BENGALURU:Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) Commissioner has initiated inquiry against officials responsible for using private land for various purposes without acquiring it under the Land Acquisition Act.
As per an order issued by Commissioner Rakesh Singh’s office, dated July 13, there have been multiple cases where private land, not formally acquired by BDA, has been used for various purposes such as formation of roads in layouts, construction of Outer Ring Road, construction of housing projects etc. In some of these cases, land losers have sought legal remedy and have been awarded alternate land to the extent of 100 per cent of the land lost, along with special damages - at considerable loss to the BDA, the notification states.
Contempt cases have also been filed against the Commissioner for failing to comply with the Court’s orders within the prescribed time. “These are reflective, per se, of the utter disregard shown by officials at various levels to the prescribed rules and regulations. However, in spite of repeated instructions given, no action has been taken against the defaulting officers,” states the notification.
Commissioner Rakesh Singh said there were three ways in which officials had defaulted. Firstly, they had carried out utilisation of land without its acquisition. Secondly, they had initiated the acquisition process, but utilised the land without completing it, and thirdly, they had completed the process but did not compensate land owners.
“Mistakes on part of officials have led to a lot of harassment of people and is now leading to my harassment because people have gone to Court against me. In addition, the Court has decided to compensate aggrieved parties by awarding them 100 per cent alternate land, whose value is far more than the cost for which they had purchased the land,” the Commissioner said.
The order has directed the Deputy Commissioner, Land Acquisition, the respective engineer members and the Secretary to take specific actions in this regard, which includes taking disciplinary action against officials held responsible for such acts. The order also states that the entire process should be completed by August 13.
Improve auction of sites, BDA officials told
The Bangalore Development Authority, in a bid to improve its revenue utilisation, has issued guidelines to improve the process of auctions of corner, intermediate and commercial sites. As per an order from the BDA Commissioner’s office, the auctioning is currently not up to the mark, and only 50-60 per cent of the sites offered are being purchased, which is affecting the agency’s revenue mobilisation. The order, dated July 13, 2018, states that there should be at least two auctions every month and a minimum of 50 sites should be offered in each auction.