Bigha, biswa and katha converter by state

AI helped make this page. We first read the official sources. Then we wrote the calculation rules and the text. After that, a separate, independent AI agent (Claude) checked the page against the sources (2026-10-22). No person reviewed this page.

Rule for this page: a state is in the tool only if we opened a government document that gives its value. Each value on the page shows the words of that document. We found no official value for Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat or Madhya Pradesh, so they are not in the tool.

Rajasthan: the MDDS conversion table (Table 1.3) gives two bighas: the Shahjahani jarib of 165 ft (165 × 165 = 27,225 sq ft, 0.253 ha) and the Gantari jarib of 132 ft (132 × 132 = 17,424 sq ft, 0.16 ha). The National Water Academy module calls the 27,225 sq ft bigha “Bigha (Pucca)” and gives 1 bigha = 20 biswa. The NGT order (OA 63/2021) gives “1 bigha equals to 1617 m2 or 20 Biswa or 400 Biswansi”. 1,617 sq m is about 17,405 sq ft, and the same order gives 2054.88 bigha = 332.63 ha (1,618.7 sq m per bigha), so the order describes the 132 ft bigha (17,424 sq ft = 1,618.7 sq m), not the 165 ft bigha. The tool shows this quote under the 132 ft bigha only. For the 165 ft bigha, our sources give 20 biswa but no biswansi; the tool assumes 1 biswa = 20 biswansi, the same ratio as the NGT order and the Haryana lines of the MDDS table. The same MDDS table also has the line “1 Bigha = 20 Biswansi (Rajasthan)”; the tool does not use it, because it does not match the NGT order or the Haryana lines. Our sources do not use the name “kaccha bigha”, so the tool does not use it.

Haryana: the MDDS table gives two systems. Before bandobast (settlement): 1 karam = 57.157 inches, 1 biswansi = 1 karam × 1 karam, 20 biswansi = 1 biswa, 20 biswa = 1 bigha, 4 bigha 16 biswa = 1 acre. After bandobast: 1 karam = 66 inches, 1 sarsai = 1 karam × 1 karam, 9 sarsai = 1 marla, 20 marla = 1 kanal, 8 kanal = 1 acre. The tool takes 1 bigha = 43,560 ÷ 4.8 = 9,075 sq ft from the acre rule. A karam of 57.157 inches gives 9,074.8 sq ft, the same value after rounding.

Delhi: the District Magistrate South page says 1 Acre = 4 Bigha 16 Biswa (4840 sq yd), 1 Bigha = 20 Biswas (1008 sq yd), 1 Biswa = 50 sq yd. 4,840 ÷ 4.8 = 1,008.33 sq yd, so the page rounds 1,008 and 50. The tool uses the exact acre rule: 1 bigha = 9,075 sq ft, 1 biswa = 453.75 sq ft.

West Bengal: the NGDRS gap analysis lists the West Bengal units: 1 acre = 100 decimal, 1 bigha = 20 katha, 1 katha = 1.65 decimal or 720 sq ft, 1 chatak = 45 sq ft. The tool takes 1 decimal = 1/100 acre = 435.6 sq ft (the same document also writes “1 decimal = 435 sq.ft”). 720 ÷ 435.6 = 1.653, which the document rounds to 1.65.

Assam: the Statistical Handbook of Assam 2025 gives 1 acre = 3.025 bighas, so 1 bigha = 43,560 ÷ 3.025 = 14,400 sq ft. The Public Works Roads Department document (source: Revenue Department, Kamrup) gives 1 bigha = 5 katha, 1 katha = 20 lessa, 1 lessa = 144 sq ft; 5 × 20 × 144 = 14,400 sq ft. The same document writes “14,440 Sq feet” for 1 bigha, which does not match its own ladder. The MDDS table has the lines “1 Katha = 5 Lessa or 720 Sq feet” and “1 Bigha(Assam) = 4 Katha or 20 Lessa or 2880 Sq feet”. The tool does not use these two lines. The Public Works Roads Department document gives 1 katha = 20 lessa (20 × 144 = 2,880 sq ft) and 1 bigha = 5 katha. The handbook gives 1 bigha = 14,400 sq ft (from 3.025 bighas per acre), not 2,880 sq ft. The handbook gives no katha value; it writes areas as bigha–katha–lessa and gives 1 lessa = 13.4 sq m. The handbook also gives 1 hectare = 7.45993 bighas; the exact value from 3.025 bighas per acre is 7.4749.

Uttarakhand: the Uttarakhand Academy of Administration slides give 1 bigha = 82.5 × 82.5 sq ft = 20 biswa = 0.0632 ha, 1 acre = 6.4 bigha = 6 bigha 8 biswa, and 1 nali = 16 mutthi = 240 sq yd = 0.02 ha. 82.5 × 82.5 = 6,806.25 sq ft. These training slides are our only source for Uttarakhand. We found no state rule with these values, and the tool does not check if every district uses this bigha.

Jharkhand: the MDDS table gives 1 katha = 66.89 sq m and 1 dismil = 40.46 sq m. It gives no bigha for Jharkhand, so the tool converts katha and decimal only. 66.89 sq m is about 720 sq ft.

Errors we found in official documents, and what the tool uses instead: the National Water Academy module writes 1 acre = 40,700 sq m (1 acre is 4,046.86 sq m) and 27,225 sq ft = 2,531.93 sq m (it uses 1 sq ft = 0.093 sq m; the exact value is 2,529.29 sq m). The Uttarakhand slides write 1 acre = 0.40486 ha (exact: 0.404686 ha).

Exact factors: 1 ft = 0.3048 m, so 1 sq ft = 0.09290304 sq m; 1 sq yd = 9 sq ft; 1 acre = 43,560 sq ft; 1 hectare = 10,000 sq m. The tool does not round during the calculation. This tool's assumptions: results show up to 4 decimal places (6 below 1), half up; the mixed form (for example 4 bigha 16 biswa) rounds the smallest unit to 2 decimal places. Numbers use Indian digit grouping (1,07,639).

Hand checks (node web/src/tools/in-land-units/test.mjs): 165 × 165 = 27,225 sq ft; 1 acre = 1.6 pucca bigha; Delhi and Haryana 1 acre = 4 bigha 16 biswa; Assam 1 acre = 3.025 bigha = 3 bigha 0 katha 2.5 lessa; Uttarakhand 1 acre = 6 bigha 8 biswa; West Bengal 1 bigha = 20 katha = 14,400 sq ft; 1 hectare = 3 bigha 19 biswa 1.47 biswansi (Rajasthan, 165 ft).

Last updated: 2026-10-22