1,100 acres grabbed, but BDA recovers a paltry 10 acres!

By Y. Maheswara Reddy | NT

Bengaluru, Jan 9 Here’s a shocking piece of news. Bengaluru Development Authority (BDA) owns around 1,100 acres of land worth crores of rupees but has managed to secure possession of only a paltry 10 acres and 40 guntas while the remaining land is in the hands of illegal occupants!

The fact that the BDA is not serious about regaining the land became evident when sources said the BDA has cited the lack of manpower as one reason for its failure to recover the land from illegal occupants. The issue came up during the hearing of a petition filed by Sai Datta, a social activist, with the Karnataka Lokayukta observing that the BDA has to take measures to regain the land. “…it is the duty of the jurisdictional police to give assistance to the BDA whenever they intend to take possession of the land,’’ the Lokayukta opined while hearing the petition.

The Lokayukta has adjourned the proceedings by six months and directed BDA officials to file an action taken report on or before the 5th of every month for a period of six months. It may be recalled that as per the land audit, conducted by E1 Technologies, the BDA had acquired 37,168 acres to develop 64 layouts and buildings were constructed on 7,059 acres acquired after paying compensation to land owners. The audit report stated that BDA is yet to utilize 1,171 acres of land.

Meanwhile, Sai Datta, who filed the petition in the Lokayukta Court, said, “The BDA should not succumb to pressure from politicians and influential people.’’