The BBMP Council on Thursday passed a resolution to increase the betterment charges for the revenue sites. This time, it has proposed Rs 540 per square metre to regularise revenue sites of any dimension.

Betterment charges are levied on sites in the revenue layouts located in newly-added areas to the city corporation during the formation of the BBMP. There are around 300 such revenue layouts.

In 2010, when S K Nataraj was the Mayor, BBMP Council had passed a resolution fixing different betterment charges for different dimensions  of sites. It was Rs 200 per square metre for sites measuring up to 1,200 square

feet, Rs 250 per square metre for sites measuring 1,200 square feet to 2,400 square feet, Rs 350 per square metre

for sites measuring 2,400 square feet to 6,000 square feet and Rs 450 per square metre for sites with a measurement of over 6,000 square feet. The charges-which were for the provision of water supply, roads and

drainage-were approved by the BBMP council on December 29, 2010. The then BBMP Commissioner Siddaiah had issued a circular in this regard. Following this, some landowners went to the High Court challenging the betterment charges fixed. In April this year, the court had observed that it could not be said that the owners of the smaller sites were always economically weak and invariably use lesser infrastructure provided by the BBMP.