BBMP move to re-route SWD spares 124 buildings

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has decided to realign the path of a stormwater drain (SWD) in East Bengaluru, sparing 124 buildings earlier identified as encroached structures.

The decision comes as a relief to the owners whose buildings in Pulakeshinagar, HBR Layout and the surrounding areas were marked for demolition.

Asked to remove the SWD encroachments, the BBMP recently held a survey and informed the government that it had removed 714 structures.

The civic body told a recent inter-department co-ordination committee meeting between Chief Secretary T M Vijay Bhaskar and the heads of various urban local bodies that it had dropped plans to raze 124 BDA sites from the list of 2,515 identified encroachments.

"During the last 10 days, a survey was conducted in Yelahanka and East zones. During the course of the survey in HBR Layout of the East zone of the BDA, we have realigned the path of the SWD and allotted sites over rajakaluves as per previous village maps," the document submitted to the chief secretary read.

"Therefore, the allotted sites of the BDA cannot be considered as encroachment and hence as on today, 124 sites fall out of encroachment list," it said. It further said 714 encroached properties have been removed and 1,801 needed to be knocked off.

A BBMP official said the civic body, in its drive in Yelahanka, has so far removed six encroachments. "We'll soon launch a drive to remove (the remaining) 1,801 properties on the encroachment list," the official added.

Prahallad B S, Chief Engineer (SWD), BBMP, told DH the new survey had recommended realigning the path of the rajakaluves. "This will be a big relief to the 124 property owners in HBR Layout, Pulakeshinagar and the surrounding areas in the east zone," he said.

The full-fledged demolition of the SWD encroachments will begin soon, he added.