But the Bill created a ruckus and triggered heated arguments between Congress and BJP members in the Assembly.
BENGALURU: To relieve people from rural areas of the hassle of taking the approval of the Town and Country Planning Department for their building plans, the Assembly on Tuesday passed the Karnataka Municipalities (Amendment) Bill 2022.
The cabinet sub-committee on e-khata, headed by Law Minister JC Madhu Swamy, had decided to get rid of technical difficulties in obtaining building plan sanctions in areas that do not fall under local planning authorities. The Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act stipulates the regulation of development of land in the areas other than the local planning area. To do away with the hassle, the Amendment had to be brought in. The bill regularises properties in pockets in gram panchayats that were added to urban local bodies based on their population.
But the Bill created a ruckus and triggered heated arguments between Congress and BJP members in the Assembly. Congress members, including deputy opposition leader UT Khader, said the bill might help real estate players, allowing them to develop illegal layouts without any civic amenities or roads. They said the decision could hurt the state more than help the people. They alleged that the government is allowing properties that are not assessed by the panchayats to be converted and given khatas.
Municipal Administration Minister MTB Nagaraju, denying the charges, said that not everyone can avail of the benefit. Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said this is a problem that has prevailed for a long time. The regularisation of properties is a complicated issue that needs to be solved one by one. “Through the amendment, we are only trying to help owners who do not have khatas, without which they cannot get loans or sell properties.
The regularisation of properties within the planning authority is the Akrama Scheme that is before the court. What we have done now refers to properties outside the jurisdiction of planning authorities,” he said. The government is hoping for relief from the court on the Akrama-Sakrama scheme, he added.
The Karnataka Goods and Services Tax Amendment Act and Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanaagara Palike Amendment Bill were also passed in the Assembly.
