Pothole politics hits Karnataka as tech firm relocates

All that a logistics e-commerce platform company - BlackBuck, based at the IT hub Bellandur in Bengaluru - decided and put out on social media was that the firm was leaving its Outer Ring Road office due to deteriorating roads riddled with potholes and bumper-to-bumper traffic congestion.

- BELLIE THOMAS

This announcement was made by BlackBuck's Co-founder and CEO Rajesh Yabaji. The CEO stated that he had decided to move out from Bellandur as his staff had to commute to office for over one-and-a-half hours stuck in traffic. "Average commute for my colleagues shot up to 1.5+ hours (one way). Roads full of potholes and dust, coupled with the lowest intent to get them rectified. Didn't see any of this changing in the next five years," Yabaji had written on social media.

As the news gained traction online, it sparked a widespread debate among netizens, especially those working at companies on the Outer Ring Road in and around Bellandur, the tech hub. Some even tagged the Bengaluru District In-Charge Minister, who is also the Deputy Chief Minister, DK Shivakumar, demanding to know what he had done for Bengaluru's traffic and pothole-ridden roads in the last two-and-a-half years.

Bengaluru's road woes were exposed a few days ago when videos and photos of a school bus stuck on a slushy road surfaced, showing it was about to topple and the school children had to be rescued through the emergency door of the vehicle.