The IT companies operating from the tech city of Bengaluru will not be able to open their offices anytime soon and the obvious reason, the COVID-19 pandemic, is definitely not behind this decision. The reason is that the Karnataka government has requested IT companies to extend the Work From Home (WFH) period till December next year.
But what could be the other possible reason for the Karnataka government to take such a decision? So here's the reason behind it. All IT companies operating in the surrounding areas of Outer Ring Road (ORR) in Bengaluru will Work From Home (WFH) till December next year in the backdrop of commencement of the Metro Construction work on the stretch.
An advisory to the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) to this effect was issued by E V Ramana Reddy, Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Electronics, IT, BT & Science and Technology on August 21. The government also urged IT companies to encourage their required staff to use public transport or company vehicles instead of using their private vehicles.
The main reason behind this is to prevent traffic congestion in the Outer Ring Road. However, it is not mandatory. The Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (BMRCL) is commencing work on Outer Ring Road from Central Silk Board to KR Puram in the coming days. It could take at least 2 years for the completion of the metro project.
Many large tech parks and IT companies and campuses are situated in the Outer Ring Road of Bengaluru leading to huge vehicular movement. As many as 1.5 lakh IT professionals work in about 800 companies located on the stretch. If IT companies resume work from their respective offices then traffic jams in this stretch will be more common as metro work will also resume and parts of the roads will be blocked because of it.
