How to trace back title of a Property?

Various Documents used to find the title of the property:

1. Ownership & Title Documents

• Sale Deed → Proof of land ownership transfer through sale.

• Sada Bainama → Unregistered land sale agreement (not legally valid until registered).

• Possession → Actual physical control of land.

• Mutation Proceeding → Updating land revenue records after ownership change.

• ROR (Record of Rights) → Register of land ownership & tenancy rights.

• EC (Encumbrance Certificate) → History of transactions (sale, mortgage, lease) on land.

2. Revenue & Taxation Records

• Faisal Patti → Register recording transfers of holdings and tax changes.

• Vasool Baqi → Record of revenue collected and pending dues.

• Ceiling Register → Records land beyond maximum legal holding limits.

3. Tenancy & Assignment Records

• Protected Tenant Register → Details of tenants with protected rights.

• 38E Certificate → Ownership rights granted to protected tenants.

• 13B Certificate → a certificate of land regularization or transfer validation issued by the MRO (Mandal Revenue Officer) in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh to validate transactions made without a registered document (such as a Sada Bainama)

4. Survey & Mapping Records

• Sethwar → Original village register & survey record (pre-1953).

• Khasra → Field-wise record of survey numbers, cultivation, and owners. (1954-55)

• Chesala → Field-wise record of survey numbers, cultivation, and owners made for period of 3 years together. (1955-56, 1956-57,1957-58)

• Pahani (till date) → Annual update of land ownership, crops, and transactions. (From 1959-till date)

• Survey Maps → Maps showing survey boundaries and survey numbers.

• Irrigation Maps → Maps showing canals, ayacut areas, tanks, etc.

• Zones → Classification under planning (residential, agricultural, commercial).

5. Restrictions & Special Registers

• Prohibited Register → List of lands that cannot be sold (assigned, temple, govt. land).

• FTL (Full Tank Level) → Water spread area of tanks/lakes.

• Buffer → Protected no-construction zone around water bodies or sensitive areas.

We can trace the title of a property by starting with the latest sale deeds and mutation proceedings, then confirming them through the Encumbrance Certificate (EC). Next, we verify the pahanis against the same sale deeds and continue tracing back until the sethwar/khasra pahanis. It is also important to check whether the property is a ceiling patta, assigned patta, etc., by referring to the prohibitory registers or other relevant records.