'I paid taxes for roads, not for rollercoaster: Bengaluru techies use songs, t-shirts and rangoli to slam civic apathy

Bengaluru techies questioned where their money was going when basic civic necessities like motorable roads remained unmet.

Tired of cratered roads and civic apathy, Bengaluru’s tech professionals turned to creativity to make their voices heard. On Saturday, residents of the Panathur-Balagere area, nestled near the Outer Ring Road tech corridor, staged a unique protest using music and art to highlight city’s crumbling infrastructure.

The protest in Bengaluru was organised by the Individual Tax Payers Forum. (X/@BalagereConnect)

From T-shirts that read “I paid taxes for roads, not for a rollercoaster” to reimagined Kannada songs, the protest turned into a visually powerful statement that quickly went viral on social media.

Protesters even used rangoli to outline potholes, symbolically highlighting the cracks in both the roads, and the system meant to maintain them.

Watch the protest video here:

According to a NDTV, the protest was organised by the Individual Tax Payers Forum. Protesters questioned where their money was going when basic civic necessities like motorable roads remained unmet.

How did X users react?

X users reacted with a mix of frustration and cynicism, pointing to the long-standing neglect faced by Bengaluru’s taxpayers.

“It’s tragic to witness the helplessness of taxpayers. No accountability, just loot,” one user wrote. Another commented that even if the BBMP repairs the roads, they won’t last more than three months, citing poor quality work.

Several users recalled similar protests in the past, like one near Iblur Junction in 2015 that saw thousands from the Ecospace and Pritech areas join in, yet the situation, they said, has only worsened.

Many called for greater accountability, demanding elections for the BBMP and a leadership that answers to the city's residents. Some even suggested launching a #NoRoadsNoTax campaign instead of staging protests that “can’t wake up the Kumbhakarna Karnataka Sarkara or BBMP.”

Pothole-themed cake protest

In a similar protest in December 2024, around 200 residents from Bengaluru’s Panathur area took to the streets, cutting a cake designed to mimic a pothole-ridden road. Their demonstration brought attention to the deteriorating condition of the infamous S-Cross Road, urging the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) to take swift action to widen the road and resolve the long-standing pothole problem.