After the Karnataka High Court warned the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) of action against its Chief Commissioner if the encroachments on rajakaluves are not cleared, the civic body is planning to conduct a survey in the presence of property owners after the Dasara holidays.
After heavy rain, which led to a flood-like situation in the city, especially in the IT corridor last month, the BBMP started an anti-encroachment drive and had removed illegal structures in various zones. However, last week, the BBMP stopped the drive citing pending survey of encroachments.
A senior BBMP official said the survey has to be conducted by the Revenue Department and once the survey is completed, the encroachment will be cleared. “Along with festival holidays, another reason for the delay in the survey is the shortage of staff. If the Revenue Department conducts a survey, we can take up the anti-encroachment drive,” the official added.
For instance, in the Bengaluru East, there are only 11 surveyors, which is leading to a delay in survey. An official from the Revenue Department said, “With 11 surveyors, it is difficult to conduct surveys in East Bengaluru. We have to give notice to owners of the properties and wait. Some property owners also get a stay from the court. All this delays both the survey and encroachment removal drive.”
On Friday, September 30, the Karnataka High Court had orally warned that if encroachments are not cleared soon, salaries of BBMP’s chief engineers may also be ordered to be withheld. Till date, the BBMP has cleared 94 illegal encroachments in the city, and the civic body still has to clear 602 encroachments on SWDs.
