Patta and Chitta: How a Chennai Buyer Verifies Land Records Before Buying

A buyer looking at an independent house in Tambaram in September 2026 was shown a sale deed, a tax receipt, and a confident smile, but no patta. When he pulled the patta himself on the Tamil Nadu eServices portal, the extent on the record was smaller than the plot he had walked, and part of what the seller was selling sat on land the record did not show as theirs. The patta did in two minutes what the paperwork on the table could not. In Tamil Nadu, the land record is where a property either confirms its own story or quietly contradicts it.

The short answer. Patta and chitta are Tamil Nadu government land records that show who holds a parcel, how large it is, and whether it is private or government land, and you can view and verify them free on the official portal at eservices.tn.gov.in. For a buyer, the patta confirms the seller's ownership and extent and flags land that is classified as government, which does not belong in a private sale. The trade-off is that a patta speaks to the land, not to a specific flat, so an apartment buyer uses it to check the land under the building while still reading the sale deed, approvals, and encumbrance record.

What are patta and chitta?

Patta and chitta are revenue records maintained by the Tamil Nadu government that record ownership and details of a piece of land. The patta is a record that names the holder of the land and sets out its survey number, extent, and classification, while the chitta records the type and extent of the land. Tamil Nadu has brought these records online, so what once meant a trip to the taluk office is now a search on a government portal. The record is the state's own account of the land, which is why it carries weight that a private document alone does not.

For a property purchase, the patta is one of the core land records because it ties a named holder to a specific survey number and extent. If the person selling to you is not the person on the patta, or the extent on the patta does not match what you are being sold, that gap needs an explanation before money changes hands. It helps to know the vocabulary too. The A-Register extract holds fuller settlement details for a survey number, the chitta records the type and extent of the land, and the field measurement sketch, or FMB, draws the parcel with its boundaries. You do not need to master all of them, but knowing which record answers which question lets you ask the seller for the right document rather than accepting whatever printout is offered.

Where do I view and verify them online?

Use the official Tamil Nadu eServices portal at eservices.tn.gov.in, which lets you view a patta, the A-Register extract, the chitta, and the field measurement sketch, and separately verify a web issued patta. The portal states that the information is dynamically updated, so a physical visit to a revenue office is not required to obtain it. To verify a document a seller has handed you, use the option to verify a web issued patta or chitta, enter the reference number printed on it, and confirm the details against what you were shown.

There are two useful actions here and they are not the same. Viewing lets you pull the current record for a survey number. Verifying lets you confirm that a specific printed patta a seller gave you is genuine and matches the live record. Do both. A genuine looking printout means little until the reference number checks out against the government portal.

Why does a Chennai flat buyer care about land records?

Even when you are buying a flat rather than a plot, the building stands on land, and that land has a record. An apartment buyer typically receives an undivided share of the land along with the flat, so the land under the project still matters to your title. Checking the patta and the parent land record confirms that the land the promoter built on is private, correctly extented, and traceable to the owner who gave development rights. It is a check on the foundation of the title, not a substitute for reading the sale deed and the approvals.

This is buyer due diligence, not investment advice. The aim is narrow: to make sure the land beneath your money is what the seller says it is, and that nothing about its classification or extent will surface as a problem later.

What should I read on the patta and related records?

Read the holder name, the survey number, the extent, and the classification, and match each against the property and the seller. The table below sets out what to check, where it sits, and why it matters to a buyer.

How do I check whether the land is government or private?

The portal is designed to show whether a parcel is held privately or by the government, and this is one of the most important checks a buyer can run. Land that the record classifies as government, or as poromboke, is not private property to be freely bought and sold, so a parcel that shows a government classification is a stop sign rather than a negotiation point. Confirm that the survey number you are buying shows as private, patta held land in the name that connects to your seller. Where the classification is anything other than clean private land, treat it as a matter to resolve with independent legal advice before you proceed, not something to take the seller's word on.

The same care applies to any mismatch in extent. If the patta shows less land than the plot you walked, you may be paying for area the record does not recognise as the seller's, and that difference is far cheaper to discover now than after registration. Extent mismatches are common where an old survey number has been subdivided over the years, so the fix is usually to trace the subdivision and confirm the exact sub number that corresponds to your parcel. If the seller cannot show you which subdivision is being sold, that is a gap to close before you commit, because a patta for the wrong sub number protects nothing you are actually buying.

How does the patta check fit with my other Chennai checks?

The patta check sits alongside the planning approval, the encumbrance record, and the sale documents, and no single one replaces the others. Confirming the patta tells you the land is private and correctly held. It does not tell you the building is approved, which is why you separately verify the plan sanction, as covered in our guide to verifying CMDA and DTCP approval for a Chennai flat. It also does not replace reading the sale deed and the agreement, where the difference between the two documents matters, as set out in our note on the sale agreement and the sale deed. Used together, these checks tell you the land, the building, and the paperwork all agree. When any one of them disagrees with the others, that disagreement is the single most useful thing your due diligence can find, because it points precisely at the question the seller would rather you did not ask.

A seven step land record check before you buy

Use this order for a plot or an independent house, and use the land checks for the parent parcel when buying a flat.

1. Ask the seller for the survey number and the patta reference number.
2. Open eservices.tn.gov.in and view the patta and chitta for that survey number.
3. Confirm the holder name connects to the seller through a clear chain.
4. Match the extent on the record against the area you are being sold.
5. Check the classification shows private, patta held land, not government or poromboke.
6. View the field measurement sketch to confirm the parcel boundaries.
7. Verify any printed patta the seller gave you by its reference number on the portal.

Frequently asked questions

Where do I check patta and chitta for a Chennai property? Use the official Tamil Nadu eServices portal at eservices.tn.gov.in. It lets you view the patta, the A-Register extract, the chitta, and the field measurement sketch for a survey number, and separately verify a web issued patta by its reference number. The records are updated dynamically, so you do not need to visit a revenue office to pull them.

Does a flat buyer need to check the patta at all? Yes, indirectly. An apartment buyer usually gets an undivided share of the land the building sits on, so the land record still touches your title. Checking the patta and parent land record confirms the land is private and traceable to the owner who granted development rights, which is a check on the foundation of the title.

What if the patta shows a different name from the seller? Treat it as a question to answer before you pay. The holder on the patta should be the seller or connect to the seller through a clear, documented chain of ownership. A name that does not match, with no explanation, means the seller may not hold the land they are selling, so get the chain of title reviewed first.

Can I buy land classified as government on the record? No, not as an ordinary private purchase. Land the record classifies as government or poromboke is not private property to be bought and sold freely, so a government classification is a reason to stop rather than negotiate. Confirm the parcel shows as private, patta held land, and take independent legal advice on anything that does not.

Last updated 2026-09-19. PropNewz Team.