Bhubaneswar: Several educational institutions, hospitals, govt offices, public sector undertakings, hotels, market complexes and even Laxmi Sagar police station have found their names in the list of 4,632 properties, identified by Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) as allegedly functioning from residential buildings, triggering a fresh controversy.The BMC surveyed them following a direction from Supreme Court, which asked civic authorities in state capitals to identify residential buildings being used for commercial activities and submit action-taken reports.Among those figuring in the list are the girls’ hostel of Utkal University, Gopabandhu Academy of Administration — where IAS officers undergo training — Ignou campus, Software Technology Parks of India, Doordarshan Kendra and Regional Museum of Natural History in the north zone.Market complexes, managed by BDA, such as ID Market at Nayapalli, Priyadarshini Market at CRP Square and BDA District Centre at Chandrasekharpur have also been listed.According to the BMC data, 1,540 such buildings have been identified in the south-west zone, 1,380 in south-east zone and 1,712 in north zone. Urban planner Dipu Nanda alleged that the list appears to have been prepared using holding tax records rather than a physical survey as mandated by the apex court or mentioned by the civic body in its public notice to these entities. “Buildings paying holding tax under the residential category seem to have been included in the list. Otherwise, it is difficult to understand how major malls, hospitals and educational institutions could be categorised as properties sanctioned for residential use and later converted for commercial activities. The mention of the police station is even hilarious. How could such a list be issued,” asked Nanda.BMC additional commissioner Kailash Chandra Das said the list is only a preliminary exercise, and all entities concerned have been asked to submit relevant building-plan approvals and associated documents for verification. Once the records are examined, the actual list of violators will emerge, Das said.Real estate expert Bimalendu Pradhan, however, termed the exercise an embarrassment and questioned the credibility of the data submitted by the civic body. “The Supreme Court clearly directed civic authorities to conduct a survey. This list raises serious concerns. It appears the BMC has failed to distinguish between residential and commercial buildings. The court’s direction was aimed at identifying actual violations and fixing accountability. What has happened here seems quite the opposite,” Pradhan said.
