B'luru IT firms' employees stuck in traffic for 5 hours leads to crores of loss

After Bengaluru IT companies suffered a loss of ₹225 crore on August 30 due to their employees being stuck in traffic jam for around five hours, the Outer Ring Road Companies Association has written to state chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, Hindustan Times reported. The association expressed fear that if traffic situation in the city remains the same, the companies might look for an alternative destination.

In the letter to the minister, the association mentioned that the infrastructure of the ORR is in poor condition and has now reached a crisis level. The letter mentioned that over a half a million people are employed on the Outer Ring Road stretch, starting from Krishnarajapuram to the Central Silk Board area in Bengaluru. It highlighted the said 17-km stretch provides direct and indirect employment to over a million people and vastly contributes to the economy of the state.

However, such an important stretch's condition was highlighted as appalling, pointing out that there is no focus on the development of infrastructure in this particular area. "The recent collapse of Bengaluru’s infrastructure is now a global concern and is also questions the growth of the city," the letter read.

Earlier, Bommai had made a visit to the flood-affected areas in Outer Ring Road of Bengaluru and assured that the government will look into fixing all the civic issues soon. He even ordered the officials to remove properties and encroachments blocking storm water drains in the city.

The letter also added that member companies had to press emergency alarm for Business continuity plans and work from home or pass on critical work to locations outside of Bengaluru and Karnataka. This also caused some serious reputational and economic damage to the city. The situation continues for the past three days and is expected to go beyond it.