KTR's attempts to compare Bengaluru with Hyderabad "utter joke", says Karnataka CM

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday dismissed Telangana IT Minister K T Rama Rao’s attempts to compare Bengaluru with Hyderabad as ”utter joke”.

He was responding to Rao’s recent tweet asking an entrepreneur in Bengaluru to shift to Hyderabad, claiming better physical and social infrastructure there.

”It is an utter joke….not just India, people from across the world are coming to Bengaluru. Highest startups are in Bengaluru. Highest unicorns are in Bengaluru, million and billion dollars worth,” Bommai said in response to a question on Rao’s tweet.

Speaking to reporters here, he said, ”The highest FDI in the country, more than 40 per cent of FDI, for the successive last three quarters Karnataka is number one. So comparing Karnataka with Telangana or Bengaluru with Hyderabad is an utter joke.” On March 31, responding to a tweet by serial entrepreneur Ravish Naresh, complaining about Bengaluru’s infrastructure, Rao had asked him to ”Pack your bags & move to Hyderabad.” ”…We have better physical infrastructure & equally good social infrastructure. Our airport is 1 of the best & getting in & out of city is a breeze. More importantly our Govt’s focus is on 3 i Mantra; innovation, infrastructure & inclusive growth,” he tweeted.

Complaining about Bengaluru’s roads and infrastructure, Naresh, who is Founder/CEO of Khatabook, in a tweet had said, ”Startups in HSR/Koramangala (India’s Sillicon Valley) are already generating billions of $ of taxes. Yet we have v bad roads, almost daily power cuts, poor quality water supply, unusable foot paths. Many rural areas now have better basic infra than India’s Sillicon Valley” Also the nearest airport is about three hours away in peak traffic, he had complained.

In response to another tweet, Rao on Monday tweeted, ”Strange & sad are the state of affairs in Bengaluru!! And then some BJP politicos from Bengaluru come & lecture us on how to run the Govt in Telangana! What’s happening in KA (Karnataka) is a shame on to all of us in India; ruins our reputation as a nation in attracting investments.”