Review Meeting of Hon’ble Revenue Minister on Smart Surveillance System in Registration Offices

• Revenue Administration and Land Registration System to be Transparent, Corruption-Free and Free from Middlemen
• “There will be no middlemen between the Government and the people.” — Hon’ble Revenue Minister.
• Middlemen to be identified and penalized through the Smart Surveillance System

Bhubaneswar, June 2026 : A high-level review meeting on the surveillance system under the Inspector General of Registration (IGR) was held today at Lok Seva Bhawan under the chairmanship of the Hon’ble Minister for Revenue and Disaster Management, Shri Suresh Pujari. The meeting discussed in detail the implementation of a Smart Surveillance System through advanced CCTV cameras in all registration offices across Odisha, along with its operation and maintenance. The Hon’ble Minister emphasized strengthening the security infrastructure of all registration offices in the State through an integrated surveillance and monitoring mechanism.

During the review, Shri Pujari stated that the possibility of corruption in registration offices largely arises due to the activities of middlemen who frequently visit these offices without any official purpose, unlike officers and staff. To address this issue, a Smart Surveillance System using CCTV cameras will be introduced to identify such middlemen. The system will be further strengthened through the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) to enhance its effectiveness in identifying and tracking these individuals, who will also face appropriate penalties.

The Minister reiterated that the land transaction and registration process would be kept completely free from the influence of middlemen and that corruption would not be tolerated under any circumstances. Ensuring a transparent, corruption-free and accountable revenue administration remains a top priority of the Government and efforts will begin with making the registration system free from middlemen.

The Minister further informed that the Smart Surveillance System will gradually be extended to all Revenue Department offices, including Tahasil offices and Revenue Inspector(RI) offices. The system will monitor the attendance and working hours of officers and staff and will also facilitate tracking during field visits. Periodic monitoring of the system will be carried out at the State Headquarters level under the supervision of the Hon’ble Minister and the Additional Chief Secretary of the Department.

The Smart Surveillance System will maintain a close watch on the attendance and functioning of officials. Fire safety measures will also be strengthened through enhanced alert mechanisms. The capacity of the Smart Surveillance System’s Control Room will be upgraded and modern technologies such as real-time monitoring will be adopted to make revenue administration more transparent, efficient and citizen-centric.

The Hon’ble Minister also directed that security arrangements in all registration offices be further strengthened and that Registration Officers be granted additional powers, wherever necessary, by empowering them to function as Executive Magistrates.

Among those present at the meeting were Dr. Arabinda Padhee, Additional Chief Secretary, Revenue and Disaster Management Department; Ms. P. Anvesha Reddy, Inspector General of Registration; Shri Prakash Mishra, Principal Secretary, Revenue Department; Shri Diganta Rautaray, Additional Secretary; and other senior officials of the Department.

Anshuman Sahoo