Demolition drive: Residents fume at BBMP over short notice

The BBMP’s drive to remove the encroachments that have come up on the stormwater drains (SWD) across the city has left the people from economically weaker sections in a state of dismay as they struggle to find an alternative place to shift.

The BBMP officials have said that the civic body does not have to serve a notice according to the Karnataka Land Revenue Act and only a three-day notice would suffice for buildings that are occupied.

The residents are struggling to find a rented house.

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Parvathamma, a resident of Peenya, a portion of whose house is marked for demolition, said, “If they give us only three or five days to evacuate the houses, it is impossible to search for a rented house at such short notice. With kids and elders at home, how can we shift out so soon?”

Another resident said that the BBMP had only served a verbal notice and went ahead and disconnected the power and water supply to the buildings.

Chandrashekar, who owns a property at Peenya, said, “Eight houses have been rented out. The officials disconnected the power and water supply even before we moved out. This is unacceptable”.

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Many residents also alleged that the BBMP did not follow the due procedure and that they had all the legal documents to prove that they had not encroached upon any SWD.

However, the BBMP officials refuted such allegations.“We had served notices to all these properties multiple times. We are following the due procedure and considering the extent of encroachments and the flood the city witnessed, there is a need to act immediately,” Rangappa S, BBMP Special Commissioner (Dasarahalli), said.