‘Sakrama must curb building violations’

‘Sakrama must curb building violations’
Aarthi R | TNN

Bangalore: Sakrama, a policy once spoken about for its regularization attempts, is now under scrutiny for the rather long wait for implementation. The scheme is much in demand because it’s perceived as a probable way out of a case where democracy seems to be its own enemy.
Talks on Sakrama have been on the back burner in Bangalore but violations still continue. While the cabinet sub-committee formed under transport minister R Ashok plans another look at the policy, civic stakeholders have their own take on what is most wanted under Sakrama.
“Building violations are a global phenomenon. What’s important is how we deal with them. Sakrama could be a probable solution, but much depends on how it shapes up as a law. Dealing with it has two aspects — how can you prevent violations and this depends on changes required to building byelaws. Further, it should be a law that focuses not just on forgiving past violations, but also look at preventing them before they happen,’’ points out Ramesh Ramanathan, co-founder, Janaagraha.
N S Mukunda, president, Citizens Action Forum (CAF), has several recommendations. “With 90% of Bangalore’s buildings having violations, there sure is a need for Sakrama.” He says it should ascertain the purpose of past violations, impose nominal penalty on those who’ve already violated and a strict law preventing future violations. Any violation after the cut-off date should be strictly dealt with by the BBMP, even by demolishing in extreme cases. “Apart from punishing individuals, the law should also punish colluding officers/engineers and builders and developers. Make it mandatory for a builders/developers council and get them all registered.’’
The Times of India’s Lead India initiative winner R K Misra has strong views on building violations. “Bangalore seems to be notorious for such violations. Either our rules are not meant to satisfy the needs of the people or people violate rules believing they can get away with a penalty or through various amnesty schemes.”
The revised Sakrama law should address all violations and be a scheme for one and all. The plan to have two slabs for Sakrama must be reconsidered. Misra says there should be scope for only a one-time amnesty scheme. This could prevent further scope for erring.
Funds collected from Sakrama must be maintained in a separate account to be used for strengthening infrastructure, as that’s been the most affected. People must be educated on regularization before it’s implemented and implementation should be with an iron hand, he says.
toiblr.reporter@timesgroup.com