Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has instructed urban local bodies across Karnataka to begin issuing ‘B’ khatas for unauthorized properties as a one-time measure to curb the expansion of illegal layouts.
Unlike ‘A’ khatas, which are issued to legal properties, ‘B’ khatas are intended for unauthorized constructions and enable the government to collect property taxes. While property owners with ‘B’ khatas can sell their properties, they might face difficulties securing bank loans.
“We don’t want people living on revenue layouts or unauthorized sites to face hardships. This one-time solution is designed to provide relief to the poor and middle class. All such properties must have khatas issued within three months,” Siddaramaiah said.
In Belagavi, a survey is already underway to register unauthorised properties under ‘B’ Khata through the e-Aasthi online property registration system. Authorities will gather information from HESCOM (Hubli Electricity Supply Company) and the Tehsildar’s office to facilitate the process. The municipal corporation will send formal requests to these departments.
Preliminary estimates suggest there are around 30,000 unauthorized properties in Belagavi. However, it remains unclear how many of these will qualify for inclusion in ‘B’ Khata under e-Aasthi. Property owners will be able to apply using a prescribed format to begin the registration process. Should applications flood in, authorities may need to organize public meetings across the city to assist with registrations.
Following the announcement of the ‘B’ Khata scheme, discussions have reignited around the Akram-Sakram scheme, which seeks to regularise unauthorized properties and grant them official status. The scheme has been proposed three times in the past but failed due to legal challenges and judicial stays. Many are now urging the government to push for full regularisation of unauthorized properties in Belagavi.
