Bengaluru: Families evicted from Kogilu will get flats, says CM Siddaramaiah

Bengaluru: In an bid to defuse the situation arising out of the eviction of families in Kogilu in North Bengaluru, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday announced that displaced families will be accommodated at the multi-storied apartment in Baiyappanahalli in Byatarayanapura constituency which was built for the poor.

He also announced that the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) and the housing department would bear the bulk of the cost of each flat that costs Rs 11.20 lakh. 

The announcement comes at a time when the eviction of 167 unauthorised houses triggered a political controversy after Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan termed the razing of houses in Waseem Layout and Fakir Colony as “bulldozer raj”.

The Congress high command had immediately intervened, expressing concern that such actions should have been undertaken with far greater caution, sensitivity and compassion, keeping the human impact in mind.

Stating that Pinarayi was trying to make eviction “a political issue”, Siddaramaiah defended the eviction stating that close to 15 acres of land where sheds were constructed, belonged to the government.

“We have however decided to make alternative housing arrangements purely on humanitarian grounds,” he stressed. 

Siddaramaiah promised to complete the allotment of flats by the first week of the new year while noting that houses would be allotted in the flats situated in Baiyappanahalli of Byatarayanapura Assembly constituency, which is seven km from Kogilu.

He added that the corporation officials would prepare a list of eligible beneficiaries among the affected families based on certain parameters. He however did not specify the conditions. 

To a question on why the government was providing flats to encroachers, the CM said the apartment was built only for the ‘site-less and homeless’ people under Chief Minister’s one lakh housing scheme. “We are accommodating only eligible families,” he said. 

The CM said the GBA would provide Rs 5 lakh under the ‘onti mane’ scheme, a subsidy grant provided for the poor, while the housing department will share Rs 3 lakh under different state and central subsidies.

“The beneficiaries will be required to pay the balance amount of around Rs 2.5 lakh. Housing Minister Zameer Ahmed Khan has promised to arrange the loan,” he said.

The CM also said that the total value of the flat, which is Rs 11.20 lakh, is for general category. The price is slightly lower for the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes. 

During the press meet, Siddaramaiah also directed officials to take action against revenue officials who allowed unauthorised construction on government land. “Such sheds would not have come up without their notice,” he said. 

Dy CM D K Shivakumar, who was also part of the press meet, said the government will not allow Bengaluru to be turned into a slum.

“The Kerala CM is making the eviction an issue fearing loss in the Assembly polls in their state. Houses were being built on legacy waste. The land was uninhabitable,” he said, adding that the land was cleared for setting up waste management plants.

Waste plants planned in Kogilu

A 50-tonne biomethanisation unit and two plants for processing animal waste and sanitary waste are among key projects proposed on the land in Kogilu which is at the centre of controversy following the eviction of 167 houses.

Won't allow slums on public land: DKS

DCM D K Shivakumar said the government would not allow slums to come up on government land in Bengaluru and would act against those who illegally collected money from vulnerable families to permit such settlements.