Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister and Bengaluru Development Minister DK Shivakumar on Wednesday, May 13, announced a series of property, housing and civic reforms for Bengaluru under what he described as the Congress government’s “sixth guarantee” titled “Bhoo Guarantee”.
Addressing a press conference at the Greater Bengaluru Authority headquarters, Shivakumar said the government was planning nearly 150 development projects for Bengaluru and would roll out multiple citizen-centric measures aimed at easing property regularisation, improving digital land records and addressing long-pending housing issues.
Among the key announcements were the launch of the “Nanna Khate, Nanna Hakku” campaign for e-Khata distribution, concessions for converting ‘B’ Khata properties to ‘A’ Khata, relaxation in building violation norms, a one-time settlement scheme for unauthorised layouts, allotment of sites to Shivaram Karanth Layout landowners, the sale of BDA apartments in Whitefield and a city-wide plantation drive.
Shivakumar said the “Nanna Khate, Nanna Hakku” campaign would begin on May 16 and continue every Saturday for three months. Under the initiative, open-house programmes on e-Khata issues will be held at 50 locations across Bengaluru’s five civic zones. Ten locations in each zone will host the programmes from morning till evening every Saturday, with locations to be announced in advance.
The Deputy Chief Minister said Bengaluru’s e-Khata initiative had evolved into what he described as India’s largest integrated digital urban property records system, enabling more than 23 lakh property records to be delivered online. According to him, Bengaluru currently has nearly 16 lakh ‘A’ Khata properties and seven lakh ‘B’ Khata properties.
“Through Bhoo Guarantee, every genuine property owner in Bengaluru will get secure, reliable and accessible digital property records. The old manual and unclear system has been transformed into a transparent and citizen-centric digital format,” he said.
As part of the reforms, Shivakumar announced a major concession for owners seeking conversion from ‘B’ Khata to ‘A’ Khata. While applicants currently pay 5% of the guidance value as conversion fees, those who complete the process within 100 days will now pay only 2%.
“For a property valued at Rs 1 crore, the owner earlier had to pay Rs 5 lakh. Now they need to pay only Rs 2 lakh. Around seven lakh property owners will benefit,” he said, adding that those missing the deadline would have to pay the original 5% fee.
He said all property documents would include GPS details and photographs of owners, and records could be downloaded online. Information about the scheme would be circulated through WhatsApp and other media platforms in Kannada and English, though the official documents would remain in Kannada.
The government also announced a significant relaxation in building violation norms. Shivakumar said permissible deviations in height, floor area ratio (FAR) and setback rules would be increased from 5% to 15%, with occupancy certificates to be issued after penalties are collected.
The move comes amid Supreme Court directions prohibiting electricity and water connections to buildings lacking occupancy certificates.
“The Cabinet will soon take a decision to address this issue. We are not legalising illegalities. Due to land scarcity and rapid urbanisation, many property owners have constructed buildings without leaving proper setbacks,” Shivakumar said.
He added that existing laws already allowed setback relaxations of up to 50% for smaller residential sites and said the government was now extending a 15% relaxation within the legal framework.
Criticising the regularisation framework introduced by the previous BJP government under Section 38D in 2020, Shivakumar said the earlier scheme failed because the charges imposed on property owners were too high.
The government will now introduce a One-Time Settlement (OTS) scheme from June 15, allowing property owners to apply for regularisation over a three-month period. Applicants who apply within the initial three months will receive a 50% concession on regularisation charges.
According to Shivakumar, the government plans to allocate 100 days for receiving applications, another 100 days for scrutiny and additional time for payment procedures, with the entire process expected to conclude by June 2027.
“If people do not utilise this opportunity, legal action will have to be initiated. BDA has already taken possession of properties worth Rs 2,000 crore,” he warned.
The Deputy Chief Minister also announced that 18,000 sites would be allotted to landowners who surrendered land for the Shivaram Karanth Layout project. He said 3,052 landowners had contributed land but allotments were delayed due to legal and ownership disputes.
“After obtaining court approval, we are now allotting sites to landowners. The process will begin from May 15 through a software system developed by the Centre for e-Governance,” he said.
Landowners holding one acre or more will also have the option of receiving larger consolidated plots suitable for high-rise developments.
Marking the 50th anniversary of the Bangalore Development Authority, the government will organise a “Green Bengaluru” plantation drive on June 27 to coincide with Kempegowda Jayanti. Shivakumar said students, organisations, government employees and members of the public would together plant 15 lakh saplings across Bengaluru in a single day.
He also said nearly 80% of affected landowners had consented to the first phase of the Bengaluru Business Corridor project, while notifications had been issued for the second phase. The proposed 33-km corridor connecting Hosur Road and Mysuru Road will be developed in south Bengaluru.
Claiming that the compensation package offered was among the best in the country, Shivakumar said it included Transferable Development Rights, commercial land alongside roads and FAR benefits. “We cannot denotify this project under any circumstances,” he said.
The Deputy Chief Minister further announced the sale of 1,900 BDA apartments in Whitefield. The 1-BHK apartments measuring 760 sq ft are priced at around Rs 66.86 lakh, while 3-BHK apartments measuring 1,733 sq ft are priced at Rs 1.44 crore. Applications will open from May 15.
On Bengaluru’s infrastructure projects, Shivakumar said a 2.2-km six-lane tunnel road near Hebbal Junction would pass close to the University of Agricultural Sciences campus and had been awarded to Rithwik Tunnel Company, with completion targeted within 18 months.
Additionally, a 1.7-km four-lane elevated corridor will be constructed near Mekhri Circle, with foundation stone ceremonies for both projects expected later this month.
He also announced that a 10.77-km road built at a cost of Rs 631 crore in Nadaprabhu Kempegowda Layout would be inaugurated within the next 15 days.