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State fixes new cutoff date for regularising illegal buildings

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Deccan Herald            11.12.2013

State fixes new cutoff date for regularising illegal buildings

Once Governor gives his assent to Sakrama bill, people can pay a stipulated fine to regularise unauthorised constructions in urban areas.

The State government has fixed October 19, 2013 as the new cutoff date under the Sakrama scheme to regularise unauthorised constructions in urban areas, including in the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) limits, Urban Development Minister Vinay Kumar Sorake said here on Tuesday.

The Karnataka Town and Country Planning and Certain Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2013 – passed in both Houses of the Legislature in the just-concluded winter session in Belgaum seeking to fix the new cutoff date — has been sent to the Governor for his assent. The government would notify the amended law soon after the Governor gave his assent, Sorake told reporters.

The earlier cutoff date was December 3, 2009. The scheme, conceived in 2007, seeks to regularise violations of building bye-laws and floor area ratio in all urban local bodies (eight municipal corporations, 44 municipal councils, 94 town municipal councils, 68 town panchayats and six notified area committees).

Unauthorised constructions before the new cutoff date would be considered for
regularisation, the minister added.

Hike in penalty

Sorake further said the government was considering increasing the fine for regularisation under the scheme.

“The previous government had, in 2009, fixed the fine based on the guidance value of land (also called government value) prevailing at the time. The guidance value has now increased manifold. Hence we want to revise the penalty amount,” he said but added that the quantum of increase had not been decided yet.

As per existing rules, violation of up to 25 per cent by residential buildings will be fined six per cent of the guidance value of the property and eight per cent for violation between 25 and 50 per cent. For non-residential buildings, regularisation charges will be 20 per cent of the guidance value for less than 12.5 per cent violation and 35 per cent for violations up to 25 per cent.

The government will soon file an affidavit in the High Court of Karnataka on the steps taken so far, urging it to vacate the stay on the implementation of the scheme. Besides, an official committee will be formed in all urban local bodies for implementation of the scheme, Sorake explained.

‘B’ khata

The government has introduced forms 9 and 11B (also called Khata certificates for gramathana sites) to enable registration of unauthorised residential sites (also called ‘B’ khata properties) on the lines of a system existing in the BBMP limits, the minister informed.

“Forms 9 and 11 are for properties without any violations (‘A’ khata properties). But 11B has been introduced for those formed without obtaining necessary permissions like land use conversion (‘B’ khata properties),” Sorake stated.