Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, DK Shivakumar discuss action plan to fix Bengaluru’s ORR, PRR and garbage woes

Biocon Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Mohandas Pai and Deputy CM DK Shivakumar met to discuss an action plan addressing Bengaluru's infrastructure issues.

In a significant development amidst ongoing debates over Bengaluru's infrastructure, Biocon Chairperson Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar convened a high-level meeting to address pressing civic issues.

This meeting marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing discourse about Bengaluru's infrastructure. (X/@kiranshaw)

The discussions, which also included prominent figures like TV Mohandas Pai and Maheshwar Rao, Chief of the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA), centered on critical urban challenges such as road conditions, potholes, traffic management, garbage disposal, and concerns related to the Outer Ring Road (ORR) and Peripheral Ring Road (PRR).

“We had a very constructive meeting with Deputy CM @DKShivakumar to agree to an action plan to fix key infra bottlenecks in roads, ORR, PRR drainage traffic and garbage," Shaw wrote on X.

This meeting marks a pivotal moment in the ongoing discourse about Bengaluru's infrastructure.

Previously, Mazumdar-Shaw had been one of the most vocal critics of Bengaluru’s civic decline, often taking to social media to highlight the state of the city’s infrastructure. Earlier this month, she posted on X (formerly Twitter) recounting an interaction with an overseas visitor to Biocon Park who was taken aback by the city’s poor road conditions and piles of uncollected garbage.

“I had an overseas business visitor to Biocon Park who said, ‘Why are the roads so bad and why is there so much garbage around? Doesn’t the government want to support investment?’” Mazumdar-Shaw wrote.

Her post quickly went viral, sparking widespread debate and prompting a sharp response from Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar. Defending the government’s efforts, he said that the administration was acting “with focus and urgency” to resolve civic issues across the city.

“Yes, challenges exist, but we’re addressing them with focus and urgency. ₹1,100 crore has been sanctioned for road repairs, 10,000-plus potholes identified, and over 5,000 already fixed on priority,” Shivakumar said in a post on X, adding that major infrastructure works were being fast-tracked across the Outer Ring Road and other arterial stretches.