Greater Bengaluru Authority and Police Begin Towing Campaign

In a coordinated effort to declutter the streets of Bengaluru, the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) and the city's Traffic Police have launched a systematic towing operation targeting abandoned vehicles. Development Minister Krishna Baire Gowda opened the campaign on Saturday, stating that any vehicle that remains unclaimed after the allotted notice period will be auctioned under the law.

The operation follows a week‑long notice phase during which owners were asked to either move their cars or pay a minimal fine to retrieve them. Notices were placed on more than a thousand vehicles, and owners were given a seven‑day window to act.

After the deadline, enforcement teams began impounding vehicles that showed no response. The minister emphasized that streets and footpaths are communal spaces and must remain free from private parking for extended periods.

The GBA will hold the seized vehicles at its complex for fifteen days. Following this, a public notice will be published in the press. If the owners still do not claim their cars, the vehicles will be auctioned in accordance with statutory guidelines.

Traffic Police records reveal that 2,751 abandoned cars have been identified across Bengaluru. Citizens have contributed 1,498 additional reports through the Astam mobile application, bringing the total number of identified vehicles in the last fifteen days to 4,249.

To date, 1,034 notices have been served, and 72 owners have complied by paying the fine and retrieving their vehicles. Officials are urging residents to continue using the Astam app to report illegal parking, assuring that the campaign will persist until the city's thoroughfares and pedestrian zones are completely free of obstruction.