'High-tension' threat to 7,000 illegal buildings in Bengaluru

Bengaluru: Nearly 7,000 buildings in Bengaluru stand dangerously close to high-tension lines laid by the Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation Limited (KPTCL) even though the city has witnessed multiple deaths due to electrocution from these overhead power cables.

This is despite the KPTCL identifying the buildings four years ago and asking the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike to clear them.

In 2021, KPTCL had identified thousands of buildings constructed close to HT wires, without leaving the required vertical and horizontal clearance, in violation of the law.

The company then wrote to the BBMP asking it to take immediate action to prevent mishaps. However, no concrete action has been taken yet, sources in the KPTCL said.

On June 15, a 10-year-old boy in K R Puram died of electrocution after coming in contact with an HT wire four feet from the passage of the house he lived in.

While the death raised serious concerns, this was not the first such incident reported in the city.

In January 2023, a 11-year-old boy died of electrocution in RT Nagar after coming in contact with an HT cable while flying a kite. In the same year, at least three such electrocution deaths were reported.

In June 2019, a labourer from Tamil Nadu had died of electrocution while working at a building in Manjunath Nagar that was being built close to a high-voltage line.

KPTCL maintains that it does not have the authority to evacuate residents or take action against illegal buildings near power lines. “We can only identify and alert the BBMP officials. It is the civic body’s responsibility to ensure that such illegal buildings are evacuated or demolished,” a senior KPTCL official said, adding that they had written to the BBMP multiple times.

The government-owned transmission company also published multiple public notifications warning citizens against constructing houses close to HT lines. 

On the other hand, BBMP officials say they are trying to get the buildings cleared. They also cite legal hurdles.

“All of these buildings are either built without a plan approval or have violated the approved plan. We have issued notices to clear them. However, many of them challenge the notice in the court and the legal battle is going on,” a senior BBMP official in the town planning department said.

Meanwhile, senior KPTCL officials allege corruption at the lower levels as the reason for illegal buildings not getting cleared. 

“The BBMP officials couldn’t clear them because they would have allowed the construction taking a bribe,” a KPTCL official said.

Following the electrocution incident on June 15, the KPTCL has decided to hold talks with the BBMP to prevent further accidents. “We have written to the BBMP earlier as well, but they have not been very receptive. We will soon hold a meeting with them,” said Pankaj Kumar Pandey, Managing Director, KPTCL.

According to the CEA (Measures relating to safety and Electric Supply) Regulations 2010, buildings can be constructed only after allowing a 2.3 m horizontal clearance from 66kV power lines, 3.8 m horizontal clearance from 220 kV power lines, and 5.6 m horizontal clearance from 400kV power lines.