Team Clarion
BENGALURU — Boats have been deployed in Bengaluru suburbs after heavy rains pounded and inundated the city. The most affected areas were the IT hub regions of Electronics City, Marathahalli, Outer Ring Road, Mahadevapura, Whitefield and Bommanahalli.
Many IT professionals in the city, known as India’s Silicon Valley, resorted to taking tractor rides to reach their workplaces. Yemalur, near the HAL Airport, was submerged and this prompted many employees of IT companies living nearby to ride tractors to their offices.
“We cannot take so many leaves from our office, our work is getting affected. We are waiting for tractors to drop us for ₹ 50,” a woman employee of an IT firm told news agency ANI.
Thousands of professionals were unable to reach their work places. Major companies on the Outer Ring Road stretch have asked their employees to work from their homes following major water logging problems, according to the reports.
Balagere-Panathur road in Varthur turned into a river as storm water drains are blocked. The residents of the apartments in the area were evacuated with boats.
Chief Minister Basavara Bommai on Monday stated that the Bengaluru city has received heavy rains which extensively damaged 30 places in Mahadevapura and Bommanahalli zones. Both the zones house major IT companies besides being home to a major chunk of IT professionals.
“Instructions are issued to dispatch two State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) teams with 30 members in each team to the affected places. Officials are asked to drain out water from roads. Whatever is decided already will be implemented as per plan,” he added.
Meanwhile, Bommai has assured the IT companies of a discussion on the estimated loss of ₹ 225 crore due to rain and waterlogging in Bengaluru.
“We will call the IT companies and speak with them related to the issues that they are facing due to waterlogging. We will also discuss the compensation and other related damages that have been caused due to rain,” Bommai told ANI.
His remark came after the IT companies asked the Chief Minister to solve the Outer Ring Road issue.
Many parts of the Bengaluru city has seen waterlogging that led to traffic jams and disruptions in the lives of common men on Monday.
(With agency inputs)
____________
Cover photo: Boats deployed in IT hub regions in Bengaluru due to major water logging issues; CM Bommai says SDRF teams dispatched. — IANS
