Greater Bengaluru Authority area to span up to 1,000 sq. km as State govt. begins restructuring works
The State government is preparing to bring several peripheral villages under the newly proposed Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA), potentially expanding the civic area up to 1000 sq. km. This expansion would mark a major step in urban integration, significantly increasing the jurisdiction beyond the current 709 sq. km governed by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP).
According to official sources, multiple meetings have taken place in recent days involving senior bureaucrats and members of Brand Bengaluru Committee to discuss the delineation of GBA's boundaries. These meetings were held days after Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot gave his assent to the Greater Bengaluru Governance Bill 2024, the legislation aimed at restructuring metropolitan governance.
As part of the restructuring, the State government is also considering dividing the BBMP into between three and five municipal corporations, aiming to decentralise administration and improve delivery of civic services.
Talking to The Hindu, a source who attended a key planning meeting held on Monday revealed that the proposed GBA area would fall between the current limits of the BBMP and the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA), which presently oversees planning across 1219 sq. km.
With Bengaluru experiencing rapid expansion driven by inward migration and large-scale investments, many outlying villages have effectively become part of the city's continuous urban sprawl. The government plans to bring at least 25 of these villages under GBA's administrative ambit to harness their revenue potential and provide them with better urban infrastructure.
Under the Greater Bengaluru Governance Act 2024, the GBA will assume the role of the local planning authority for the designated area. While the BDA will continue to function, its role will shift to supporting planning assessments and providing expert inputs under the broader GBA framework. Final approval of all planning proposals will rest with the Bengaluru Metropolitan Planning Committee (BMPC)—the apex metropolitan planning body.
To accommodate GBA's expanded role, the BMPC's jurisdiction will also be broadened, covering a significantly larger area to be formally notified by the State government. This area will include the limits of the newly formed GBA and possibly more regions depending on future urban development needs.
The demarcation of boundaries for the GBA and the new corporations will take into account multiple factors such as population density, existing infrastructure, and revenue potential. A careful delimitation of wards is also being planned to ensure balanced resource distribution and to mitigate fiscal disparities between the proposed corporations.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Time of India
E-khata mandatory for building plan approval from July 1 in Bengaluru
Bengaluru: Beginning July 1, BBMP will mandate submission of an e-khata for all online building plan approvals, BBMP chief commissioner Tushar Giri Nath has announced. This requirement, part of civic body's digital integration efforts, is aimed at streamlining and speeding up approval process. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Currently, BBMP's town planning department processes building plan approvals through EoDB-OBPS (Ease of Doing Business–Online Building Plan Approval System) platform, while property ownership records and tax details are managed separately via revenue department's e-aasthi system, which issues e-khatas. To enhance efficiency, BBMP is integrating these two digital systems. Once integrated, applicants seeking building plan approval will need to enter their property's e-khata or EPID number into EoDB-OBPS software. This will allow the system to automatically verify property ownership and tax records without the need for manual submission or forwarding of documents to the revenue department. "This integration will eliminate the redundant step of verifying property documents separately, simplify the process, and enable faster approvals," said Maheshwar Rao, BBMP chief commissioner and additional chief secretary, urban development department. The new rule will apply to all types of building plan approvals, including Nambike Naksha submissions. Additionally, under BBMP's new 'trust & verify' policy, assistant directors (town planning) will be required to either approve or reject applications with valid reasons within a set time frame. If they fail to do so, the system will automatically grant 'deemed approval'. In such instances, the respective zonal joint directors (town planning) must report the lapse to zonal commissioner for disciplinary action against the concerned officer.
