How Bengaluru’s layouts ate into parks, playgrounds and public land

Bengaluru: A decade after buying a 50×80 ft residential plot in Nisarga Layout at Jigani in southern Bengaluru, V L Bharath Raj discovered that the area had allegedly encroached upon land reserved for parks and civic amenities (CA), prompting him to move the High Court of Karnataka. 

Nearly three years after the litigation began, Justice R Nataraj on October 15, 2025, ordered a four-member committee to investigate the formation of more than 1,000 residential sites on land allegedly reserved for civic amenities and parks in layouts developed by Nirman Shelters. 

The court passed the order after taking note that the Kallubalu gram panchayat had issued ‘A’ khatas to the sites in question. It also vacated two interim stay orders, including one obtained by the developer against an investigation initiated by the Department of Panchayat Raj in September 2022. 

Tip of the iceberg

Raj, who is in his 50s, believes the alleged misuse of CA sites is widespread across Bengaluru but has largely escaped public scrutiny.

“Diversion of CA sites is a massive scam. The land belongs to the government and is meant for the public, yet no official is interested in reclaiming it,” he said, adding that the issue deserves as much attention as the Kogilu Layout encroachment case. 

Under the Karnataka Town and Country Planning (KTCP) Act, 10% of the land in every layout must be reserved for parks and 5% for civic amenities. At the time of plan approval, the developer is required to relinquish this land to the government for public purposes such as playgrounds, schools, hospitals, community centres and public utilities. These amenities are considered critical for better liveability, an aspect that is rapidly deteriorating in Bengaluru. 

The issue is not confined to private layouts. Misuse is rampant even in government-developed layouts, including those formed by the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA). 

As many as 94 CA sites in Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout were illegally converted into residential plots. This was disclosed by Bengaluru Development Minister D K Shivakumar in response to a question by Rajajinagar MLA S Suresh Kumar in the Legislative Assembly in July 2023. 

The violations are at such a scale that many neighbourhoods in and around the city do not have CA sites or playgrounds, let alone parks.

“Even revenue land (kharab) that could have been turned into an open space in urbanised areas is either usurped or sold,” Thomas Varkey, a resident of Horamavu-Agara, said. 

In many cases, residents remain unaware of the misuse of CA land because the layout plans of older colonies are not easily available in public domain. Raj points out that officials delay action even after judicial intervention, referring to his own case where the inquiry is yet to be initiated. 

Another common irregularity is the frequent modification of layout plans, with CA sites repeatedly shifted from one location to another. 

Aware of the mammoth scale of misuse, the deputy chief minister himself visited several private layouts in February last year to assess CA site violations. He also directed officials to ensure such misuse does not recur. 

P Rajendra Cholan, Metropolitan Commissioner of the Bangalore Metropolitan Region Development Authority (BMRDA), believes the situation had improved since then. 

“Following the deputy chief minister’s visit, we were able to take possession of 2,200 CA sites, totalling about 900 acres, across 10 local planning authorities (LPAs). We have also registered khatas in BMRDA’s name,” he said. 

According to him, the sites have been fenced, geo-tagged and uploaded on the authority’s website. 

He said a key reform had also been introduced in the approval process. “Earlier, developers merely showed CA sites on paper. Now, relinquishing CA land in BMRDA’s name at the plan-approval stage is mandatory,” he said, adding that developers are no longer permitted to split CA land to meet norms. “A CA site must be a single, contiguous parcel abutting a road. It cannot be fragmented,” he said. 

Activists, however, argue that enforcement remains inconsistent. 

Vijay Dennis said the CA land in Begur’s ITI Layout was allegedly encroached upon and converted into over 100 residential plots. 

“The BDA inspected the site based on my complaint and acknowledged the illegality. It even wrote to the civic body seeking cancellation of the B khatas. Yet, no action has been taken for five years,” he said. 

In December 2021, the high court pulled up the BDA for failing to take possession of a CA site and park while approving a layout developed by the Vyalikaval House Building Co-operative Society. 

A town-planning expert called for a comprehensive audit of all private and government-developed layouts in and around Bengaluru to assess the scale of CA site misuse. 

“Such an audit must establish ownership and identify diversion. Once reclaimed, this land can be used to create essential public amenities,” the expert said. 

“Today, there is an acute shortage of land for sports, recreation and open spaces in Bengaluru. What is the point of owning a dream home if it is surrounded by concrete and commercial establishments and no breathing space for communities?”