Water crisis a signal for Bengaluru to step up infra game, says ex-IIMB faculty Rajeev Gowda, contesting Bengaluru North for Congress
water crisis and its impact on tech corridors must come as a warning to Bengaluru to improve its infrastructure, MV Rajeev Gowda, a former IIMB professor contesting polls from Bengaluru North as Congress candidate, told ET. “If we don't create and maintain a healthy ecosystem where industries can flourish, other states may lure them away,” he said, referring to Kerala wooing investors from tech giants in Bengaluru to consider the coastal state for investments, promising plenty of water and other facilities.
Gowda (60), son of former Assembly Speaker MV Venkatappa, will be facing off against BJP MP & Union MoS Shobha Karandlaje in a high-stakes battle in the 33 lakh-voters strong constituency on Friday. Entering the electoral fray for the first time, he is also the vice-chairman of the State Institute for Transformation of Karnataka (SITK), the state-own version of Niti Aayog, and has worked on metro-feeder buses in the city.
“When I talk to people and ask them about their problems, the standard answer across the board is: ‘we want better infrastructure.’ People want to be able to move from one place to another for work or education smoothly and quickly. This is where projects like metro feeder buses, suburban railways, come in handy – people should have multiple public transport options so that the use of private vehicles is reduced,” Gowda, who holds a PhD in Public Policy from Wharton School, said.
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