As employees in Bengaluru skip office amid water crisis, employers face fresh challenges
Infosys, Wipro, as well as well-known start-ups, has been hit by a crippling water outage that has left taps dry across parts of the city just weeks ahead of general elections.
The water crisis in Bengaluru presents a daunting challenge exacerbated by rapid urbanisation and population growth, and it is impacting households as also the IT and tech hubs' operations, say city residents who are facing stringent water restrictions.
Local residents and industry blame the severe water shortage on rapid urbanisation without proper planning, unequal and improper distribution, poor water management and negligence by local authorities.
«The issue is real. Whereas societies got full-day water flow earlier, now water is available only for half of the day. Almost half of the city is grappling with water shortage,» a local resident said.
Videos, on social media platforms, show residents struggling to get water for their basic necessities. Water rationing, housing society advisories to use water sparingly, and people skipping work to make it to long queues for stocking up on essential water supply, underline the grim reality for this bustling tech hub.
Founder and CEO of Matrimony.com, Murugavel Janakiraman, suggested mandatory water harvesting to solve the crisis.
The issue can be solved by taking steps towards reducing water consumption, recycling, rejuvenating and creating water bodies to increase groundwater levels, and the government facilitating water supply," he said.
«Companies have started giving work from home, as
