Blurb: The High Court has directed the government to form a committee to deal with encroachment and removal of unauthorized buildings in the Sarakki Lake buffer zone.
CH NEWS
BENGALURU
The High Court has directed the Chief Secretary to the Government to form a committee to clear encroachments and unauthorized buildings in the Sarakki Lake buffer zone near Puttenahalli in JP Nagar.
The Kori Sarakki Lake Area Development Trust had filed a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking an order from the government and the concerned department to clear the encroachments in the Sarakki Lake buffer zone. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice CM Poonacha, which heard the petition, directed the formation of a committee and disposed of the petition.
The bench said in its order that a committee comprising the City Deputy Commissioner, BBMP/GBA and representatives of the Lake Development Authority and other relevant stakeholders should be formed to take necessary action to clear the encroachment in the lake area.
Also, this committee should be formed and an order should be issued within three weeks. The committee members should visit the lake area and identify and notify the encroachers and buildings constructed in the lake buffer zone. Other steps should be taken to protect the lake, including clearing the encroachments. The committee should submit a compliance report on this order within three months through the nodal officer, the bench said.
In addition, the High Court has directed the Registry to list the application before the court by June 30, 2026, for submission of a compliance report on this order.
BOX
Appeal options open
The bench said that the rights and appeals of all the persons encroaching on the buffer zone of the lake are reserved and they can avail the relief available under the law. However, the committee should explain to the encroachers the legal process for clearing the encroachments.
