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20 BBMP officials sacked for allowing encroachers to flourish

  • Karnataka government suspends 20 BBMP officials and files criminal cases against seven of them
  • Meanwhile, BBMP continues its demolition drive, claims to have cleared 822 encroachments out of 1923
  • The rest will be cleared in next four months
13 BBMP officials sacked for allowing encroachers to flourish

The Karnataka Government suspended 20 BBMP officials including the Chief Engineer and the Superintendent Engineer on Tuesday who had given approval for illegal encroachments on storm-water drains in the city. Out of the 20 officials, seven of them are retired officers who are facing criminal charges against them. 

 

This decision was taken soon after Chief Minister Siddaramaiah held a meeting with Mahendra Jain, the Additional Chief Secretary of Urban Development and Manjunath Prasad, the Commissioner of BBMP at his official residence.

 

Meanwhile, BBMP continues with its demolition drive to clear illegal encroachments in the city. BBMP who so far has not released the original map of storm water drains, claims that it has cleared 822 encroachments out of 1923 illegal encroachments in the city. According to the mayor, the remaining encroachments will be removed in the next four months.

 

Yesterday the residents of Saraswathinagar in Arakere Ward got into a heated argument with the BBMP officials accusing them of demolishing buildings without verifying with the original map.

 

They also accused them of targeting poor people and sparing the wealthy and influential encroachments in Bengaluru. Today the BBMP is operating in Mahadevapura, Yelahanka and Dodda Bommasandra. It is clearing the encroachment of 1100 meter of storm water drain, stretching from Kaikondanahalli to Kasuvanahalli. This stretch includes the prestigious Shubh Enclave Apartment.

 

The former Chief Minister of Karnataka, HD Kumaraswamy, on Tuesday urged the government to clear the encroachments in Dollars Colony first before targeting the poor establishments "IAS and IPS officers have shut the drains connecting to the lake bed in the colony and have constructed luxury mansions on it illegally. The government should demolish those constructions first, before destroying poor people's huts," he said. 

 

He further said “If I had the power I would have confiscated the properties of land mafia and the officers who have occupied plots illegally and distributed their money and assets as compensation to those innocents who have lost their shelter in this operation . If the government suddenly start this kind of operation where will these poor people go?” he questioned.  

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