Urban Development Minister B S Suresha (Byrathi) on Friday said that the state government has prepared a proposal and submitted to the state government to grant 'B' Khata to all layouts in the state, which will help the state government to mop up additional resource of around Rs 2,000 crore, besides property owners able to secure loans from banks to build their dream houses too.
Replying to a question raised by Janata Dal (Secular) MLA from Hunsur, G D Harish Gowda in Assembly, Suresha pointed out that most of the revenue layouts are illegal in the state and neither the state is able to earn any source nor the people are able to complete their dream home project, due to lack of documents.
"Excluding Bengaluru, we (Urban Development) are responsible for providing infrastructure, such as underground drainage and other basic infrastructure in all city and town municipal corporations. But none of these local bodies are able to earn any additional revenue. At the same time, site owners are not able to borrow from banks to build their homes. So, there is a proposal before the state government to collect one-time tax to allow site owners to get the 'B' Khata and get 'building plans' approved from respective local bodies, which will generate revenue of Rs 2,000 crore," he explained.
Senior Congress legislator, Tanveer Sait pointed out that whether the state government levying 'double tax' to regularise or issuing 'B' Khata will not solve the problem as owners of properties still do not get full property right, so the state government must take steps to ensure owners get full ownership of their property instead of collecting only fine or double tax from these owners.
Earlier, citing Lokayukta cases, Municipal Administration Minister Rahim Khan conceded that even he was facing a similar situation and the department is also considering forming a committee to come out with concrete solutions to this long-standing problem.