Now, Shell Out More for BDA Site Applications
BENGALURU: The initial registration fee for a Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) site has been hiked by a minimum of two times to a maximum of 20 times, depending on the dimensions for the Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout.
The price of application forms too have been doubled and the initial deposit has been increased due to a surge in the site costs.
However, this has not lowered the demand for the sites as so far 33,960 applications have been received (figures up to November 27) for the 5,000 sites advertised on November 2, said BDA Finance Member N H Kandari on Monday.
The last date for applications is December 31 and the number is expected to surge as the deadline nears.
The sites advertised are of the dimensions, 20x30, 20x40, 40x60 and 50x80. The application fee has shot up from Rs 100 to Rs 200 for Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) and Rs 400 for the General Category. This has helped the BDA earn Rs 1 crore and Rs 8 lakh through the 87,100 application forms already issued, Kandari said.
First-time BDA applicants have to pay a registration fee after the procurement of an application form through banks. The registration fee has shot up manifold. Those who have already registered, need to pay the difference that comes about due to the hiked amount.
For a 30x40 site, the registration fee under the EWS section for a 30x40 site is now Rs 500 under the reserved category and Rs 1,000 for the general section. It was just Rs 100 when the BDA notified sites the previous time around, for the Arkavathy Layout in 2006-2007.
The registration fee for the 30x40 sites have seen the maximum hike with Rs 2,000 instead of Rs 100 the previous time. The price for the 60x40 sites have seen an eight-fold increase, touching Rs 4,000 (Rs 500 earlier) while 50x80 have touched Rs 5,000 (Rs 2,000). This has enabled the BDA earn Rs 4 crore and Rs 76 lakh through registration fee.
The registration fee is usually not taken back by the public as prior registration is considered as seniority and is given preference when the next round of site applications are called for.
The initial deposit, which is 12.5 per cent of the total site cost, too has gone as the site prices are quite high. Many members of the public have complained about “the costs not being like that charged for a BDA. It was so cheap once.”
When asked about the costs jacked up in all categories, BDA Commissioner T Sham Bhat told Express that the application and registration fee have remained the same for the last 30 years. “We are increasing them after a very long time. The cost of everything has gone up over the period including stationery. The increase is justified.”
On the response generated so far, Bhat said, “We were looking at 25,000 applications, five for each site. But the response is much above our expectations in just four weeks.”
Sources also said that the reason for increase in the site cost was that BDA had provided Rs 1 crore as compensation for every acre of land procured for the layout and an additional Rs 1 crore to develop each acre.
On how the additional amount mobilised would be put to use, a source said that it would be used to develop the remainder of Kempegowda Layout.