D K Shivakumar says not even God can save Bangalore’s Traffic : Public and Tech giants hit back

BM Team

Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar has been the face of Bengaluru’s development, advocating “Brand Bengaluru” with grand promises and grandiose plans. But his recent statement that ‘Even God himself wouldn’t be able to fix Bengaluru in the next two to three years’ has caused eyebrows to rise and few smirks.

Shivakumar made this remark at the Namma Road workshop, where he painted a rather grim picture of the city’s challenges. “Even if God descends, it will take at least two to three years to fix Bengaluru,” he declared. Fair enough, the city’s problems are no joke.

What got people wondering, however, was the timing. Two to three years? That just coincidentally happens to be the time frame of the Congress government’s term, with many asking the question, “Will Bengaluru’s true development start only when DKS reaches the Chief Minister’s chair”?
Opposition critics are also sure of that. BJP’s R. Ashok accused Shivakumar of treating Bengaluru like a political pawn. “If you can’t manage the portfolio, let it go to someone who knows,” he said, slamming the Deputy CM for allegedly creating roadblocks in progress while angling for power.
Meanwhile, the people are getting restless. Entrepreneur Mohandas Pai went on Twitter with a sharp reality check. He asked why pedestrian-friendly roads, improved public transport, and timely metro development are still a distant dream in spite of tall claims. “We cheered you as a strong Minister,” he posted. “But our lives have only become worse!”

Shivakumar maintains that he is interested in long-term solutions like improved roads, cleaner pathways, greater green cover. But at what rate? With engineers, politicians, and bureaucrats coming and going, what is important is the work done here and now.

And right now, the potholes still gape, the traffic still crawls, and the city waits.
So, is Bengaluru’s growth really a Herculean effort that even godly intervention could not hasten? Or is it simply waiting for one person to take the throne before the wheels begin to turn?