Top IT companies have asked employees in Bengaluru to work from home as torrential rain has thrown life out of gear in India's Silicon City, inundating residential areas and arterial roads and crippling traffic.
Known as India’s innovation hub, Bengaluru is home to various global companies and home-grown start-ups. The city has established itself as an important business centre of the country.
After incessant rains over the weekend, Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs asked their employees to work from home, Reuters reported quoting sources. IT major Wipro and Walmart's Flipkart also advised their staff to work from home.
“Due to heavy rainfall in Bengaluru, Wipro has advised its employees to work from home today,” Wipro told PTI on Tuesday.
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The meteorological centre in Bengaluru said rains and thunderstorms are likely to continue in the city today. Areas such as Bengaluru Urban, Bengaluru Rural, Belagavi, Bagalkote, Chickbalapura and Kolar are likely to be affected by the rainfall.
As rains caused massive waterlogging in the city and disrupted traffic in Bengaluru, footage of IT workers travelling in tractors to workplaces emerged on social media platforms, PTI reported.
“We cannot take so many leaves from the office, our work is getting affected. We are awaiting tractors to drop us for Rs 50,” ANI quoted a woman working in an IT firm as saying.
Among areas that have been most affected are Outer Ring Road, Sarjapur Road, BEML Layout, Bellandur and Whitefield.
Outer Ring Road Companies Association (ORRCA) has asked over a million tech and bank workers working in different enterprises in the ORR area to work from home for the whole week.
Krishna Kumar, general manager, at ORRCA told The Hindu that the companies had asked only 30 percent of the people to come to offices after the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Now with this kind of waterlogging and flooding situation and unbearable traffic snarls, we have asked all employees to work from home for the next five days,” Kumar said.
Start-up company Meesho announced a “Boundaryless Workplace Model” in February this year which allows its employees to log in to work from any location of their choice. This model has helped the employees in the current situation in Bengaluru when daily commute has been disrupted, PTI quoted a Meesho spokesperson as saying.
Meanwhile, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai said he will discuss the loss of Rs 225 crore with IT companies caused by the rain and waterlogging in Bengaluru.
“We'll also discuss the compensation and other related damages that have been caused due to the rain,” ANI quoted Bommai as saying.
(Edited by : Sudarsanan Mani)
First Published: Sept 7, 2022 11:27 AM IST
