BENGALURU: The Chief Minister’s Office on Saturday asked the Urban Development Department (UDD) for an update on the action taken in connection with the allegations of violations of real estate regulations by the Bangalore Development Authority. The charges pertain to Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout.
A communication to the UDD from A R Ravi, Deputy Secretary to the CM, referred to an e-mail from NPKL Open Forum which spoke of BDA’s failure to adhere to the Real Estate Regulation and Development Act, 2016. It has also asked the officer concerned to furnish updates to the CMO as well as the forum.
Hundreds of site allottees are part of the forum, which has been fighting to ensure facilities for the layout. N Nikhil, a member, said two letters had been sent to the CMO about the violations. He shared a copy of the letter with TNSE. In it, NPKL has lashed out at BDA for not adhering to rules laid down by the Real Estate Regulatory Authority.
When applying for registration of the layout, the project start date was October 29, 2010, and the completion date was March 31, 2018. However, the deadline could not be met and BDA applied for renewal certificate with a deadline of December 21, 2021.
Meanwhile, BDA allotted 5,000 sites under Phase-II last year, it pointed out. Later, it sought time from RERA till January 1, 2022, to complete the project without intimating the owners.
Under RERA, property owners need to be provided information on the ‘schedule of progress’ towards the deadline. The letter lists numerous instances of violation by BDA. It said BDA had allotted Phase-II sites last November despite the expiry of registration certification on March 31, 2018. Allottees need to be compensated by the BDA for extending the project deadline from 8 to 12 years, the forum said.
Nikhil said that while BDA cited fund crunch as the reason for delay in creating infrastructure, it does not stand scrutiny. “The 50x80 sqft site holders in KG Layout have paid Rs 1 crore each and there are 300 such sites. BDA has already been paid hundreds of crores. Under RERA, the money is to ensure infrastructure for the layout. Where did all the money go?” he asked.
Neither BDA Commissioner G C Prakash nor engineer member Shivanand responded to repeated calls.