After criticism, Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai to visit rain-hit areas in Bengaluru’s IT corridor today

The region where the water-logging occurred lies in the Bommanahalli and Mahadevapura Assembly constituencies currently held by MLAs in the ruling BJP government.

The inspection visit also comes after the chairman of Aarin Capital Partners, T V Mohandas Pai, who is a former chief financial officer of the tech firm Infosys Ltd, in social media posts tagging Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other central leaders sought accountability for investments in infrastructure in the city of Bengaluru on Wednesday. “Sir pl help Bengaluru, our streets have debris, garbage, drains are blocked…Does all this need more money or better governance? Our Metro is behind schedule, There is total mismanagement, Pl review our Major projects,” Pai said on social media, tagging the PM.

Incidentally, the Karnataka chief minister’s visit to the IT corridor also comes ahead of a scheduled visit to the Dakshina Kannada region of the state by Prime Minister Modi on Friday to address a public rally.

Following a meeting with senior officials with regard to the rain-hit parts of Bengaluru on Wednesday, Bommai said that the Bommanahalli and Mahadevapura zones suffered damage. “The problematic spots in these two zones are identified. Traffic has been hit on some important roads due to water stagnation. Due to the accumulation of water on the ORR road, water has entered several houses in low-lying areas and caused problems to the residents,” Bommai said after the meeting.

“As many as nine places in the Mahadevapura zone and 11 places in the Bommanahalli zone are affected. The overflow of water from Savalakere Lake is creating problems. A canal is blocked at the region where the ORR road ends. Instructions are issued to remove all the obstacles where water is not flowing freely, to fix a pipeline, and to drain out the stagnant water on the ORR road,” Bommai said.

“The main drainage work has stopped near extension areas. Instructions are given to clear it for the natural flow of water. This work has started in Bommanahalli, and directions are given to drain out wherever water is collected. Rainwater has entered over 125 houses and the revenue minister will disburse compensation to the affected people,” Bommai said.

The Karnataka chief minister said that the tender process for the construction of a stormwater canal (Raja Kaluve) at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore in the region was completed but the work itself is yet to start.

“Heavy rain has been recorded in the last three months. The current month and the current week have seen a lot of rain resulting in the filling up of all water bodies. The excess water and rain have added to the misery,” Bommai said.

“This time, there was not much of a problem in Yelahanka and Malleshwaram (in the north of Bengaluru). Last time, the lakes which had spilled over had caused problems in those areas,” he said. Bommai said he has given instructions to drain out the water in the Bellandur Ecospace and RMZ tech park areas prior to his visit on Thursday afternoon.