Karnataka Greater Bengaluru Development Minister Krishna Byre Gowda has directed authorities to create joint police and civic task forces in each municipal corporation jurisdiction to prevent the re-encroachment of cleared footpaths across the city.
The directive was issued during a virtual meeting on footpath encroachments, according to a report by Vijay Karnataka. The proposed task forces will include personnel from the police department and civic authorities and will be responsible for continuous monitoring and coordinated enforcement in areas where footpaths have already been cleared.
Officials have been instructed to carry out both regular and surprise inspections. If an encroachment is found again, action should be taken immediately at the site, the report said. Re-encroachment cases are also to be identified and reported using photographs and geo-tagged information.
The minister directed marshals and beat police personnel to conduct joint inspections at regular intervals. He also called for clear responsibility to be assigned to individual officials and for progress reports on enforcement action to be reviewed periodically.
“Simply saying that encroachments have been cleared is not enough. Continuous monitoring is required to ensure that the cleared location is not encroached upon again,” Byre Gowda was quoted as saying. He instructed officials to register first information reports against repeat violators, seize materials used in the encroachment and impose higher penalties in accordance with the law.
The proposed enforcement arrangement will operate at the city corporation level. The directive also calls for a joint order from officials at the level of the chief commissioner to define the jurisdiction of each task force, identify roads for coverage and specify the responsibilities of police and civic personnel.
Street vending was another focus of the meeting. Authorities were asked to clearly identify roads where vending is restricted and formally communicate the list to the relevant police and civic officials. On major roads and routes carrying heavy traffic, officials were told to ensure that neither pedestrian movement nor vehicle traffic is obstructed.
The minister also directed authorities to conduct a fresh, comprehensive survey of street vendors. Further action after the survey is to be based on eligibility and legal criteria. Officials were additionally instructed to complete pending legal processes related to street vending, including the formation of Town Vending Committees.
The directives place post-clearance monitoring alongside the initial removal of footpath encroachments. The next steps identified in the report are the formation of municipal-level joint task forces, road-wise guidance for enforcement, the street-vendor survey and periodic review of action taken by officials
