Is "BIAAPA approved" enough for a Devanahalli plot?

Last modified: 5 Nov 2026 • 3 min read

Direct answer: "BIAAPA approved" means the Bengaluru International Airport Area Planning Authority has sanctioned a layout. It does not show that this site has been released for sale, or that conversion, khata and the Kaveri record match it.

BMRDA lists Bangalore International Airport Area Planning Authority (BIAAPA) as a local planning authority, with its office in Devanahalli on Sulibele Road. Its own site spells the name with Bengaluru. Layout approval, conversion and building-plan scrutiny are separate procedures there, and layout approval sits apart from the technical opinion to the Revenue Department on agricultural land. Doddaballapura and Nelamangala are other authorities on that BMRDA list. A board near the airport does not pick one. Checks that apply whoever signed the layout are in acre&key's note on BDA, BMRDA and DTCP files.

Rule 36 of the Planning Authority Rules, 1965, says a plan under section 17 must show each sub-division and its use, the dimensions, the street widths and the open spaces. Karnataka Act 43 of 2026, section 18-C, then names a later step for layouts approved from 2005 and before the 2015 amendment, where the works are still unfinished. The planning authority has to grant a final layout approval and release the remaining sites, after three percent of the guidance value of the plots still to be released, for each year from 7 September 2026. That percentage stays with those older layouts. Ask for the release on any date. The first sanction does not release the site.

Checks before you pay

Two papers, not one. The sanction should name BIAAPA and the survey numbers. The release, or the final plan, should name this site.
Lay the deed on the plan. Site number, survey number and measurements should match a site drawn for houses. If it sits on a street, a park or a civic amenity, the plan has already marked it that way.
RTC, then khata. Open the RTC on Bhoomi for the same survey numbers. If it still shows agriculture, the layout order has not replaced the revenue record. The khata is the local body's, not BIAAPA's. In a gram panchayat, Form 11A and Form 11B are different entries.
RERA, where section 3 applies. Section 2(zn) treats a plotted layout as a project. Section 3 bars a sale in a planning area until it is registered, unless section 3(2) exempts it. Land of not more than 500 square metres is one exemption. A BIAAPA sanction is not that registration. Registered, and a brochure that says approved, are different claims.
The EC, before any token. Pull an encumbrance certificate on Kaveri. The steps are on our EC page. It records registered dealings. It does not carry the BIAAPA order.

The mistake to avoid

Do not pay because the brochure says BIAAPA approved. The layout can be sanctioned while this site is unreleased, the plan can belong to another survey number, or the authority can be a neighbour on the BMRDA list.

Ask your lawyer. Have a property lawyer read the title, the conversion papers, the BIAAPA sanction and the release for this site, including roads and civic amenity land meant to be handed over. This page is general. It is not advice on your plot.

Frequently asked questions

Does a BIAAPA sanction let me start building?

Building-plan scrutiny is a separate procedure on BIAAPA's site. On the older layouts section 18-C covers, a release still has to come.

Is every plot near Devanahalli under BIAAPA?

The office is in Devanahalli. Doddaballapura and Nelamangala have their own planning authorities on the BMRDA list.

References

BMRDA, local planning authorities in the Bengaluru Metropolitan Region (BIAAPA listed with an office in Devanahalli Town; Doddaballapura and Nelamangala listed separately; functions under the KTCP Act, 1961): https://bmrda.karnataka.gov.in/8/local-planning-areas/en, accessed 5 Nov 2026.
BIAAPA, planning page (layout approval, conversion and building-plan scrutiny listed as separate procedures; page last updated 17 Aug 2024): https://biaapa.tpa.gov.in/en/planning, accessed 5 Nov 2026.
BIAAPA, About TPA (layout-plan approval listed apart from a technical opinion to the Revenue Department on conversion; source line Biaapa, TPA, GOk): https://biaapa.tpa.gov.in/en/about-adtcp, accessed 5 Nov 2026.
BIAAPA, contact (office on Sulibele Road, Sowthegowdanahalli, Devanahalli 562110; page last updated 11 Feb 2026): https://biaapa.tpa.gov.in/en/contact-us, accessed 5 Nov 2026.
Karnataka Planning Authority Rules, 1965, rule 36 (particulars of a layout plan under section 17), on India Code: https://www.indiacode.nic.in/ViewFileUploaded?file=%2811_of_1963%29_04_the_planning_authority_rules%2C_1965.pdf&path=AC_KA_71_402_00001_11_1552283484255%2Frulesindividualfile%2F, accessed 5 Nov 2026.
Karnataka Gazette Extraordinary, 7 September 2026, No. 911, DPAL 20 SHASANA 2026, Karnataka Act No. 43 of 2026, section 18-C (final layout approval and release of remaining sites; three percent of guidance value): https://egazette.servantsofknowledge.in/details/in.gazette.karnataka_eo.2026-09-07.11248/pdf/, accessed 5 Nov 2026.
The Real Estate (Regulation and Development) Act, 2016, section 2(zk)(ii), section 2(zn) and section 3: https://www.indiacode.nic.in/indiacode/bitstream/123456789/2158/1/A201616.pdf, accessed 5 Nov 2026.
Bhoomi, RTC (pahani): https://landrecords.karnataka.gov.in/service2/RTC.aspx, accessed 5 Nov 2026.

This page explains public rules and processes. It isn't legal or tax advice. acre&key gives buyers advice for free.