Time of India
4 hours ago
- Time of India
Public utility site-holders in Bengaluru get conditional interest waiver of 100%
Bengaluru: To ease the financial burden on institutions holding public utility sites, BDA has announced a 100% waiver on outstanding interest, provided the principal amount is fully paid. The decision comes as several prestigious institutions, including educational organisations, hospitals, religious institutions, and commercial entities, failed to renew their leases and clear their dues, resulting in financial strain on the authority. Despite leasing sites for 30 years, many organisations have accumulated arrears ranging from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 50 crore because of failure to pay lease amounts in a timely manner. According to BDA officials, the total outstanding principal stands at Rs 135 crore, while interest dues have mounted to Rs 207 crore. A senior BDA official said: "Many institutions sought relief, arguing that the interest burden makes repayment impossible. After careful consideration, we decided that waiving interest for those who pay the principal in full would be the best way forward." The BDA has set a deadline of 120 days for organisations to renew their leases. Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Heads Turn as Walgreens Shoppers Discover 87¢ ED Pills fridayplans Learn More Undo Failure to do so will lead to interest escalation. A senior BDA official emphasised the urgency of the situation: "This is the final opportunity for organisations to clear their dues. If they fail to act within the stipulated time frame, the interest will continue to accumulate, and exemptions will no longer be offered." Under the BDA Act of 1976 and BDA (Public Utility Site Allocation) Rules of 1989, land is leased for public utilities, including hospitals, educational institutions, clubs, petrol pumps, burial grounds, and religious sites. Leaseholders are required to renew their lease within 90 days after the term ends. However, officials acknowledged enforcement has been challenging. "Although the law allows us to reclaim sites for non-compliance, no lease has been cancelled because of the influence of major institutions. This has resulted in massive financial losses for BDA and hindered crucial development projects," the senior official disclosed. With crores of rupees in unpaid dues, BDA has been struggling to fund infrastructure and civic development projects. Officials confirmed that a similar waiver was granted in 2022, which allowed nine institutions to clear their debts, leading to Rs 4.8 crore in interest payments and Rs 7.5 crore in principal lease settlements. "This move is expected to provide much-needed relief while ensuring BDA recovers its funds," an official said. "We hope institutions will utilise this final chance to settle their dues and comply with legal requirements." With over 75 major institutions and approximately 1,500 small and medium-sized organisations failing to comply with lease renewal requirements, BDA officials are urging all defaulters to act swiftly. "If institutions fail to clear their dues within the 120-day window, there will be no reconsideration. BDA will take necessary action to recover outstanding amounts," another official said.
The Hindu
8 hours ago
- The Hindu
Young horticulture graduates told to update their skills
Director-General of the International Crop Research Institute of Semi-Arid Tropics, Hyderabad, Himanshu Pathak has urged young horticulture graduates to update their skills to face new challenges in farm sciences. 'As graduates who are ready to enter a world of opportunities remember that horticulture today goes beyond agriculture. It includes data science, artificial intelligence, climate resilience, food innovation and sustainable ecosystems. Whether your path is in research, agribusiness, urban agriculture or conservation, the skills you acquire here will serve you well. However, you should stay updated, learn new skills, acquaint yourselves with emerging fields and be ready to face new challenges,' he said in Bagalkot on Tuesday. He was delivering the convocation address at the University of Horticultural Sciences. 'As you know well, over 50% of the country's population is dependent on agriculture. There are vast opportunities in horticulture which farmers should utilise to improve their economic status. Horticulture can help them tide over the economic crisis they face. Horticulture can thus contribute to the overall economic growth of the country,' he said. 'Students should use their knowledge not only for personal success but also to uplift farmers, strengthen food systems and nourish and protect the environment,' he said. 'By 2025, horticulture crops in Karnataka are expected to be grown in 2.68 million hectares. This reflects a steady growth trend. Districts like Dharwad, Belagavi, Kolar, Vijayapura and Chikkamagaluru are known for mangoes, grapes, spices and vegetables. The Union and State governments have introduced several schemes for facilitating horticulture crops like the Integrated Horticulture Development Plan 2.0 and schemes by Mango Development Board. Farmers will also be given assistance in branding, marketing and export promotion,' he said. Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot said that horticulture crops not only improve the lives of rural people but also help boost the development of the country. 'Farmers can become economically strong in horticulture and agriculture with new technology and value addition,' he said. He said that it was a welcome sign to see women dominating the field of horticulture and agriculture. The Governor gave away medals and certificates to students. As many as 95 gold medals were awarded to 35 students. Students were given 508 (Hons), (Food Technology), 144 Horticulture degrees and 42 in nine departments during the 14th convocation of the university. Vice-Chancellor Vishnu Vardhan, Registrar Mahadev Muragi, MLC Hanumant Nirani, MLA Bhimsen Chimmankatti and members of the governing body were present along with students and parents.
