Sridhar Vembu, CEO of Zoho, has weighed in on the ongoing debate around the declining quality of life in Bengaluru and drew attention towards the migration crisis in the tech city. The 57-year-old entrepreneur thinks that truly great cities cannot be built when large sections of the rural population are forced to migrate to overcrowded urban cities in search of livelihoods. Vembu’s views came in response to Mohandas Pai’s critique of the Siddaramaiah-led Congress government in Karnataka, which completed two years in office.
“Big big failure of government,” read the 5-word introductory sentence of the social media post by former Infosys CFO TV Mohandas Pai
He added, “After 2 years, 100,000 cr spent on freebies, paid by Bengaluru, what did we get? Total collapse of our city. Drains are not cleared, potholes not fully fixed, repeated promises, repeated failures,” before asking, “When will this govt work? Is there any governance or credibility left?”
What has Vembu said on X?
Vembu, in response to Pai’s concerns, argued that while Bengaluru aspires to become a first-world city, the dream is hindered by rampant “rural joblessness” and “unchecked migration”. He also acknowledged that electoral politics in rural areas revolves around cash transfer schemes as a majority of the population lives in poverty.
“Bengaluru aspires to join the first world but we have the harsh reality of a vast population in poverty whose vote depends on cash transfer schemes, even as rural joblessness leads to unchecked migration to Bengaluru,” said Vembu on Twitter (now X), before calrifying that his social media post is not a “rant against politicians”.
He then said that his observations stem from his own personal experience: “My rural life has exposed me to the complexity of India and how our politics reflects it. If I were in politics (and I am glad I am not and I get to work on AI and compilers) I cannot think of a way to win without offering cash transfer.”
Vembu stressed that “great cities” cannot be built if a “vast population” migrates to “overcrowded cities with broken and heavily overloaded infrastructure”.
“The quality of life in Bengaluru depends crucially on how many people we succeed in not sending to Bengaluru from rural India,” he further said.
Bengaluru aspires to join the first world but we have the harsh reality of a vast population in poverty whose vote depends on cash transfer schemes, even as rural joblessness leads to unchecked migration to Bengaluru.
This is not a rant against politicians. My rural life has… https://t.co/SQOQBKu8vS
— Sridhar Vembu (@svembu) May 20, 2025
Does social media agree with him? Let’s find out
“Agree with you 100%. We need to have multiple industrial clusters within a big state and at least 1 in smaller states. People should not be forced to migrate beyond 100- 150 kms for normal coding jobs/skills which can be performed closer to his/her birthplace,” said one social media user.
Another joined, “The truth is simple and uncomfortable: we cannot build livable cities without first fixing the desperation that drives people to them. Until then, the First World fantasy will always collapse under the weight of its own denial.”
“Everyone wants Bengaluru to be a ‘world-class city’ until it’s time to ask why millions are fleeing rural India just to survive here. Sure, blame the traffic, the garbage, the chaos. But never ask why villages can’t provide livelihoods. That’s not trendy. Meanwhile, cash transfer schemes? ‘Vote buying,’ they scoff, from their air-conditioned echo chambers. As if you can win elections in a country where hunger still stands in line,” a third, who agreed with what Vembu said, chimed in.
A fourth Internet user commented, “Bengaluru stuck between its big dreams and the reality of rural poverty driving migration. It’s wild how much rural joblessness pushes people into an already strained city. Gotta find ways to boost rural opportunities to give Bengaluru some breathing room.”
Bengaluru, which is often in the news due to its notorious traffic or the tech, is now making headlines for poor infrastructure as incessant rainfall in the Silicon Valley of India has wreaked havoc in Karnataka’s capital and brought it to a standstill. The India Meteorological Department (IMD) has issued an orange alert for Bengaluru and yellow alert for several areas across Karnataka.