According to the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), there are 172 unauthorised layouts in the City. But the BDA has not been able to punish those who formed these layouts without permission. The Real Estate Regulatory Authority Karnataka (RERA Karnataka) is established to regulate real estate activities but if the number of unauthorized layouts in the City is any indication, RERA Karnataka is yet to act against those responsible for illegal layouts.
“RERA Karnataka is expected to keep an eye on illegal layouts but despite informing them about such layouts, nothing has been done. Many land developers issue advertisements in newspapers on the weekend to sell sites in illegal layouts. RERA Karnataka must act tough on such illegal layouts,’’ said MS Shankar, general secretary of Forum for People’s Collective Efforts.
RERA Karnataka chairman HC Kishore Chandra said that RERA would take action against the unauthorized layouts that were formed after the body came into existence. “It will be tough to act against those layouts that were formed much before the RERA Karnataka came into existence. We will certainly take action against those layouts that were formed in recent years,’’ said Kishore Chandra.
According to BDA’s data, the number of unauthorized layouts has increased to 172 between 2017 and 2021 from 127 in 2008. Land developers have to pay lakhs of rupees to the BDA towards betterment charges and surrender civic amenity (CA) sites if they want their layout approved by the BDA.
To avoid paying betterment charges and surrendering CA sites, many land developers would not approach the BDA for approvals but claim that their layouts are approved by the regulatory authorities. In some cases, the Bengaluru Electricity Supply Company (Bescom) and the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) provide electricity, water supply and underground drainage facilities respectively to these unauthorized layouts.
“The Bescom and BWSSB are not supposed to supply electricity and water to the unauthorized layouts. The buyers do not know about civic amenity sites at private layouts. There are chances of land developers selling the sites meant for civic amenities to the buyers,’’ said Sai Datta, a social activist.
Sai Datta said that BDA authorities have to act against the land developers for forming illegal layouts. “The authorities must punish those responsible for forming illegal layouts and not the gullible buyers who have spent their life savings to buy these sites,” said Datta.
Sometimes, land developers get approval for a few acres of land to be developed into a layout and use the same approval for the remaining land– A RERA activist.
“Sometimes, land developers get an approval for a few acres of land to be developed into a layout and use the same approval for the remaining land. For example, if the land developer has 50 acres of land, he gets approval for 30 acres and uses the same approval letter for the remaining 20 acres,’’ said a RERA activist.
Meanwhile, BDA Commissioner Rajesh Gowda MB has said that BDA authorities have already informed the sub-registrars in the respective areas not to register the sites from unauthorized layouts. “The sub-registrars are advised not to allow sale deeds between the land developers of unauthorized layouts and the buyers,’’ said the BDA Commissioner.
