Bengaluru: The Karnataka government is on the verge of issuing a ban on the construction of new apartments in the city for the next five years. This has happened in the wake of the looming water crisis in Karnataka.

According to deputy chief minister (DCM) and Bengaluru development minister Dr G Parameshwara, the proposal has come up because apartment residents, especially in the city’s suburbs, depend solely on water tankers for drinking and domestic purposes, reports said.

“You would have seen group of apartments coming up. Around 2,000...3,000 of them. In that area, there will be a number of vehicles and if you don’t build roads, it will be difficult. That is why we thought at least for a while, may be five years, we will bring in some sort of restriction in building apartments in Bengaluru city,” said Dr G Parameshwara

He said, “We are still in the discussion stage. We will work out pros and cons. We will see where we can relax and where we cannot relax. We will discuss all those things and finally come to a decision. Friends from the industry should also understand the problems we are facing at the moment. Nobody can bring in or create water. Water is scarce at the moment and we are already in the fifth stage of Cauvery and there are no other sources in sight.”

Parameshwara went on to say that he is not someone who will wait for something bad to happen. He doesn’t want his city to suffer from water shortage overnight. There is shortage of water from Cauvery even now.

He assured that he will discuss the decision with the builders and expect them to give a few suggestions as well.

See what the DCM said regarding the decision here:

 “The ban on construction of new apartments is not a practical solution. The real estate sector is the second largest employment sector. It provides employment to close to 10 lakh people. With the ban, a lot of people will be unemployed. The state government will also suffer as it cannot collect tax,” Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India, chairman, Suresh Hari said.

When asked about how the ban will impact developers, Suresh Hari said, “It will not impact developers because they are not dependent on a single place. It is across the globe. But it will definitely impact the population. There are so many people who come to Bengaluru to work. They need accommodation. If that is not available, they will leave.”

The proposal for the ban on construction of new apartments for the next five years comes from the government in the view of the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board’s (BWSSB) ongoing Cauvery Water Supply Phase. The project initiated by the BWSSB aims at providing water connections to the city’s suburban areas and is expected to be completed in five years.

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) commissioner, Manjunath Prasad, said that the civic body is working on the rejuvenation of lakes in Bengaluru.

“The honourable deputy chief minister has asked the BBMP to have a discussion with the builders and the stakeholders. We will be discussing the water crisis at the municipal corporation meeting. There are 148 lakes under the jurisdiction of the BBMP. Our emphasis will be on rejuvenation of these lakes. 93 lakes have been rejuvenated by us and the sewage does not flow into them. They are working on rejuvenating the rest of the lakes in the city,” Manjunath Prasad said.

He also said that they are looking into the traditional method of rainwater harvesting.

Watch what the BBMP commissioner said here: