Buildings along Nrupathunga Road have no original records

The buildings around Cubbon Park, including the government-owned, all along Nrupathunga Road, don’t have original records.

A survey report submitted by the Department of Survey Settlement and Land Records (SSLR) has stated that except for survey reference, no other original records were available pertaining to these buildings. It has also come to light that the government has no database of its own buildings in the State.

The matter came to light when Upa Lokayukta Justice Subhash B Adi took up a complaint that construction activities had been taken up on some of the buildings on Nrupathunga Road without permission from Horticulture department.

In a notification issued by the Horticulture department in 1998, it had included buildings all along the Nrupathunga Road within the Cubbon Park jurisdiction. In this regard, the Upa Lokayukta had sought a survey report on the area which was part of the Cubbon Park from the oldest survey, available in the records.

“The first survey was conducted in 1870 and the survey map then had not specified any area as Cubbon Park. However, an extent of 38 acres in the survey number 56 of Sampigehalli was shown as the park area. The next survey was conducted in 1904 without much change and the third survey was done in 1930. Before the third survey, some area of land was acquired for new public office buildings in revised survey number 3 of Sampigehalli,” Justice Subhash B Adi told Deccan Herald.

Meanwhile, the Horticulture department has also submitted a report on the area within the Cubbon Park limits as per the notification. The report stated that the Cubbon Park presently has 7,49,298 sq mts of land as an exclusive park area.

The report stated that as per the 1998 notification, there are 14 recognised premises around the Cubbon Park, including the park area. However, only six other properties, including a lessee Century Club, fall within the Cubbon Park limits as per the notification.

The properties which are not under its limits are—two properties in the name of private persons by name BMH Anderson and others which have been accepted and confirmed in 1975, Reserve Bank of India, Police Department, Commissioner of SSLR, and Mysore Pradesh Krishika Samaj. Properties within the Cubbon Park include Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technology Museum, Visvesvaraya Industrial Trade Centre, Electrical Chief Engineers Office NGO Club and Canteen, Century Club, DG and IGP Office and Magistrate Court.

“Except the RBI, no other building in this area has original record. All that the buildings have is survey reference number. The SSLR department officials stated that they would hold an inquiry in this regard. The situation is not limited to buildings on Nrupathunga Road alone. In a different complaint, it was found that the government had no database of government-owned buildings ,” Justice Adi said.

When properties shown as within the Cubbon Park are included, as per 1998 notification, the heritage park has 8,30,688 sq mts (205.10 acres) of land, the report stated. The Horticulture department Principal Secretary has sought one month’s time to take a decision whether or not to retain properties outside the park (vegetation) area as within the Cubbon Park limits.