What is Bigha | Importance | States Using It | Measuring Bigha | FAQ
If you deal in property investment and want to buy land, you must have heard of the term Bigha: the land measurement unit. Several land measurement units are in place and these include
- Bigha
- Marla
- Kanal
- Biswa
- Kattha
- Guntha
- Ankanam
- Ground
- Cent
- Lecha
- Dhur
- Chatak
While most of these units are still used, the more popular terms are acres, square metres, yards, and even square feet. Here, we will talk about bigha, how this unit is important, and the different ways you can convert it into other land measurement units.
What Is Bigha: The Land Measurement Unit?
Bigha is the traditional unit of measuring land and is still prevalent in a lot of different states like Haryana, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Rajasthan, Assam, and Gujarat.
The size of the bigha is going to vary from one location to another. Mostly, people tend to convert it to a standard unit of measurement to ensure there is no discrepancy.
The Importance Of Bigha
While there are umpteen land measurement units and a lot of international standards have come up as well, bigha remains one of the oldest and the most common land measurement unit.
They are used extensively in different parts of the country as they are the benchmark of land measurement. It is also worth adding that such is the prolific popularity of this land measurement unit that it is also used in several other South Asian countries including the likes of Nepal and Bangladesh.
If you deal in the property market and real estate as well, you must have often used this term. A lot of property dealers tend to use the word Bigha and it helps them ensure that they can make their buyers and seller understand the terminology with ease.
The rural and semi-urban areas mostly still stick to the use of the term bigha and it seems to be the popular choice even in the current days. Using bigha helps the property dealers in having familiar terms and thereby wins the confidence of buyers and sellers alike.
In Which States Are Bigha Used?
The northern part of India is where bigha is most commonly used. Here is a list of Indian states wherein the term bigha is used as a unit for land measurement.
- Assam
- Bihar
- Chhattisgarh
- Gujarat
- Haryana
- Himachal Pradesh
- Jharkhand
- Punjab
- Rajasthan
- Madhya Pradesh
- Uttarakhand
- Uttar Pradesh
- West Bengal
It is important to note that in every state, bigha denotes a different size of the land. This is because the unit is not associated with any standard size and therefore its size varies from one state to another. So, this land measurement unit comes with its set of regional variations.
Apart from the above-mentioned states, it is also used in the neighbouring countries of Nepal, Bangladesh, and Fiji.
So, the golden rule to always follow is that when you do a land dealing in bigha, be clear about the exact size. Use a comparative international unit to be sure that you both are on the same terms.
Measuring Bigha : The Land Measurement Unit
As we have already told you, the amount of area that bigha covers differ from one state to another. However, to give you an idea of how much is one bigha, we will give you a comparative chart of bigha in square feet.
Go through this table and it will clear up the details for you as to how much a bigha measures.
| State | 1 bigha in Square Feet |
|---|---|
| Assam | 14,400 sq ft |
| Bihar | 27,220 sq ft |
| Gujarat | 17,427 sq ft |
| Haryana | 27,225 sq ft |
| Himachal Pradesh | 8,712 sq ft |
| Jharkhand | 27,211 sq ft |
| Punjab | 9,070 sq ft |
| Rajasthan | 1 pucca bigha = 27,225 sq ft 1 kuchha bigha = 17,424 sq ft |
| Madhya Pradesh | 12,000 sq ft |
| Uttarakhand | 6,804 sq ft |
| Uttar Pradesh | 27,000 sq ft |
| West Bengal | 14,348.29 sq ft |
You must have noticed two new terms in the above table – kuccha and pucca bigha. Let us see what they are.
The Kuccha And Pucca Bigha
The kuccha and pucca bigha find their use mostly in the states of UP, Bihar, Rajasthan, and Uttarakhand. The pucca bigha is the term that most of the other states tend to use.
The kuccha bigha is mostly used when the landlords are dealing with tenants rather than selling lands. These terms were used by the early landlords and like bigha, they too differ from one state to another.
Why Does Bigha Measure Variable Land Area?
Often some people wonder as to why there is no standardization when bigha is so often used. The reason is that in the earlier days, there were no common standard land measurement units. Every state had their own rule to measure land and therefore no uniformity was present.
It was in the year 1778 that the French introduced a standard unit of land measurement. However, the natives still end up using the old grading.
The bigha mostly has the same measurement value in the regions. For instance, the whole of North India has the same measurement. Central India has its measurement quantity and the same is the case for West and East India.
FAQ
How many bigha is present in an acre?
One acre is equivalent to 1.62 bigha
Which is the bigger unit- bigha or square feet
Bigha is the bigger unit as one bigha is equivalent to 29,610.66 square feet. It is important to note the measurement is going to vary in different states
Does bigha measure the same in all states?
Bigha doesn’t measure the same in all states. The value tends to differ from one zone to the other. Mostly, the east zone will have the same measurement value. The West will have its own and similarly would the South and the North zone.
How many bigha is present in a hectare of land?
One hectare is equivalent to 4 bigha and therefore hectare is a bigger unit
Is bigha used even today for land measurement?
Yes, most of the rural and sub-urban areas tend to still stick to the use of bigha unit for land measurement
Is bigha used internationally?
Apart from the Indian states, bigha is used in parts of Nepal. Bangladesh, and also Fiji Islands.
Why does bigha doesn’t conform to a standard measurement value?
When the word bigha was introduced, there was no standard measurement unit. So, different zones ended up marking their measurement the tradition stayed.