Come July 7, properties to be auto-mutated in Chandigarh

In a first-of-its-type major digital governance reform, the Estate Office will soon roll out the auto-mutation system based on registered property deeds with the objective of ensuring timely, transparent and citizen-friendly delivery of services in property ownership transfer.

In line with the Chandigarh Administration’s commitment to leverage technology for enhancing public convenience and administrative efficiency, the new system will be launched on Monday, Deputy Commissioner Nishant Kumar Yadav said here on Thursday.

Major relief for buyers

The new system will provide a major relief to the buyers of properties in Chandigarh as it will not only save their time but will also end corruption and favouritism, which are allegedly rampant in the present system.

Currently, more than 50% of the footfall of the visitors to the Estate Office pertains to the applicants of property transfers through the manual system. Under this, the property buyer is required to visit the Estate Office to apply for the mutation with no fixed time frame following which the applicant makes repeated rounds to the office.

He said a time frame of one week from the date of property registration had been fixed for completing the auto-mutation following which the new ownership records would start reflecting on the online portal of the Estate Office.

Sharing the salient features of the auto-mutation system, Yadav, who is also the Estate Officer, disclosed that under the new system, there would be no need for manual application as the mutation would be automatically initiated upon registration of the property deed, eliminating the requirement for a separate application from the transferee.

“The system will ensure instant and secure data transfer between the Sub-Registrar Office (SRO) and the Estate Office through a digitally integrated platform,” he revealed.

Under the new system, every stage will be digitally monitored with defined responsibilities and automatic acknowledgements to the applicant.

He said it would reduce the burden on property buyers by eliminating additional paperwork and visits to the Estate Office and would in turn minimise manual intervention and ensure prompt processing, and enable better monitoring.

Documents submitted during deed registration will be auto-fetched and reused, avoiding duplication.

Calling the auto-mutation system a transformative step to simplify property ownership processes for the citizens, the Estate Officer said, “It reflects our vision of adopting a proactive and technology-driven approach to improve public service delivery. With minimal effort from the public, the entire mutation process is now streamlined, time-bound and fully accountable.”

This system will apply to all types of immovable properties — freehold and leasehold — falling under the jurisdiction of the Estate Office where ownership has been transferred via a registered deed.

It will be applicable prospectively from the date of system implementation while the older cases will continue under the manual mutation process.

“The UT Administration remains steadfast in its resolve to create a digitally empowered governance framework that prioritises citizen ease, transparency and efficiency,” said the DC-cum-EO.

Chandigarh