New York would be like Bengaluru if it rained equally: Min Sudhakar on deluge-like situation

Team Udayavani, Sep 6, 2022, 12:15 PM IST

PTI photo

As an overnight downpour led to a deluge-like situation in the country’s IT hub, Karnataka Minister for Health and Family Welfare Dr K. Sudhakar on Tuesday that any city in the world would have faced a similar crisis if it received the same amount of heavy rain as Bengaluru did.

His reaction comes even as netizens lashed out at the state government over the lack of infrastructure in the city that hosts the world’s top IT companies.

Sudhakar also questioned the former director of Infosys Mohandas Pai, who wrote a letter to Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on crumbling infrastructure following the rain. “What would have happened if New York city would have received the same amount of excessive rain as here?

Complaining is a very easy job. Solving the problem is a distant thing. Whose fault is it to merge hundreds of villages into greater Bengaluru and not taking up any development?” Sudhakar questioned.

He further added that in this time of crisis, one must not resort to a blame game but try to overcome the situation.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai, ministers from Bengaluru, elected representatives, officers and members of various organisations were working day and night. Bengaluru city, built by Nadaprabhu Kempa Gowda (ruler of Bengaluru), has evolved as a big city in terms of development.

The lakes built in those times have disappeared. Houses and commercial constructions have come up on stormwater drains. People have constructed their houses in low-lying areas and layouts. “Our government has got this situation as a gift from successive governments. However, we will take this as a challenge and handle the situation.

“This is a gift of variations of global climatic conditions… We have to work unitedly towards building a clean and environment-friendly city,” the minister stated, also warning that nature could be disastrous.

Meanwhile, the opposition Congress on Tuesday has organised a protest against the failure of the BJP government in Karnataka to handle the situation following heavy rain in Bengaluru and other parts of the state at the Freedom Park.

With IANS inputs