Few months after the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) started accepting only online applications for building plan approvals, applications for Commencement Certificate (CC) and Occupancy Certificate (OC) have also gone online.
This is the latest service to go online under Ease of Doing Business (EoDB) in the BBMP. Apart from building plan approvals, CC and OC issued by the Town Planning Department, applications for trade licence and renewal, issued by the Health Department, are also accepted only online.
BBMP Commissioner N. Manjunath Prasad, on February 26, had issued a circular making it mandatory for the Town Planning Department to accept only online applications for CC and OC. According to a senior official, since then, the Town Planning Department had received only two applications for CC and none so far for OC.
“There were some technical glitches. There still are some glitches for plan approvals, with the architects who are applying raising tickets. We are resolving these issues as and when they come up,” the official said and admitted that with the new online system, citizens will no longer have to visit BBMP offices.
As per the circular issued by Mr. Prasad, any architect, engineer, supervisor, structural engineer, owner or developer may upload the requisite documents on the civic body’s website and make an online payment of the processing fee through any of the e-payment gateways. Within five working days, the junior or assistant engineer concerned of the BBMP will intimate via email to the applicant if any additional documents are required, and fix the time and date for spot inspection.
The official added that as per the timeline fixed, the BBMP is expected to issue plan approvals within 15 days, CC within 9 days and OC within 18 days. However, as per the timeline given by Karnataka Udyog Mitra that is monitoring EoDB implementation in the State, plan approvals have to be given within 15 days, CC within 5 days and OC within 25 days.
“We are planning to raise the issue with Udyog Mitra. While we do not need 25 days to issue OC, we will not be able to verify documents and issue CC in 5 days,” the official stated.
