Now, BDA to go on demolition drive

Now, BDA to go on demolition drive
Deccan Herald

The second phase of site allotment of at Arkavathy Layout will be taken up from February 25 to March 25, revealed Mr Vid-yashankar.

A few months after the controversial demolition drive undertaken by Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BMP) in Koramangala, it is now the Bangalore Development Authority’s (BDA) turn to root out illegal structures.

The BDA is planning to demolish around 55 illegal structures built in valley areas and government land. All encroachments on the valley route from Begur lake to Madiwala lake to Agara lake and finally to Belandur lake will be removed in the coming weeks, said BDA Commissioner M N Vidyashankar.

The identified structures include commercial complexes, corporate offices and residential buildings.

“The illegal structures had diverted the channels that connected the lakes, which resulted in flooding of HSR Layout and its surrounding areas during the rains in October. We want to remove these blockages so that rainwater can flow uninterrupted,” he said.

Demolished

Seven structures have already been demolished and the rest will be taken up soon, Mr Vidyashankar added.

However, he refused to divulge details of the properties earmarked for demolition.

“Some of the properties belong to well-known real estate agencies and reputed companies, who have encroached into government land. We do not want to give advance notice as we do not want them to file a stay order in the Court. But we will definitely clear all illegal buildings on a war footing,” Mr Vidyashankar said.

The second phase of site allotment of at Arkavathy Layout will be taken up from February 25 to March 25, revealed Mr Vid-yashankar.

The entire process of allotments of 18,000 sites, including revenue sites, will be completed by March-end.

ICRA rating

The BDA is all set to become the first development agency in the country to get a ‘MAAA+’ rating by Infrastructure Credit Rating Agency (ICRA).

The rating will reflect the financial operations of the BDA, by studying its internal checks and balances. The process, that begun two months ago, will be completed within a fortnight.

“We expect our credibility to increase manifold following the rating because it will make our processes more transparent,” Mr Vidyashankar said.