Priyank Kharge writes to Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on e-Swathu issues

Bengaluru:  Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RDPR) Minister Priyank Kharge has sought the “immediate intervention” of Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw to “stabilise and optimise” the e-Swathu application, which is facing glitches. 

In a letter to Vaishnaw, Priyank stated that the e-Swathu application, with technical support from the National Informatics Centre (NIC), has been implemented across all gram panchayats since 2013. 

“Currently, the RDPR department manages approximately 1.5 crore property (khata) records, which were earlier maintained manually at the gram panchayat-level. Citizens were required to physically visit panchayat offices to avail khata-related services,” Priyank stated.

The RDPR department has decided to issue e-Khatas to over 97 lakh digitised properties available on the Panchamitra 2.0 platform, Priyank stated. This will allow citizens to obtain e-Khatas “completely online” without them having to visit offices.  “However, subsequent to the rollout on December 1, 2025, citizens as well as users at gram panchayat and taluk/block panchayat levels have been facing numerous operational issues,” Priyank stated.

“These include inability to apply for e-Khatas, failure to forward applications to subsequent workflow stages and frequent disruptions wherein changes introduced in one module adversely impact other modules,” he said, adding that the NIC team “has not been able to deliver modules within agreed timelines.” 

e-Khatas are mandatory for rural property registrations and borrowing loans. However, officials and citizens have been facing “significant hardship” over the past month in obtaining e-Khatas, Priyank stated. 

Seeking Vaishnaw’s intervention, he said: “This matter is urgent, and has significant implications for property registration, financial inclusion and public service delivery.”