Clearing encroachments is no walk in the park

By Y. Maheswara Reddy | NT

Bengaluru: A signboard at the edge of a vacant plot in Thambuchetty Palya, in the K.R. Puram constituency declares it to be privately owned property. The land itself is overrun with weeds, although it has been cordoned off with barbed wire. This parcel of land, presumably worth crores, has been at the heart of a tussle for nearly a decade, involving residents, the BBMP Horticulture Department and a number of greedy land sharks, some of whom come with the backing of elected representatives.

Recently, the exasperated residents of Thambuchetty Palya launched a postcard campaign, with 300 letters penned to the Chief Minister. Their demand? To please direct revenue authorities to clear encroachments. The Tahsildar has also attempted to reach out to the BBMP, but the civic body is yet to respond. “The Tahsildar evicted some of the encroachers from the land two years ago but one of them managed to stay on and occupy a part of it,” says Prakash C., a resident of Manjunatha Layout. “For some reason, elected representatives and revenue officials have done nothing to evict this encroacher.” The piece of land in question is about two acres and 38 guntas, owned by the government at Thambuchetty Palya, near Ramamurthy Nagar. In 2013, the Bengaluru Urban Deputy Commissioner passed an order, approving a proposal to develop the vacant plot and turn it into a park for the benefit of citizens.

P. Purushotham, the president of citizens welfare group K.R. Puram Rising, has been at the helm of the struggle for many years. “We have been running from pillar to post trying to get our long-pending demand met. The land was supposed to be a park but instead, the land mafia have been fighting to get their hands on it, while our efforts go in vain. We are grateful to the Bengaluru Urban Deputy Commissioner for passing the order but we are tired of waiting for it to happen,” he says.

Residents of Thambuchetty Palya say the BBMP Horticulture is to blame. They allege that no efforts have been made by the department to take over the land, even after the Bengaluru DC’s order. Meanwhile, they say the land mafia has tried every trick in the book to get their hands on this parcel of prime property, which is likely worth several crores. Even a religious group, which has the active support of elected representatives, is trying to claim the land.

The BBMP Special Commissioner for Horticulture, B. Reddy Shankar Babu, says that he has already directed his subordinates to visit the spot. “The BBMP Horticulture Department will develop a park on the vacant land when it is free from legal issues,” he said. “Our officials have found that someone has put up a board claiming that the land belongs to him. We have asked Bengaluru East Tahsildar to depute a surveyor to survey the land one more time. Revenue authorities have to evict the encroachers from the land,” he added.

The BBMP budget for 2021-22 allocated Rs 164 crore for the construction, development and maintenance of the city’s parks. The civic body’s horticulture department is expected to identify suitable locations to construct and develop parks as per presentations made by the residents of the respective areas. The city’s parks currently occupy around 800 square kilometres and the BBMP Horticulture Department is to develop and maintain them.