Why flood-prone Bengaluru still sinks: Poor planning, vanishing lakes & no local governance

While Bengaluru’s M Chinnaswamy Stadium can drain water swiftly with advanced technology, the city itself remains highly vulnerable to flooding during rains. This contrast highlights the larger issue: a city built for profit, not resilience. Despite being 3,000 feet above sea level, Bengaluru floods frequently, unlike flood-prone regions like the Netherlands, where long-term planning and infrastructure have kept water at bay.

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Experts blame the city’s worsening flood crisis on decades of unregulated development, particularly since the IT boom of the 1990s. Lakes were filled and converted into commercial and residential spaces, disrupting natural drainage paths. Now, as rains return, the city’s concrete landscape leaves water with nowhere to go.

Although the city thrives as a global digital hub, basic civic infrastructure has been neglected across political regimes. Each monsoon, familiar scenes unfold: waterlogged roads, submerged vehicles, power cuts, building damage, and emergency rescues. Promises of flood readiness are routinely made, but just a few downpours expose the gaps.

Bengaluru is naturally divided into three main valley systems, Hebbal, Koramangala-Challaghatta, and Vrishabhavathi, which have been heavily encroached upon. Only about 60% of the city’s stormwater drains have protective walls, and half of the encroachments remain uncleared. Poor desilting, widespread concretization, and stalled flood-control measures have worsened the situation.

The Karnataka government has allocated Rs 2,000 crore for stormwater upgrades and flood prevention under a new initiative, but experts argue that the issue lies deeper, in governance and planning. Calls for an elected city government, empowered local representatives, and decentralised control over resources continue to grow.

Urban planning experts stress the need to reintroduce permeability into the city, via soak pits, retention systems, recharge wells, and reimagined parks. Current rainfall intensity often exceeds the design limits of the existing drains, leading to flooding in low-lying areas and newly developed zones like Sarjapur Road and Yelahanka.

Bengaluru has been without an elected civic council since 2020. Officials are often rotated, but local corporators could act faster and more effectively during crises. While governments invest in massive projects like tunnels and flyovers, critics argue that flood prevention should take priority to protect both the city and its global reputation.