Bangladesh property glossary: katha, per share, khatian
Plain definitions of the terms Bangladeshi property listings use — katha, bigha, decimal, per share (ansho), khatian, khajna, mutation and RAJUK approval.
Katha · কাঠা
A katha is a unit of land area. In Dhaka and most of Bangladesh a katha is 720 square feet, which is about 66.9 square metres. Twenty katha make one bigha.
The size is not the same everywhere. In the Rajshahi and Khulna regions a katha is about 1,620 square feet — more than twice the Dhaka figure — so "5 katha" describes two very different plots depending on where the land is. Every land listing on this site is in Dhaka or Chittagong and uses the 720 square foot katha.
Per share (ansho) · অংশ
A share, or ansho, is an undivided fractional interest in a plot rather than a marked-off piece of ground. A "per share" price is what one share costs. It is not the price of the whole plot, and the plot price cannot be worked out from it without knowing how many shares the plot is divided into.
Share arrangements are common where a plot is held jointly, inherited among heirs, or sold into a development scheme. Before comparing a per-share price with a total price, ask the seller in writing how many shares the plot carries and what each share entitles the holder to.
Storeys planned
The number of floors the owner intends to build on the plot. It is a plan, not a permission: approval for that height is a separate question answered by RAJUK, and near an airport by aviation height restrictions as well.
A listing that advertises nine storeys is describing a scheme. Ask whether approval for it is in hand, applied for, or neither — the answer changes what the land is worth.
Units per floor
How many separate flats or spaces are planned on each floor of the building. Multiplied by the storey count it gives the total number of units in the finished building.
Unit density is the shorthand for what kind of building it will be. Two units on a floor means large flats; five on a similar plate means small ones. Two plots of the same size at the same price can be very different propositions on this figure alone.
Bigha · বিঘা
A bigha is twenty katha. Under the Dhaka standard that is 14,400 square feet, or about 1,338 square metres.
Decimal (shotangsho, shotok) · শতাংশ
A decimal is 435.6 square feet, or one hundredth of an acre. It is the unit most often used in land records and rural transactions.
One katha is about 1.65 decimal. Records and advertisements frequently use different units for the same plot, which is why it is worth converting both to the same unit before agreeing anything.
Kani · কানি
A kani is commonly taken as 17,280 square feet, the figure used in Chittagong and in Ministry of Land tables. It varies by district more than the other units do.
Mouza map · মৌজা ম্যাপ
The survey map of a mouza — the smallest revenue unit of land administration. It shows each plot with its dag (plot) number and boundaries, and it is the document that establishes where a plot physically is.
Check the plot on the mouza map rather than on a developer's scheme drawing. The two are not always the same plot.
Khatian (porcha) · খতিয়ান
The khatian, also called porcha, is the government's record of who holds a plot and on what terms. It names the holder, lists the dag numbers and states the share held.
CS, SA, RS, BS and BRS refer to different survey generations of the record. A seller should be able to produce the current one, and the chain behind it should be consistent.
Khajna · খাজনা
Khajna is land development tax, paid annually to the state against the plot. A current khajna receipt shows the tax is paid up to date.
A missing khajna receipt is one of the most common reasons a registration is turned away on the day.
Mutation (namjari) · নামজারি
Mutation, or namjari, is the application that changes the name on the land record after a plot changes hands. Registering a deed records the transfer; mutation makes the state's own record agree.
Both are required. Until mutation is done the record still names the seller, and any later sale, mortgage or inheritance runs into an obstacle.
RAJUK approval · রাজউক অনুমোদন
RAJUK is the development authority for Dhaka and the surrounding area. Its approval sets what may be built on a plot, including how many floors.
Approval for a given number of floors and that number of floors actually standing are two separate facts. Ask for the approved plan itself, not a description of it.
Lac (lakh) · লাখ
A lac, or lakh, is one hundred thousand. A price of 19 lac is 19,00,000 taka — 1,900,000 in the grouping used outside South Asia.
A crore is one hundred lac, or ten million.