
• Trusting a converter that gives one bigha for India. The common Ranchi bigha is 14,400 sq ft, about half the UP bigha.
• Not checking the khatiyan. The recorded area in acre and decimal is what counts, not the katha figure quoted in a deal.

This guide explains common practice and is not an official source. For a sale, partition or court matter, confirm the unit with the circle office (anchal karyalay) or the local amin, and check the record on Jharbhoomi.