Bengaluru, 15 May 

Following a Supreme Court directive, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has made it mandatory for property owners to obtain an Occupancy Certificate (OC) or Completion Certificate (CC) before receiving electricity and water connections within City limits. The move comes Greater Bengaluru Governance Act sprung into effect on Thursday. 

The Supreme Court, in its 17 December 2024 order, ruled that basic utilities such as power, water and sanitation must only be provided to buildings certified for occupancy by the local authority. Responding to this, BBMP has identified around 66,400 pending applications seeking electricity connections from BESCOM.

In accordance with the order, BBMP will now contact applicants through SMS and phone calls to verify if their properties have valid building plan approvals, Khata ('A' or 'B'), and whether they have applied for an OC or CC. BBMP Chief Commissioner Maheshwar Rao stressed that the rule applies uniformly to all properties, including those with 'B' Khata plots. 

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah said a decision on the number of municipal corporations for the City will be taken after further discussion.

When Siddaramaiah checked with his Additional Chief Secretary LK Atheeq whether three corporations were being formed, the latter responded, "it is yet to be decided, until then BBMP will continue."

As the Chief Minister, he will be the Chairman of the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA), he noted.

"After holding meetings, we will take a decision as to how many corporations should be formed," he said.

The State government on Wednesday notified that the Greater Bengaluru Governance Act, 2024, will come into effect from 15 May. However, all functionaries will continue to have the same powers and duties as conferred under the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) Act, 2020, until the new law comes into effect fully.

The Act provides 120 days to establish the GBA. 

Since Chief Ministers are not elected from municipal corporations, how can Siddaramaiah be made Chairman of the Greater Bengaluru Authority? R Ashoka, Leader of Opposition in State Legislative Assembly