How bad is Bengaluru traffic? Ask doctor who ditched car & ran 3 km for surgery

Bengaluru has one of the worst traffic problems in India and across the world with congested roads, a high density of motorists, poorly-maintained infrastructure and when it rains, it floods. While it isn't fair to describe the entire Bengaluru this way, it is true for many key roads where a distance of just a few kilometers can often take hours. In case of an emergency, this can be an outright nightmare. For Dr Govind Nandakumar, it could have been one indeed.

A gastroenterology at Manipal Hospitals, Dr Nandakumar was recently on his way to perform an emergency laparoscopic gallbladder surgery. But a massive traffic snarl on the city's Sarjapur-Marathalli stretch slammed the brakes on his vehicle. But instead of waiting, he decided to ditch his car and run the three kilometers left for the hospital.

The past week or two have been unprecedented in terms of heavy showers that have lashed the city. Many parts of Bengaluru went under entirely with locals pointing the blame finger towards civic authorities. While traffic jams are a part of daily lives for many here, the waterlogged roads brought things to an absolute standstill.

As such, Dr Nandakumar's decision to get out of his car and run to the hospital is being lauded by many while many others are pointing to the state of civic infrastructure in the city. And for the record, the surgery itself was completed without complications and the patient was discharged as per scheduled timelines.