Wipro founder and chairman Azim Premji has declined to open the company’s campus to outside traffic for use as a thoroughfare after Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah sought cooperation to decongest roads in the area.
Bengaluru has been grappling with a traffic nightmare across the city.
The chief minister in his letter had asked whether Wipro could open its Sarjapur campus to public vehicle traffic.
Mr Premji acknowledged the gravity of the issue and expressed appreciation for Siddaramaiah’s appeal for corporate support in tackling traffic congestion on Bengaluru’s Outer Ring Road.
The Wipro chairman, however, pointed out the campus in Sarjapur is designated a special economic zone (SEZ) and is bound by strict access control rules due to its global service commitments.
“With respect to the specific suggestion of allowing public vehicular movement through our Sarjapur campus, we apprehend significant legal, governance, and statutory challenges since it is an exclusive private property owned by a listed company not intended for public thoroughfare,” Mr Premji said in the letter.
“That apart it will also be appreciated that our Sarjapur campus is a SEZ providing services to global customers, our contractual conditions mandate stringent, non-negotiable access control norms for governance and compliance. Moreover, public vehicular movement through private property would not be effective as a sustainable, long-term solution,” Mr Premji said.