Bengaluru and its traffic troubles are again in the headlines and this time, because of something that astronaut Shubhanshu Shukla said. The Indian astronaut was addressing a tech summit in the IT-city on Thursday, where during his presentation, he mentioned that he spent thrice the time in traffic than what he would spend at the event. The quip was followed by laughter, but it has ignited the traffic debate in Bengaluru again.

Shukla, who ventured to the International Space Station (ISS), said that his travel from Marathahalli took three times longer than the speech he was scheduled to give.

“I am coming all the way from the other side of Bengaluru, Marathahalli. I have spent thrice the time that I am going to be spending on this presentation with you. So you have to look at the commitment that I have,” he said.

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“You can reach space faster than you can reach Tumkur Road from Marathahalli in Bengaluru!” the Gaganyaan astronaut added.

Karnataka Minister responds

Soon after the video and the comment went viral, Karnataka minister Priyank Kharge responded that the state government would ensure this never repeats.

“Shubhanshu Shukla said it was easier for him to get from space to Bengaluru, but getting from Marathahalli to this venue was difficult,” Kharge added, reports said.

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Bengaluru’s forever infra trouble

A few weeks back, the discussion over Bengaluru’s crumbling infrastructure resulted into a fierce exchange of words between top business and IT tycoons like Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Mohandas Pai and Karnataka government. The two kept highlighting the troubles that people face in Bengaluru, including roads, traffic and garbage mess. 

Days later, a meeting was held wherein all the stakeholders were present and a decision to develop Bengaluru on standard ground was taken.