It seems to be good news for all the employees working for IT firms located in IT hub Bengaluru. The Karnataka government has urged the IT companies to extend work from home till December 2022.
The request has come in the backdrop of commencement of the Bengaluru metro construction work on the stretch and to reduce traffic congestion in the area. The Karnataka government has issued an advisory to IT companies and parks located along Bengaluru’s Outer Ring Road (ORR).
The advisory has sought extension of the ongoing Work From Home (WFH) option for IT employees till December 2022. The advisory was issued to the National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) on August 21 by Additional Chief Secretary, Department of Electronics and Information Technology, EV Ramana Reddy.
The state government highlighted that in the COVID pandemic period, IT companies' Work From Home policy provided some relief to traffic movement on Outer Ring Road (ORR). The Outer Ring Road (ORR) stretch, which is home to about 800 companies with a workforce of 1.5 lakh IT professionals, is infamous for huge traffic congestions.
Keeping this in mind, the state government emphasized that the metro construction project could take at least 2 years for completion and it would be difficult to manage traffic if IT companies allow employees to resume work from offices.
Meanwhile, the government has also asked IT companies to encourage their required staff to use public transport or company vehicles (buses) instead of using their private vehicles. However, the advisory is reportedly in the form of a suggestion and not mandatory.