The Karnataka Government postponed its decision on providing electricity and water connections to buildings constructed without obtaining completion certificates and occupancy certificates following an inconclusive meeting chaired by Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday. Another meeting is scheduled for October 8.
A large number of such buildings are in Bengaluru. According to government sources, many buildings are in a limbo as electricity and water supply agencies have refused to provide connections to buildings without these certificates following a December 2024 Supreme Court order that bars public utility providers from granting connections to such structures.
Most of the cases involve buildings constructed on ‘B’ Khata sites, a source said, noting that the Karnataka Cabinet had also discussed the issue in its recent meeting.
Siddaramaiah directed officials to examine whether other states were uniformly implementing the apex court’s order. The chief minister’s office said that while the Government must respect court orders, it must also find a solution to the problems faced by the general public.
“Demolishing these buildings is not a practical option. Any decision taken should benefit the people,” he said during the high-level meeting, according to a statement issued by the chief minister’s office.
Officials also discussed the possibility of introducing a one-time regularisation scheme for buildings constructed in violation of norms. The chief minister then asked legal experts to explore whether applications submitted before March 2025 could be exempted from completion and occupancy certificate requirements, which in turn would allow utility connections to be provided to such buildings.
The chief secretary will chair the October 8 meeting, where he and ministers, the advocate-general, the chief minister’s legal advisors, and other senior officials will deliberate on the legal framework for conditional exemptions.
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During the recent Cabinet meeting, the advocate-general cited sections of the Greater Bengaluru Governance Act that provide for exemptions for buildings without occupancy certificates. Section 241 of the Act allows the Government to notify the category of buildings to be exempted from obtaining it, the advocate-general then said.
“The Government may notify a category of buildings which can be exempted if there is proper justification and application of mind for doing the same. There cannot be general exemption of any sort, it can only be for a category and based on cogent reasons, keeping in mind the larger public interest and orderly urban development,” the advocate-general added.