Know All About Converting Kanal to Biswa in Land Measurement Units

Under the Real Estate Regulatory Authority Act, Indian Real Estate Industry has been asked to measure lands in terms of Square Feet by the Indian Government. Now, we know that India is a country of diverse culture and ethics. Every region uses its local land measurement units in case of unregistered properties of RERA and also in the rural areas. In these areas especially in the Northern and Western states, people may ask you to convert Square Feet to Biswa. Now, let us look about the land measurement units of India.

What is Kanal?

Kanal is a traditional land measurement unit used in Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir. During the British Government, it was used as a standard land measurement unit along with Marla. After the metrication in the mid 20th century, the usage of Kanal declined. The urban parts of India started using standard land measurement units, and using Kanal got restricted within the rural areas.

1 Kanal is equivalent to

⅛ Acre
605 Square Yards
20 Marlas
5400 Square Feet
506 Square Meter

What is Biswa?

Biswa is a sub-unit of Bigha and is commonly used in the Northern and Western states of India. This includes Haryana, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Gujarat, Rajasthan, West Bengal, and Assam. This is not a standard unit and therefore its value changes from one state to another. Therefore converting Bigha to Biswa becomes difficult without knowing the values in that particular region.

One bigha can contain 5 to 200 Biswa in different regions. One can understand the change of values from the following,

1 Pucca Biswa in parts of UP, Punjab, and Haryana is equivalent to 151.25 Square Yards.
1 Kachha Biswa in other parts of UP, Punjab, and Haryana is equivalent to 50.417 Square Yards.
1 Biswa in parts of Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand is equal to 48.4 Square Yards.
1 Pucca Biswa in parts of Rajasthan is equivalent to 151.25 Square Yards.
1 Biswa in other parts of Rajasthan is equal to 96.8 Square Yards.

In general, 1 Biswa is equivalent to

1350 Square Feet
125.42 Square Meter
150 Square Yards
0.0310 Acre
0.0125 Hectare

How to Convert Kanal to Biswa?

Generally, 1 Kanal is equivalent to 4.033 Biswa after rounding off the value up to three decimal places. This value may differ within a state or from one state to another. Now, if you are asked to convert 20 Kanal into Biswa, then multiply the value with 4.033. That is 20×4.033 = 80.66 Biswa. If the value changes, accordingly the calculation will also change.

The Easiest Way to Convert these Units.

As the value of Biswa keeps changing from one region to another, it may be difficult for a manual calculation. Even for other local units, having different values in different regions need the easiest way for converting their area value from one unit to another. This easiest way is to use an online area converter tool.

How to convert the area using an online tool?

Enter the region where your land is or you want to purchase.
Enter the total area of the land.
Enter the land measurement unit.
Enter the unit you want to calculate.
Some may ask you to press “Calculate”, while others will automatically generate the result.

Why use an online area converter tool?

It is a great time saver.
You don’t need to worry about the calculations.
The answer obtained is appropriate and reliable.
You don’t need to memorize the values every time you calculate.
You can access it from anywhere and at any time. Only a good internet connection and a device like a smartphone, tab, computer, etc are required.

What are some of the Land Measurement Units used in India?

India uses several Land Measurement Units some of which are globally accepted and are having a standard value, whereas the others are locally used and even are not accepted in other parts of the country.

The standard land measurement units are –

Square Yards – It is the standard land measurement unit allowed by some of the local governments to be used in India.
Square Feet – It is the standard and globally accepted land measurement unit. In India, under RERA, it is compulsory to measure lands in terms of Square Feet.
Square Meter – Most of the world has replaced Square Yards with Square Meter. It is used for two-dimensional measurement and is avoided in case of single dimension measurements.
Acre – It is the most traditional land measurement unit used for measuring agricultural lands or large tracts of land.
Hectare – This is globally accepted as a legal unit used in legal land records for any kind of land descriptions. It is the only non-SI unit that has been allowed to be used with other SI units.

Generally, the agricultural lands are measured in terms of either Acre or Hectare. For some local land dealings in the north or west India, you may need to convert an Acre to Biswa or a Hectare to Biswa. Similarly, for residential or commercial properties, people may ask you to convert the land area value from Square Yards to Biswa or Square Meter to Biswa. Therefore the knowledge about these units is very important.

Other land measurement units are –

Northern and Western India uses Bigha, Biswa, Gaj, Killa, Marla, Kanal, Sarsai, and Ghumao.
Eastern states of India uses Dhur, Decimal, Kattha, Chatak, and Leecha
Southern states of India use Ankanam, Cent, Ground, and Guntha. These units are not used in other parts of the state. So you must know to convert Guntha to Biswa, Ground to Biswa, and so on for the north and west Indian land brokers.
Another not so popular globally but used in India is Ares/Are. It was introduced in 1795 after the metric system was launched. After being in use as a primary land measurement unit, in 1960, the rationalisation of the metric system made this unit unrecognizable by the International System of Units. Thus, it is better if you have knowledge regarding Ares/Are to Biswa or some other local and standard land measurement unit conversion.

How to Measure Land Areas?

To measure your land area, you must look into the pattern of the Land.

If the land is having a regular pattern like a rectangle or a square. Then find the mathematical formula for calculating areas.
For example, if the plot of land is having boundary walls of each 10 feet, then follow the area calculation formula of a square. That is 10 feet × 10 feet = 100 Square Feet.
Now, if the plot of land is having 10 feet on opposite walls as length, and 5 feet on two walls for breadth. Then you need to follow the formula for calculating the area of a rectangle. That is, 10 feet × 5 feet = 50 Square Feet.
If the land is having an irregular shape. Then first divide the land into some regular geometric patterns. Calculate the area for each one of them by using their mathematical formulas. And finally, add them together to determine the area of the land.

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