Buying Agricultural Land in Agra District on the Yamuna Expressway: Etmadpur, YEIDA Villages, the Agra Urban Centre and the Rules

Agra’s YEIDA villages lie in Etmadpur and Sadar tehsils. YEIDA has drafted an urban centre here, and buyers also face two sets of rules that shape what can be done with land: the Yamuna floodplain demarcation and the Taj Trapezium Zone. This guide sets out what a farmland buyer should know, from official records and dated reports.

Where the YEIDA villages are

Agra has six tehsils: Agra, Bah, Etmadpur, Fatehabad, Kheragarh and Kirawali, according to the district website. YEIDA’s notified villages are in two of them:

They came into YEIDA’s area through notifications of 22 August 2001 (26 villages), 27 August 2007 (1), 21 July 2009 (27) and 5 May 2010 (7), according to YEIDA’s land schedules. YEIDA’s overview gives 60 villages over 11,455 hectares against 61 in the schedules, and spellings vary. Treat the notification and the khatauni as the authority for any specific village, and see the notified village list.

The planned Agra Urban Centre

YEIDA’s second-phase master plan covers parts of Mathura, Agra, Aligarh and Hathras. In Agra it centres on an urban centre along the expressway. As reported:

• April 2025: a draft plan covered 12,200 hectares in 58 Agra villages.
• January 2026: a draft Master Plan 2041 for the Agra Urban Centre was presented in Agra, covering 14,480 hectares in 58 villages of Etmadpur and Sadar tehsils, including Raipur, Rahankalan, Kuberpur and Chhalesar. Only non-polluting industry was proposed, because of the Taj Trapezium Zone.
• July 2026: objections on the draft had been heard, and land purchase could begin only after YEIDA’s board approved the plan.
• 28 September 2026: at YEIDA’s board meeting, a committee recommended how objections should be disposed of, and a revised draft was being prepared.

A draft is not a project. The reported area changed between drafts, and we found no report of YEIDA buying land in Agra villages in 2025 or 2026. If a parcel is said to be in or near the urban centre, ask YEIDA and the tehsil whether its khasra is in the plan area, and treat any premium for that as an expectation, not a fact. See land acquisition and compensation.

Rules that matter more in Agra

• The Yamuna floodplain. Following a National Green Tribunal order, the state notified the Yamuna floodplain in Agra, reported as 5.09 km on the right bank and 2.55 km on the left, and banned new construction within it. Boundary pillars (2,567 in Agra) were to be installed by March 2026. In 2026 the Agra Development Authority’s own Greater Agra housing scheme lost land to the floodplain: 23 hectares were reported in May and about 50 hectares in July.
• The Taj Trapezium Zone. In M.C. Mehta v. Union of India (1996), the Supreme Court described the zone as covering Agra, Mathura, Firozabad and Bharatpur districts and restricted polluting industry in it. In May 2025 it ruled that no tree may be felled within 5 km of the Taj without its permission, and elsewhere in the zone only with the forest officer’s or its Central Empowered Committee’s permission, including on private land.
• YEIDA approval. Inside the notified area, construction needs YEIDA’s approval, and agricultural land is not buildable by default. See farmland and farmhouse rules.

Illegal colonies in Etmadpur

• June 2026: the Agra Development Authority demolished an illegal colony of about 34,000 sq m in Etmadpur Madara, and was reported to have razed more than a dozen illegal colonies in six months in areas including Etmadpur.
• September 2026: a local report said land in Dharaira (Etmadpur) notified by YEIDA on 23 September 2024 had later been declared abadi and given a colony map by the zila panchayat, and that an ADM inquiry had ordered the map cancelled.

A colony approval from another body does not override YEIDA’s notification. Check for YEIDA approval in writing, and see how to avoid land fraud.

Registering a deed in Agra

The national land-records portal lists ten sub-registrar offices for the district: Bah, Etmadpur, Fatehabad, Khairagarh, Kiraoli and five Sadar offices (First to Fifth). Register at the office covering the land; confirm which one on igrsup.gov.in.

Agra’s new circle rates took effect on 18 August 2025, the first revision in eight years, with main rural areas reported up 25 to 30%. In Etmadpur Madara, for example, the agricultural rate was reported to rise from ₹55 lakh to ₹59 lakh per hectare. The draft list said rates were kept the same in villages where land acquisition was proposed. An April 2026 report said the next revision could come in August 2026; we could not confirm that it did. Check the current rate for your village on igrsup.gov.in, and see our guides to circle rates and stamp duty and registry.

Farming in Agra

Agra lies in Uttar Pradesh’s south-western semi-arid agro-climatic zone, according to its 2014 agricultural contingency plan. Its soils are mostly deep loamy, with a fifth saline or sodic; the main crops listed are wheat, pearl millet (bajra), potato and mustard. The same plan rated six blocks’ groundwater over-exploited and the groundwater quality saline, so test soil and water before buying land to farm. Under the state’s One District One Product scheme, Agra’s listed products are leather products and footwear, stone and marble engraving, and petha.

Before you buy in Agra

1. Confirm the village, and its tehsil, against YEIDA’s notification and the khatauni.
2. Check the khatauni, land category and every co-sharer on UP Bhulekh: see checking khatauni and land categories.
3. Ask the tehsil whether the khasra is in the demarcated floodplain.
4. Ask YEIDA whether the khasra is in the Agra Urban Centre plan area.
5. Get a 12-year encumbrance search and certified copies of earlier deeds: see registry search.

Common questions

Please verify before you commit. Plans, rates and floodplain maps change. This is general information, not legal advice; check the position for your specific khasra with the tehsil, YEIDA and an advocate.

Looking for farmland in Agra? Browse Agra villages or talk to our team.