Heavy rain in Bengaluru’s tech corridor triggers waterlogging & traffic chaos

Bengaluru: Heavy rains lashed the city's tech corridor — including HSR Layout, Bommanahalli, Bellandur, Iblur, and Sarjapur Road — leaving commuters stranded in knee-deep water and vehicles crawling in bumper-to-bumper traffic on Thursday evening.

Several arterial roads, including stretches near the Silk Board junction, were inundated as ongoing drain development work by the Bengaluru Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB) led to a backflow into the streets.

Officials from Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) confirmed that the waterlogging was primarily due to incomplete or blocked drain segments under the BWSSB project. "Water that was supposed to pass into the secondary drains, instead gushed into the carriageway," said a senior GBA engineer.

According to data from the India Meteorological Department (IMD), the highest rainfall was recorded in Bommanahalli at 34 mm, followed by HSR Layout with 24 mm, HAL Airport Station 2 with 23.5 mm, and Garudacharpalya with 19.5 mm.

The downpour was concentrated along the city's southeastern belt.

In Begur, the situation was particularly grim. "The drain overflows every time it rains, and the entire street is in knee-deep water. Since this is a low-lying area, it gets flooded within minutes," said Sathyanarayan G.K., a resident of Classic Layout, Begur, who alleged that repeated complaints lodged with the authorities have fallen into deaf ears.

His frustration was echoed by Kiran Kumar from the same layout in Begur, who said: "Such is life in Begur. Every time the sewage water gushes in, we are doomed. We cannot even step out of our homes, and the stench is unbearable."

In HSR Sector 6, citing incomplete civic works, Arvind Krishnan pointed out: "Half the road has been dug up for the BWSSB drain works, and the rest is filled with silt. They promised to finish the relaying before the monsoon, but nothing moved."

Divya Suresh, from HSR Sector 7, added: "Near the Agara Lake junction, the stormwater drain overflowed and sewage mixed with rainwater. It's unbearable — the stench, mosquitoes, and traffic jams have made life miserable."

With residents at their wits' end, a BWSSB official reasoned: "We are carrying out underground secondary drainage works to ensure the sewage flows smoothly without choking the roads. However, frequent clogging happens because of garbage dumped by residents. Moreover, our work was delayed by the monsoon."

Traffic police, too, struggled to manage the chaos with a tailback stretching over more than 3 km on the downward ramp to Bommanahalli.

A police official at Madiwala said: "There is severe waterlogging on the exit ramp from the Silk Board flyover towards Bommanahalli. With the service roads choked, our teams are diverting traffic to the inner roads."

Meanwhile, Bellandur police said waterlogging was a recurring issue along the stretch, but an even bigger problem was two-wheeler riders parking their vehicles by the roadside to take shelter from the rain.

"Cars get stuck between these parked bikes, leading to a jam that stretches for nearly 2 km. Though the rain stopped around 7:30 pm, traffic had already piled up, which took another 20 minutes to clear," a police official added.