A project being implemented to prevent fraudulent transactions during registration of properties and protect government properties from being encroached upon by land sharks now faces a threat, allegedly under political pressure, in Shivamogga, the home district of Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa. This could threaten the project being extended to other parts of the State.
It is now learnt that the Chief Minister could shortly roll back the earlier decision to make it mandatory for property owners to have property register (PR) cards during registration in Shivamogga, “till the distribution of the cards is completed”.
This came after a delegation of BJP leaders, including Mr. Yediyurappa’s son and Member of Parliament for Shivamogga B.Y. Raghavendra, sought withdrawal of the project.
Currently, the property register card, issued to genuine property holders, is mandatory during registration in Shivamogga and Mangaluru. Efforts are under way to extend the scope of the project to other cities too. So far, the Department of Land Records, Survey and Settlement, which is implementing the Urban Property Ownership Records (UPOR) project, has surveyed and mapped over one lakh properties in Shivamogga. Of them, it has issued PR cards to over 57,000 owners. Since it was made mandatory in 2016, over 9,000 properties have been using the card, thus preventing frauds and encroachment of government properties. In Mangaluru too, it is mandatory to produce the card during registration. Of the about 1.5 lakh properties, over 70,000 have the card.
In Mysuru, where the card would have been made mandatory, over 60% of the about 3 lakh property owners have already received it.
However, government sources said that the Chief Minister is “under pressure” from BJP leaders to temporarily stop the project, citing complaints from the public over problems in registering properties. “Withdrawal of the project from Shivamogga means that similar tactics could be used in other cities and the fate of the entire project could be at stake after spending crores of rupees and deploying manpower for years,” a government source said.
Launched in 2012 as a pilot, the UPOR project seeks to provide ownership records to holders of genuine properties that could prevent frauds in property transactions and protect government properties from being encroached. It was seen as a unique project in the country.
“The project identifies genuine owner and issues the property register cards based on the documents produced. Those without proper or no documents cannot get the card for the property that they claim to be theirs. When such properties are sought to be sold, the absence of the card comes in the way,” said an official.
Sources in Shivamogga said that after the card was made mandatory, residential plots in slums and revenue land (in both cases involving government land) where proper documents to prove the ownership over the land was not there, could not be transacted. Similarly, residential plots in illegal layouts could not be registered.
Two days to get card
There have been complaints of delays in distribution of the cards, leading to genuine property holders being unable transact. Government sources, however, refuted the allegation. “People are not coming forward to take the card as they do not have documents. The card can be given in less than two days if people apply. The card simply cannot be given to squatters,” sources said.
Sources said that if the card is not mandatory then nobody will come forward to take it and the real estate mafia could work with impunity by building and selling properties on government land while gullible property buyers fall prey.
