The protest by garment workers on Hosur Road on Monday severely impacted the IT workforce around Electronics city.
More than the general-shift employees, those in the UK shift were affected.
In many companies, general shift starts around 10 a.m. while overseas shifts, like services for the UK and the US, start after noon.
According to some employees, they were stranded on the road for more than two hours.
“We were in a bus on the way to my office in Electronics City. Suddenly, we saw a group of people blocking the road near Bommanahalli. Traffic was blocked on service roads too. People were burning tyres,” said an employee of a leading IT services company.
The angry mob asked people to get out of the buses.
In the early hours of the protest, employees, who use the elevated highway to Electronics City, reached office on time.
The employees of smaller IT companies and BPOs functioning on Hosur Road bore the brunt.
“From afternoon, traffic on the elevated highway too was choked up. With vehicles being diverted, Bannerghatta Road too began bearing the brunt,” said Rama N.S, CEO of Electronics City Industrial Township Authority (ELCITA).
Considering the emerging scenario, many companies, including Infosys, made alternative arrangements for employees to return home in the evening.
The traffic jam on the busy Hosur Road extended over 10 km. The situation became worse when protesters clashed with the police, resulting in injuries on both sides.
Initially traffic cops diverted traffic heading to Electronics City on the elevated expressway and Nice Road, but soon these roads were also choked. The jam snowballed with traffic coming to a standstill at Madiwala checkpost, Silk Board junction, BTM Main Road, Bannerghatta Road, Hosa Road and Hulimavu as well.
