Scheme to regularise building bylaw violations in 3 months

Karnataka government will implement a scheme to regularise building bylaw violations and land use in urban areas in the next three months, Urban Development Minister Vinay Kumar Sorake said today.

"The government has submitted the new draft of the Karnataka Town and Country Planning (Regulation of Unauthorised Development and Constructions) Rules 2013, to the High Court. Now the file is with (Chief Minister) Siddaramaiah," he told reporters here.

The Bengaluru Residents Association Confederation Ensemble (BRACE), comprising 750 resident welfare associations, had challenged the 'Akrama-Sakrama' scheme in the High Court in February this year.

Sorake said the scheme seeks to regularise upto 50 per cent violation of setback norms and permissible floor area ratio in residential buildings and up to 25 per cent in non-residential buildings.

"Any violation above this would attract demolition," he warned.

The Minister said lakhs of properties could be regularised under the scheme in various town panchayats, both municipal corporations and councils.

He, however, declined to reveal revenue generation through the scheme.

Sorake also said the government has fixed the cut off date to October 19, 2013 for unauthorised properties eligible for regularisation.

The minister said he had directed Mayors and Commissioners of all urban local bodies to chalk out plans of action for the coming year.

The scheme would offer relief to property owners in illegal layouts and owners of buildings with deviation in construction plans, Sorake said