Acre ↔ decimal

Understanding acres and decimals

CS, SA or RS khatians often record large plots in acres — for example “1.37 acres”. The decimal unit itself comes from the acre: one hundredth of an acre is one decimal. So this is the simplest conversion — just multiply or divide by 100.

Rules for calculating by hand

• Acres to decimals: multiply by 100 — move the decimal point two places right.
• Decimals to acres: divide by 100 — move the decimal point two places left.

An example

If the porcha says 1.37 acres, that is 137 decimals — about 4.14 bigha or 82.89 katha. And a plot of 8 decimals is 0.08 acres.

Mistakes to avoid

• Confusing “.37 acres” with “37 acres”: the decimal point can be faint in old khatians. If in doubt, check against the plot's total area.
• Mixing up acres and shares: the acres in a khatian may be the whole plot's area. Use the land share calculator to find your part.