High Court allows BDA to invite applications for Shivarama Karanth layout sites

The High Court of Karnataka has granted the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) permission to invite applications from the general public for the allotment of sites in the Dr. K. Shivarama Karanth layout in Bengaluru. A Division Bench comprising Justice M. Nagaprasanna and Justice Venkatesh Naik T passed the interim order recently, modifying a January 2024 restriction to help the authority ease severe financial strain caused by interest burdens on bank loans.

The court clarified that while the BDA can now call for applications, the actual allotment of sites will depend on further directions to be issued by the High Court in the future.

The BDA had filed an application on March 11, 2026, seeking to modify the court's earlier January 28, 2024 status quo order. The authority pointed out that its inability to generate revenue through site allotments had led to an interest burden of hundreds of crores of rupees on bank loans taken to fund the layout, which is estimated to cost over ₹5,300 crore.

Spanning over 3,500 acres, the Dr. K. Shivarama Karanth layout has seen significant progress, with 30,232 of the proposed 34,974 sites already formed. The BDA has spent approximately ₹3,370 crore on the project to date. Remaining works, including final road asphalting, are expected to be completed within two months.

According to the BDA, it must develop and complete the layout using its own resources and generated funds, requiring an additional ₹1,960 crore to finish the remaining works.

Completing the site allotment process under the BDA (Allotment of Sites) Rules, 1984 is expected to take nearly a year. The procedure requires providing a two-month period for the public to submit applications along with a 12.5 percent initial deposit, followed by additional time for successful allottees to pay the remaining amount.

The land acquisition process for the layout began with a preliminary notification in 2008, followed by a final notification in 2018. The Supreme Court transferred the litigation to the High Court on December 23, 2023, to resolve disputes over the land acquisition.