Bengaluru: The Comptroller and Auditor General's (CAG)performance audit of 2024 revealed that Bengaluru Metropolita Transport Corporation (BMTC) failed to adequately protect 521 acres of its land and left it "open to encroachment". The issue dates back to 2008 when the BMTC board, in its 52nd meeting,
acknowledged its land holdings and took initial steps to protect vacant plots. However, as CAG notes, 15 years later, these measures
have remained largely theoretical and "under process". BMT Cowns 1,400 acres of land in Bengaluru Urban district, with 653
acres still vacant.
About 80% of these vacant plots have been under threat. Other
govt agencies have taken advantage by seizing portions for various schemes. In Mandur, 4 acres and 12 guntas of
BMTC land is now being used for schools, a panchayat office, and a veterinary health centre. Similarly, in Bylakere,
11 acres of a 30-acre plot designated to BMTC was earmarked for the Ashraya housing scheme in 2017 to
accommodate economically weaker sections.
In Dec 2022, BMTC wrote to the state revenue department, requesting boundary demarcation to fence off the
land and prevent further encroachment. But the matter remains unresolved.
CAG noted, "This shows that BMTC took up the issue with the revenue department only after audit observations
and the process has remained incomplete even after 10 to 15 years of allotment."