Bengaluru: At a gathering meant to honor engineers on Sir M. Vishveshvaraiah Jayanti, one moment stood out. Former Additional Chief Secretary N. Manjunatha Prasad did not simply congratulate the awardees or recount generic achievements. Instead, he went back in time—to 2016, when as BBMP Commissioner he faced one of Bengaluru’s most distressing nights.
Heavy rain had lashed the city, submerging Bommanahalli under sewage and stormwater. Citizens were stranded, houses flooded, panic spreading. “That night, our engineers worked tirelessly, without pause, and by morning the water had been cleared. People could return to their lives,” Prasad recalled.
But why did he choose to revisit this painful memory on a celebratory stage? Perhaps it was to remind Bengaluru that behind every flyover, every drain, and every flood-relief effort stand engineers who rarely get recognition. Or perhaps it was a way to underline how civic crises test not just systems but also the spirit of public service.
Prasad’s reflection was also deeply human. He linked the resilience of his engineers to the ideals of Sir M. Vishveshvaraiah, who rose from losing his father at 13 to becoming a national visionary. By invoking that memory, he seemed to be saying: engineering is not only about concrete and steel, but about responsibility, sacrifice, and courage in the face of crisis.
In asking the audience to remember that stormy night, Prasad left a larger question hanging in the air: Are we, as citizens, willing to acknowledge the unseen hands that keep our cities running—even in the darkest of hours?
ಇದನ್ನೂ ಓದಿ: Bengaluru Engineers’ Day: ನಿಷ್ಠೆಯಿಂದ ಕೆಲಸ ಮಾಡಿದರೆ ಎಂಜಿನಿಯರ್ಗಳಿಗೆ ಜನರ ಮೆಚ್ಚುಗೆ ಸಹಜ: ಮಹೇಶ್ವರ ರಾವ್
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