Madhya Pradesh Launches GIS Platform to Detect Illegal Floors and Land Use Violations
Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh | September 3, 2026: Madhya Pradesh has launched GARUD, a GIS-enabled online platform that can help authorities identify unauthorised construction, additional floors and land-use violations across urban areas. The system also allows citizens to discreetly report suspected building plan violations.
Developed by the state’s Urban Development and Housing Department, GARUD brings together municipal and infrastructure data from all 413 urban local bodies, creating a technology-based system for monitoring construction and urban development.
GARUD Can Compare Approved Plans With Actual Construction
The platform integrates data from the Automated Building Plan Approval System with property surveys and GIS maps.
This allows authorities to compare a building’s approved plan with its actual construction and identify potential deviations involving built-up area, plot size, number of floors and permitted land use.
For property buyers, such monitoring could provide an additional layer of protection against properties that may have been developed beyond approved plans.
Citizens Can Report Suspected Building Violations
One of GARUD’s key features is its citizen reporting mechanism, allowing people to discreetly flag suspected violations.
The system is designed to help authorities identify cases where buildings may have added floors, increased built-up areas or changed their land use after receiving municipal approval.
This could make it easier for urban bodies to act on construction violations before they create larger legal, safety or property-related problems.
GIS Mapping to Track Encroachments and Construction Risks
GARUD can create buffer zones around roads, utilities and other infrastructure to identify potential encroachments and check whether construction has crossed prescribed distances.
The platform is also connected with multiple government systems, including e-Nagarpalika, SAMPADA, SAMAGRA, power distribution companies and solid waste management databases.
By bringing these datasets together, authorities can use location-based information to improve urban planning, infrastructure management and civic services.
Airport and Heritage Zones Get Additional Checks
The system can also support construction checks around airports by using colour-coded aviation zones and permissible height limits.
This can help municipal authorities identify whether proposed buildings comply with aviation-related restrictions before granting construction approvals.
GARUD is similarly linked with information on nationally protected monuments. The system can alert authorities when a proposed development falls within a protected or regulated heritage zone, where additional conditions may apply.
Water, Sewerage and Flood Risks Mapped
The platform goes beyond building violations and also covers urban infrastructure. Water-supply networks across 277 urban local bodies and sewerage networks across 46 bodies have been compiled and analysed through GIS overlays.
The system can identify locations where infrastructure networks intersect or run dangerously close, allowing authorities to plan preventive action.
Its flood simulation and impact-analysis module can also identify areas and infrastructure that may be vulnerable during flooding, supporting better preparedness and emergency response.
What GARUD Could Mean for Property Buyers
For homebuyers and property investors, the biggest potential benefit is stronger monitoring of whether construction matches approved plans and permitted land use.
Unauthorised floors, excess construction or illegal land-use changes can create problems related to approvals, safety, resale and future regularisation. A system that combines property records with GIS-based verification could help authorities identify such deviations more systematically.
However, GARUD should not be treated as a substitute for a buyer’s own property due diligence. Buyers should still verify sanctioned building plans, ownership documents, approvals and other applicable records before purchasing a property.
Madhya Pradesh Receives GIS Award for GARUD
The GARUD platform has received the Achievement in GIS Award, recognising its use of geospatial technology for urban planning and administration.
The state says the platform is intended to make data a stronger foundation for decision-making while improving the efficiency of urban bodies, revenue administration, infrastructure management and civic service delivery.
As the system expands its use across Madhya Pradesh, its effectiveness will depend on how consistently authorities use the mapped data for inspections, enforcement and property-related approvals.