Even God Would Find Difficult To Do Anything On Bengaluru Roads: DK Shivakumar's Shocking Admission

Bengaluru: In a surprising admission, Congress leader and Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, DK Shivakumar said that even God would find it “difficult to do anything” on the chaotic roads of Bengaluru.

In an event, Shivakumar said on improving the road infrastructure that “even if God himself descends from heaven and walks on the streets of Bengaluru, nothing will change within one, two, or even three years.”

"The situation is extremely challenging. We need to plan properly and implement projects effectively. We are making an effort to develop a better corridor for the future." he added.

Despite efforts to improve the situation, the city's traffic remains a major challenge, with narrow roads, inadequate public transport, and a lack of effective planning exacerbating the issue.

Shivakumar's Contradicting Signals on Improving Bengaluru's Road Infrastructure

A year ago, Deputy CM of Karnataka, DK Shivakumar claimed that 96 per cent of the potholes in Bengaluru streets have been fixed. He was responding to a query from Jayanagar MLA C.K. Ramamurthy about the initiatives launched under the Brand Bengaluru project during the current Assembly session.

In his reply, Shivakumar said that between April 1-June 30, 2024, a total of 16,202 potholes were identified within BBMP limits, with 15,686 (96%) already fixed, leaving 516 still to be repaired.

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Four months later, in September 2024, Shivakumar claimed to set a 15-days deadline for Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to fill all the potholes in the city.

Shivakumar said to a new agency, “I asked the BBMP commissioner to fill all the potholes in Bengaluru in the next 15 days. The civic body found 2,795 potholes across the city and they will be filled with the cost of ₹660 crore. Compared to previous years, people are now less affected due to rains.”

Contradicting to all his remarks on Bengaluru road situation, on Thursday, Shivakumar said that "even if GOD was to come down on and walk on Bengaluru roads, it is difficult to do anything.”

Deteriorating State of Bengaluru's Road Infrastructure

A week ago, the Aero India 2025 show caused massive traffic jams across Bengaluru, highlighting the city's ongoing struggles with poor road infrastructure and frequent congestion, which often leave commuters frustrated and delayed. 

According to recent reports, commuters in Bengaluru lose almost 117 hours per year due to huge traffic congestion, making it one of the most traffic-congested cities in the world, with the average time to travel 10km being around 34 minutes and 10 seconds during rush hour.

Bengaluru's traffic congestion has reached alarming levels, with the average daily congestion length skyrocketing to 1,638 kilometers by August 2024, a nearly fourfold increase from January's 465 kilometers. The surge in traffic is largely due to waterlogging caused by the monsoon, ongoing roadworks, and frequent vehicle breakdowns.

The city's vehicle count has now exceeded 1 crore, further exacerbating the issue. As a result, the average speed in Bengaluru has dropped from 20.6 km/h in January to 18.6 km/h in August, reflecting the severe impact of traffic on daily commutes.