The non-resident Indian (NRI) property owners from Bengaluru, residing in the United Kingdom (U.K.) and the United States of America (U.S.), are struggling to secure e-khata as the website for applying for the digital document refuses to load in these countries.
E-khata was made mandatory for registration of properties across Karnataka from October 1, 2024.
Many complained of getting the ‘404 error’ message upon clicking the link of the website (https://bbmpeaasthi.karnataka.gov.in/). In the description, it says, “The origin server did not find a current representation for the target resource or is not willing to disclose the one that exists.”
A ‘404 error’ happens when the web server cannot find the webpage or file someone is trying to access. This could be because the resource does not exist on the server or the server is configured to hide its location.
Debojyoti Bhattacharya, 43, a property owner who lives in Cambridge, U.K., has been struggling to secure the e-khata since November. Lamenting the struggle, Mr. Bhattacharya said it took about one-and-a-half months for the BBMP to upload his draft khata.
“I was bemused to see a 404 error when I first opened the site. Initially, I presumed the error was temporary due to server issues, but later found out that the site does not operate in the U.K.,” he said.
Mr. Bhattacharya was forced to rely upon a friend to open the site in Bengaluru and coordinate with the BBMP. His friend found out that the draft khata is unavailable on the website. This means his property records were not digitised. Mr. Bhattacharya later was directed to the Assistant Revenue Officer (ARO) but to no avail.
However, when his problem was brought to the notice of a senior BBMP official, his record was immediately digitised and the draft was made available. His friend in India said that now the system is showing issues with the KYC. “Now I have to brace for another uphill task. It’s a shame to know that India’s’ Silicon Valley’s government website does not open in the U.K.”
Prithvik Aniket, who runs a real estate company, said that three of his clients were unable to sell their properties due to the same problem. “The BBMP has to rectify the problem and make the site work in the U.K., U.S., and European countries,” he added.
BBMP Special Commissioner (Revenue), Munish Moudgil, while talking to The Hindu, said, “The problem is to be handled at the E-Governance department. I will immediately take up this issue with the department. The BBMP will also try to handhold the property owners to secure e-khata.”
“The E-Governance Department, as a rule, bars all outside access as a feature of cybersecurity. The BBMP has to request the department to grant access to the site to individual countries. We have given a list of countries that need to be whitelisted,” he said.
Published – February 04, 2025 07:34 pm IST
