Simplified coastal planning rules bring major relief to property owners in Udupi and Dakshina Kannada
In a significant administrative reform, the Karnataka government has issued a new order simplifying urban planning regulations for coastal districts, providing much-needed relief to thousands of property owners who were struggling to obtain building approvals due to technical hurdles.
Unlike other districts of the state, most land holdings in coastal Karnataka are fragmented and developed in small plots. Because of this pattern, many sites could not obtain a single layout plan approval under the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act, 1961.
As a result, local bodies were unable to grant construction permissions, leaving hundreds of families in legal and financial difficulty. In Kundapur Town Municipal Council and Byndoor Town Panchayat limits alone, more than 1,100 properties have been identified as “unauthorised.”
Owners of these sites were unable to construct houses, obtain loans from nationalized banks, or secure official A-khata certificates since they possessed only B-khata documents.
Recognizing this long-pending issue, presidents and members of urban local bodies in Udupi and Dakshina Kannada districts formed a joint forum named the Coastal Districts Urban Development and Planning Federation Committee.
The committee repeatedly appealed to the state government to simplify laws and create special provisions suited to coastal conditions. Over the past year, the committee held several rounds of meetings with commissioners, directors and joint directors of the Urban Development Authority and Town Planning Department.
Following directions from district in-charge ministers Lakshmi Hebbalkar and Dinesh Gundu Rao, local representatives also met Assembly Speaker U.T. Khader and explained the ground realities.
MLC Manjunath Bhandary raised the issue during the Belagavi winter session of the legislature, demanding immediate policy changes. When the federation delegation later met the Chief Minister and Urban Development Minister, they received assurance that coastal regulations would be relaxed.
As a result of continuous efforts, the government issued an order in December simplifying several procedures. Applicants who earlier had to visit offices multiple times for provisional and final approvals can now receive technical sanction in a single process with a conditional undertaking letter.
The new guidelines clarify that sites with B-khata and access to a public road can now be regularised by converting land use under Section 95 of the Karnataka Land Revenue Act, 1984. Once the prescribed fee is paid to the planning authority, a single layout plan can be approved under Section 17 of the KT&CP Act, 1961, enabling owners to obtain A-khata from urban local bodies.
Existing buildings constructed without permission can also be regularised if they comply with municipal laws. Even in cases of minor violations, B-khata can be issued with remarks, while fully compliant properties will receive A-khata.
Due to this order, around 240 B-khata properties already registered in 23 wards of Kundapur and 11 wards of Byndoor will now become eligible for legal recognition, provided proper documents are submitted.
Kundapur Urban Planning Authority President Vinod Crasta welcomed the decision, stating that the simplification of single layout plan rules under Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s leadership has removed major obstacles and brought relief to common citizens.
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