COVID-19 pandemic has as it is impacted the work culture, forcing companies and its employees to work from home in view of their safety. Bengaluru, which is commonly referred to as the Silicon Valley of India and home to thousands of IT firms, witnessed a sudden shift in the way people worked from their homes instead of offices. As things are finally starting to turn for the better —COVID cases are on the lowest we've seen this year, and offices are starting to bring back a sense of normalcy — Karnataka government has put another obstacle. It looks like IT employees in Bengaluru will be working from home for a bit longer.
Bengalureans are no stranger to seeing the narrow or blocked roads on the account of Metro constructions, which have been going on in different parts of the city for years now. But the Karnataka government has now requested major IT firms with offices on the Outer Ring Road (ORR) in Bengaluru to extend work from home (WFH) till December 2022. This comes in the wake of Metro rail construction on the stretch from Silk Board to KR Puram and from there to the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA), which will soon be initiated.
Metro construction on Bengaluru's IT corridor
"We would like to bring to your notice, that BMRCL (Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited) is starting metro construction works on outer Ring Road (ORR) from Central Silk Board to KR Puram and the construction of the same could extend to about 1.5 to 2 years. The ORR houses many large Tech Parks and IT company campuses and carries large amount of traffic throughout the day. The ORR, despite having 6 lanes and service roads, is infamous for its perennial traffic congestion," EV Ramanna Reddy, the additional chief secretary, IT/BT, S&T department said in his letter to the regional director of NASSCOM, which is then expected to circulate the same to IT firms on ORR.
The department further said that it would be beneficial for IT companies located on ORR to extend work from home for most employees till December 2022 and/or stagger the working hours for employees required to be present in the office. It also added that the companies encourage their employees to use company or public transport to reduce congestion.
The Outer Ring Road is the Bengaluru's IT corridor, which has major business parks, including Manyata Embassy Tech Park, Cessna Business Park, Embassy Tech Village, RMZ Ecoworld and Prestige Tech Park, and offices of IT giants Flipkart, JP Morgan, ANZ, Cisco, Intel, IBM, Accenture, Goldman Sachs, Microsoft, Samsung, and Dell EMC.
What about livelihoods?
One of the biggest setbacks of COVID-19 pandemic was the impact of the livelihoods of millions who rely on day-to-day income. The livelihoods of many, including cab drivers, small businesses like tea sellers, snacks, etc, indirectly rely on these IT firms. With offices shut and employees working from home, incomes of many small businesses take a major hit.
It comes as a surprise that the state government is taking shockingly long to finish crucial development projects. The government is now asking over one year for construction of road, which has already been in the works for years - that to in a city as vibrant as Bengaluru. The state government should be spending more money and efforts to complete the projects sooner than a year when it has already taken so long.
Many critics have opined that the government's inability to finish projects on time, especially infrastructure and roads projects, is taking a toll on the lives of small businesses surrounding these major IT firms.
While critics pointed out the government's shortcomings, some see the advance notice to be "proactive and progressive" on government's part.
"We often criticise government for lack of planning and coordination. For valid reasons. But here is a case where Government is being proactive & progressive. Makes me happy! This is a "guidance" to the ORR IT companies that employ lakhs but also cause congestion on 6 lanes," Srinivas Alavilli, Janaagraha worker, said in a tweet.
We often criticise government for lack of planning and coordination. For valid reasons. But here is a case where Government is being proactive & progressive. Makes me happy! This is a “guidance” to the ORR IT companies that employ lakhs but also cause congestion on 6 lanes. (1/n) pic.twitter.com/Ej5B7FYvmU
— Srinivas Alavilli (@srinualavilli) August 23, 2021
As it appears, the Metro construction on ORR from Central Silk Board to KR Puram may extend to 1.5 to 2 years. Some companies like Cisco already adopted permanent work-from-home policy, but there are hundreds who would have to take the decision based on the government's recommendation.
