Dedicated Revenue Recovery Units to implement RERA and civil court orders in Karnataka

Dedicated Revenue Recovery Units will likely be formed under each district Deputy Commissioner (DC) in Karnataka by August. These units will be tasked with implementing Karnataka Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA-K) and civil court orders, sources said. 

This has been a long-standing demand of home-buyers and RERA-K.

Sources said that the Chief Secretary recently chaired a multi-department meeting in which a decision was taken to form these units by the end of July, or by August. However, these units will be tasked with not just implementing RERA-K’s revenue recovery orders from erring builders, but also implement civil court orders, whose pendency is said to be several times more than RERA-K orders, a senior official said. 

The non-implementation of revenue recovery orders — orders issued to collect the penalty or compensation imposed on an erring builder as arrears of pending land revenue when the builder fails to pay the same — has been a long-standing problem ever since RERA-K was established in 2017, and it has essentially robbed RERA-K of the bite it legally has. 

Latest data from RERA-K shows that revenue recovery orders have been passed in 1,815 cases as on May 31, 2025, amounting to ₹821.75 crore of which ₹97.36 crore has been recovered till date. Of these cases, Bengaluru Urban district alone has 1,762 cases in which RERA-K has issued revenue recovery orders for ₹806.92 crore of which only ₹96.36 crore has been recovered. 

“This has only meant erring builders haven’t been made to tow the line and home-buyers, even after waging a successful legal battle, are left high and dry as the orders are not at all implemented,” said M. S. Shankar, General Secretary, Forum for People’s Collective Efforts (FPCE). 

Workload cited for revenue officials not implementing RERA-K orders

The matter was discussed in the Subordinate Legislation Committee of the Karnataka Legislative Assembly in 2024. RERA-K was directed to examine and submit a proposal for an alternative arrangement for implementation of revenue recovery orders.

Following this, RERA-K Secretary wrote to the Housing Department in November 2024 saying, on examining, it was found that revenue officials were not able to pay attention to implementing RERA-K orders due to workload and suggested forming dedicated Revenue Recovery Units in the Revenue Department. 

The letter, a copy of which is available with The Hindu, proposes a unit headed by a Special Deputy Commissioner, with two dedicated tehsildars under him, and a total of 24 personnel in the unit for Bengaluru Urban district, where both revenue recovery orders and its pendency are very high. 

Mr. Shankar welcomed the decision to form Revenue Recovery Units under DCs in all districts. “A dedicated unit to implement these orders will give some bite to RERA-K orders. This will, in turn, make builders follow guidelines properly,” he hoped.