MLA panel to inspect civil works at Kempegowda Layout

The Legislative Committee on Petitions is scheduled to inspect the Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout on May 26 to assess the progress made by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) in providing basic amenities.

The move comes after the panel’s dissatisfaction with the answers provided by BDA officials during a meeting on Thursday.

Site buyers under the ‘Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout Open Forum’ had complained to the panel, alerting it to the delays.

Of the 23,000 sites, the BDA had sold 10,000 sites via an auction and 9,000 sites were given to farmers in exchange for acquiring their land.

It is learnt that the committee did not receive responses to questions over decision on the variation amount of Rs 600 crore needed to provide sewer and water lines on top of the ongoing works, appointing a third-party agency to review the quality of work by two firms.

The Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) has issued at least two deadlines in the past to complete the layout. Its latest deadline falls in December 2022. So far, only one person has constructed a house on the site, but the layout does not have proper roads, drains, and electricity or water connections.

Officials said they will be able to complete a major chunk of work such as providing water and sewage lines by December. “Installing the substation will be complete by September this year. There was some delay on the part of contractors as they cited shortage of labour due to the Covid-19 pandemic.”

During the review meeting, it is given to understand that legislators took officials to task for missing project deadlines, warning that the BDA will be forced to compensate site buyers if works get delayed any further.