A.P. Assembly passes amendment Bill on Building Penalisation Scheme

The Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly on Thursday passed an amendment Bill relating to the government’s plans to introduce a new penalisation framework targeting unauthorised constructions and deviations from sanctioned building plans up to August 31, 2025. 

The move follows the limited success of the previous Building Penalisation Scheme (BPS) introduced in 2019, which applied to constructions between 1985 and 2018 but saw low participation due to its voluntary nature.

Tabling the Bill in the House on Thursday, Municipal Administration and Urban Development Minister P. Narayana emphasised that the move was in the larger public interest, intending to prevent revenue loss to the State, promote planned urban growth, and integrate existing unauthorised constructions into the legal framework.

The Bill is expected to streamline approvals, reduce litigation, and encourage responsible development in Andhra Pradesh’s rapidly urbanising areas.

As of August 31, 2025, the Minister said, more than 59,000 unauthorised constructions have been reported in the UCIMS portal, including nearly 50,000 deviations and close to 10,000 additional floors.

Stakeholders such as CREDAI, NAREDCO, CLESA, and urban local bodies such as the Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) requested the extension or introduction of a fresh scheme to legalise these structures.

Under the proposed amendments, key legislation, including the Municipal Corporations Act, 1955; the Andhra Pradesh Municipalities Act, 1965; the AP Capital Region Development Authority Act, 2014; and the AP Metropolitan Region and Urban Development Authorities Act, 2016, will have their cut-off dates updated to August 31, 2025.

The amendments aim to provide a one-time opportunity for regularisation, ensuring compliance with urban planning norms while safeguarding environmental and infrastructural standards, he said.