By Anubhav Maurya

Copyright republicworld

Bengaluru’s reputation as India’s startup hub has once again come under the spotlight, as logistics startup BlackBuck announced that it will move its office out of the city’s Outer Ring Road (ORR) area. The company cited worsening road conditions, heavy traffic congestion, and rising commute times as the main reasons behind its decision.For nearly nine years, BlackBuck operated from Bellandur, one of the busiest stretches along ORR and home to several major technology firms and startups. However, Co-Founder and CEO Rajesh Yabaji said that the deteriorating infrastructure had made it impossible to continue operations there.In a social media post, Yabaji wrote, “It’s now very, very hard to continue here. We have decided to move out.” He explained that the office had been both an “office and home” for almost a decade, but conditions had become unbearable with broken roads, potholes, and dust.Yabaji pointed out that the average one-way commute for BlackBuck employees had risen to over 1.5 hours, severely affecting productivity and work-life balance. Despite repeated complaints from citizens and businesses, he said there had been little intent from authorities to improve the situation.According to him, “Roads full of potholes & dust, coupled with the lowest intent to get them rectified, didn’t see any of this changing in the next five years.” This, he added, forced the company to make the tough call of relocating its office.The Outer Ring Road has long been plagued by traffic bottlenecks, poor road quality, and lack of timely civic maintenance, despite being the backbone of Bengaluru’s IT corridor.BlackBuck’s decision highlights growing frustration within the business community over the city’s crumbling infrastructure.Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar admitted that solving Bengaluru’s infrastructure challenges would take time, urging citizens to cooperate by paying taxes and declaring assets honestly.“All the problems of Bengaluru cannot be solved in one day. We have to deliver, and every citizen should be helped,” he said.Shivakumar recently chaired a high-level meeting on the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) and said officials would be held accountable for poor civic works. He also directed city commissioners to conduct regular inspections.(With inputs from ANI)