IT professionals in B'luru take tractor rides to reach office

BENGALURU: With Bengaluru reeling under severe waterlogging due to incessant heavy rains, many IT professionals in India's silicon valley resorted to tractors to reach their workplaces.

Yemalur which is close to the HAL Airport has been submerged in water. Many employees of IT companies living in the area on Monday took tractors to reach their offices.

It is altogether a new experience for the IT professionals in the city taking tractor rides.

"We cannot take so many leaves from the office, our work is getting affected. We are awaiting tractors to drop us for Rs 50," a woman working in an IT firm told ANI. Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has assured IT companies about a discussion on the estimated loss of Rs 225 crore due to rain and waterlogging in Bengaluru.

He said that he would call and discuss the damages and compensation borne by them due to rain and waterlogging in the state capital. "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.

It comes after the IT companies asked the Chief Minister to solve the outer ring road issue. Waterlogging led to traffic jams and disruptions in the lives of normal people in several parts of Bengaluru. One of the locals in the Koramangala area said that waterlogging had taken place due to heavy rainfall, making driving very difficult.

"Too much rain has taken place. We woke up in the morning and saw that waterlogging had started. Water on the road had come up to the level of the divider. After that, we started pumping water out of the road and basement. My whole basement has got submerged under water," a local resident told ANI.

Many of the places in the city basements of shops and apartments got flooded. A local said, "It happens whenever it rains. It has been raining heavily this year. Those who have shops in basements are in trouble."

Another local said that this situation happens yearly and they have to pump out water due to a poor drainage system.

"This happens every year, waterlogging takes place after the rain and we have to pump out water. There is no permanent solution. When the road was being made, the drainage system wasn't prepared well. It leads to many difficulties for the public, many women have actually slipped and fallen into the water," a local said.

Earlier in July, Karnataka suffered heavy floods due to rains, after which rescue missions and relief work had to be carried out. Chief Minister Bommai also had to seek financial assistance from the Centre.