BENGALURU: The Bengaluru Urban District administration has recovered 365.36 acres of government encroached land in the period from June 31, 2021 to March 25, 2022 said Bengaluru Urban DC, J Manjunath on Wednesday.
A total of 332 properties have been recovered in 22 cases worth Rs 1,49,67,87,000, in five taluks- Bengaluru North, South, East, Yelahanka and Anekal. Most of the encroachments were reported from Yelahanka - 119 cases comprising 117.35 acres and the lowest were in Bengaluru North recording 13 cases across 14 acres. Also 10.17 acres of Kharab land of 23 incidents, 58.34 acres of Gomal land in 39 incidents, 24 acres of plantation and burial lands in 57 cases have been recovered.
Manjunath said that clearing encroachments is an ongoing affair, but the challenge is in maintaining them and ensuring that there is no recurrence. While in some places, plantation works is being taken up, other spaces are being utilised for setting up hospitals, schools, medical health centres, colleges, solid waste management plants and other public utility spaces.
“If the land is left unattended, re-encroachment is again a challenge. So we have decided to use it for public services. Encroachments cleared over the period are of various types- agriculture, land grabbers putting up temporary sheds, commercial spaces, slums and residential spaces,” he said.
Apart from this, the administration has also cleared encroachment on 215 lakes and reclaimed 272 acres. The administration has decided not to attach a notional value to the ecological asset. In case of lake encroachment, a deep trench is dug once it is cleared, after the buffer zone is defined and identified.
“We are also concentrating on clearing the drain network. In Anekal work on supplying 110 mld treated water from Koramanagala- Chellaghatta valley to 69 lakes is being done. Similarly, reviving 51 lakes in east taluk is also being done,” he said. Officials in the DC office said focus at the moment was given on Anekal taluk as there are many lakes, vacant lands and scope for improvement. However, cases of encroachment and urbanisation are more in Yelahanka where the land value is soaring. Cases are less in north Bengaluru, despite land value being highest, because of space scarcity and it is parched.