BENGALURU: Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda has urged the owners to clear their motor vehicles left abandoned at the roadside for months together.
He symbolically pasted a notice on an abandoned car at Queens Road on Friday, and stated that the unclaimed vehicles will be auctioned in 15 days.
Addressing the media, he said that the cleanup of such unclaimed vehicles is a joint operation by the Bengaluru Traffic Police (BTP) and the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA).
“The BTP has identified 1571 vehicles across five city corporations, and numbers are expected to rise. The owners will be given a week's time to claim their vehicles back by paying a penalty of Rs 1000. If unclaimed, the vehicles will be towed and taken to a designated location. The owners will have to pay the towing charges along with a penalty if claimed later,” he said.
He also added that the penalty will be doubled for repeated offenders.
The Minister highlighted that the road is public property and unruly vehicle owners cannot encroach on it and use it as a personal space. "Such behaviour affects pedestrians, leading to accidents. Besides, such unclaimed vehicles parked on roads dent the city’s beauty," he added.
“I appeal to the public to stop abandoning vehicles on public roads as it causes inconvenience," he said.
The Minister added that Bengaluru South City Corporation has initiated the drive to remove vehicles from ‘No Parking’ zones on major roads. He clarified that the vehicle users and cab drivers who park for a time being, during travel will not be penalised.
"Law exists to make provisions for house owners to allot parking space in the land, but they do not adhere to it. However, the GBA will ensure stricter implementation of the law hereon," he pointed out.