Lekhpal Salary and Patwari Job Guide

The lekhpal salary depends on your state, because lekhpal and patwari are state government posts. In Uttar Pradesh, the recent UPSSSC advertisement placed the Lekhpal post at Pay Level 3 (₹21,700 to ₹69,100), plus DA and other allowances. Other states call the same village land records job Patwari, Talathi or Village Accountant, each with its own pay level and rules. This page explains the job, how recruitment works in different states, and how to find the exact pay for yours.

It is one of the most respected posts in a village. People come to the lekhpal for land papers, certificates and relief after floods or crop loss. If you like field work and dealing with people, it is a solid sarkari naukri after class 12 or graduation.

What a lekhpal or patwari does

The lekhpal or patwari is the lowest field officer of the state revenue department, working under the tehsil. One person usually looks after one or a few villages, called a halka or circle. Day to day work includes:

• Keeping land records up to date, such as who owns which plot and what is grown on it.
• Field verification for mutation (change of name in land records after sale or inheritance).
• Crop inspection during each season and reports on crop damage after floods, drought or hailstorms.
• Measuring land and marking boundaries in disputes.
• Field reports for income, caste and residence certificates.
• Helping with elections, census and other government surveys.

The same job has different names. Lekhpal is used in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, where the post is also called Revenue Sub-Inspector. Patwari is used in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh and some other states. Maharashtra and Gujarat use Talathi. Above this post sits the Revenue Inspector (Kanungo in some states), who supervises a group of patwaris or lekhpals.

Lekhpal salary and patwari salary by state

Each state pays its revenue staff on its own pay matrix. Here is what we could confirm, and where you should check the rest:

So if you are asking "lekhpal ki salary kitni hoti hai" for UP, the answer is basic pay of ₹21,700 at the start, plus dearness allowance, house rent allowance and other allowances as per UP government orders. The UP lekhpal salary in hand is lower than the gross because of deductions such as the pension contribution. For patwari salary in Rajasthan, patwari salary in MP, patwari salary in Haryana, talathi salary in Maharashtra or the revenue inspector salary and RI salary in Odisha, open the latest official advertisement of that state. The pay level is printed in it.

How the monthly pay is built in a state post:

• Basic pay: fixed by your pay level. It rises with yearly increments.
• Dearness allowance: a percentage of basic, revised by the state from time to time.
• House rent allowance: depends on the class of town where you are posted.
• Other allowances: some states pay a fixed allowance for travel or for field work.
• Deductions: pension contribution, group insurance and professional tax where it applies.

Some states pay a fixed amount or a minimum of the pay level during probation or training. Read the probation clause in your state notice so you are not surprised by your first salary. To understand allowances better, read salary allowances explained.

Eligibility and age limit

Rules change by state and by notice. The broad pattern:

In MP, the recent notice gave an upper age limit of 45 years for reserved categories, women and persons with disability of MP, as per MP rules. Always check the age cut-off date in your notice. You can use the age checker for a quick idea:

Patwari exam and lekhpal exam pattern

Most states fill these posts through a written exam conducted by the state staff selection board, then document verification. The steps in UP:

1. PET (Preliminary Eligibility Test): a common test by UPSSSC for many Group C posts. Your PET score makes you eligible to apply.
2. Lekhpal mains exam: an objective written exam for shortlisted PET candidates.
3. Document verification and final selection on merit.

The patwari exam syllabus in most states covers these areas, though weightage differs:

• General Hindi or the state language, and often general English.
• Mathematics and reasoning at around class 10 level.
• General knowledge and current affairs, with focus on the state's history, geography and culture.
• Computer basics.
• Rural development, village society and land revenue topics in some states, including UP.

The number of questions, marks, exam time and negative marking are printed in each notification and change from cycle to cycle. Download the syllabus from the official commission website, not from a forwarded message.

Training and probation

New lekhpals and patwaris go through training before they get a full charge. In Uttarakhand, a tribunal order describes how selected lekhpals were trained at the Regional Revenue Training Centre, Almora, and how their seniority list was based on the merit of the training exam. Other states run similar training at revenue training schools. Training covers land records, survey and measurement, revenue laws and computer based land records. You will usually be on probation for a fixed period, and confirmation depends on passing training and good service.

Promotion and career growth

The usual promotion ladder in the revenue department is:

• Lekhpal or Patwari
• Revenue Inspector or Kanungo
• Naib Tehsildar, in states that fill part of these posts by promotion
• Tehsildar and above, through further promotion or the state PCS route

Promotion speed depends on vacancies and your state's service rules. Many lekhpals also prepare for state PCS while in service, because they already know the revenue system well.

How to prepare

• Start with the eligibility test: in UP, clear PET with a good score first. In MP, get a valid CPCT score in time.
• Build a base in 4 to 6 months: maths, reasoning and Hindi or the state language at class 10 level, plus daily current affairs.
• Study your state: its history, geography, districts, schemes and land revenue terms.
• Practise previous papers from the commission's website under a timer.
• Keep other options open: the same preparation helps for SSC CHSL, forest guard and state clerk posts.

For HP govt job patwari posts, Punjab, Haryana and Bihar revenue posts, follow the state revenue department and the state selection board websites. See govt jobs after 12th and government exams list for more state options.