BENGALURU: While the Supreme Court signalled pan-India guidelines to examine building bylaws, land use violation and illegal constructions following the collapse of a Paying Guest (PG) accommodation building in New Delhi that claimed seven lives, Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) officials admit there is hardly any action against illegal buildings in the city.
A senior official from the Town Planning Department under the GBA openly stated that illegal buildings, including apartments and PG accommodation structures, are mushrooming. “Despite complaints from the public and activists, on the ground there is just 1 per cent action, or no action at all,” the official said.
As per GBA officials, there are complaints of 5-floor-plus structures coming up on 30x40 sqft and 40x60 sqft sites as paying guest, co-living and studio paying guest accommodation. In many places, construction is taken up without clearance and in complete violation of approvals.
“The greed of builders and landowners can be seen in the rise in setback violations and unauthorised floors. Ward Assistant Engineers (AE), Assistant Executive Engineers (AEE), and Executive Engineers (EE) are responsible for stopping such violations,” said Nagesh R, a civic volunteer in AECS Layout, where illegal PGs have come up.
Ward engineers are supposed to issue notices under relevant sections of the GBA Act 2024, asking owners to submit their documents and inspect, and to raze contentious portions upon confirmation. Sadly, no action is taken, he said.
Srikanth Narasimhan, former president of Bengaluru Apartment Federation and Bengaluru Navanirmana Party (BNP) founder, says Bengaluru has an estimated 20,000 PG accommodations. Not all are registered or have the required trade licences. Over the years, Bengaluru’s PGs have seen complaints of theft, hygiene problems, poor quality food, murders and concerns over structural safety.
“The questions are basic. Who is checking whether these buildings are structurally safe? Are fire exits available? Is there adequate ventilation? Are too many people being housed in a building? And when residents face a problem, who do they approach? These are not questions that should be asked only after a tragedy,” he said.
Sandeep Anirudhan, convener, Citizens’ Agenda for Bengaluru, observed that the PG building collapse in Delhi is a dire warning for Bengaluru. “There is virtually no enforcement of laws governing development in the city -- from the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, which prohibits layouts without planning approval, to GBA building bylaws that prohibit construction without sanctioned building plans and deviation from approved plans. The Supreme Court has repeatedly made it clear that developments undertaken without requisite approvals cannot simply be allowed to remain; unauthorised constructions are liable to be demolished,” said Anirudhan.
He further stated that the objective should be clear: identify, enforce, demolish where necessary, and rebuild legally, not merely regularise illegalities and perpetuate the problem.