India, Dec. 4 -- Peruvian economist Hernando de Soto once argued that farmers in the Indian hinterland rarely have documentation for their landholdings, a constraint that prevents them from using these as collateral for credit, or investments. But why restrict it to farmers in rural India - few people in urban India have property titles; what they have is proof of ownership (usually shown through property tax receipts) or acquisition (a registration of a transaction overseen by a government revenue official).

And what papers there are - sale deeds, inheritance or registration documents, entries in the Record of Rights - come in handwritten or drawn formats, often in tatters, leading to disputes. Of an estimated 11 million pending civil c...