Downturn in Bangalore

A drive around Bangalore will tell you the extent to which the slowdown has hit the city. There are ‘To-Let’ boards all over the city for both residential and commercial places. There wasn’t a single shop available in central business areas or market places. Even if available it came at a high premium. Now shop space in available for rent even in the busiest of commercial areas. Places where there used to be perennial traffic jams now have smooth flowing traffic. This could also be that the timings of quite a few software companies have been extended and hence very few people are returning home around 6.30 pm everyday.

Landlords are unwilling to rise the stipulated 5% in rentals which was the norm earlier. The reason is a sharp drop in rentals across the city. The tenants can just pack their bags and rent another similar space thus saving anywhere between Rs. 1000 to 5000 per month on rental and maintenance. There are quite a few PG accommodations empty thanks to the layoffs. The ex-employees, not having many job choices, are leaving for the city. They hope to cut down on their maintenance expenses this way and return when the tide turns in the job market.

The crowd at the multiplexes and malls is also thinning. Earlier one used to avoid driving on the road in front of a mall in the evenings and weekends for the fear of a traffic jam. The traffic police and the security personnel of the mall used to have a tough time controlling the incoming crowd. Now the traffic police must be happy that only one policeman can man the place.

I was amazed to find availability in trains in the months of April and May. This is the summer vacation time and every year Indian Railways runs extra trains as ‘Summer Specials’ to cater to the vacation crowd. Looks like people do not want to go to vacation for the fear of losing their jobs.

The worst effected are the ones who have EMIs to pay. They fear taking a day off even when they are sick. The rise in interest rates hasn’t helped them in the recent past. They cannot hope to get out as the value of property has fallen and they cannot repay the loan even if they sell the property. Quite a few people are willing to relocate and take up any role as long as it helps them get a monthly cheque to pay the EMIs. These are the very people who earlier were spoilt for choice in office location, designation and pay.

Though the whole scenario is depressing, there is a silver lining. Car pooling and using public transport is also on the rise. People are extra careful nowadays in saving power hoping to cut down on their monthly expenses. Those who used to take the car out even for a short trip to the grocery store are now walking that one kilometer. Hope this prudence continues in future so that Bangalore can be cleaner and greener place.