Friday morning in Bengaluru‘s Devanga Market, usually alive with the rustle of silk sarees and eager shoppers, turned unexpectedly quiet. The wholesale textile hub was left paralyzed after heaps of construction rubble were dumped at both its entry points overnight, trapping more than 60 shops and inflicting major financial losses.
Located on Sri Devaraj Urs Road (formerly Jumma Masjid Road) near Avenue Road, the market has been a key player in Bengaluru’s traditional textile trade since 1961. Operating from a multi-storeyed commercial complex owned by the Devanga Sangha, most of the tenants are long-standing shopkeepers with official lease agreements.
Around 4:30 am, without warning, several trucks allegedly offloaded mounds of debris blocking both the front and rear entrances. Shop owners, alerted through WhatsApp images, rushed to the site only to find themselves unable to access their stores.
The dumped material endangered not just livelihoods but also safety. “Our electric panels are buried under debris. One short circuit has already happened. Surrounded by fabric, a fire could destroy everything,” warned a shopkeeper.
Attempts to contact Sangha members for clarification went unanswered. Traders approached the Halasur Gate police, but were told the issue would be addressed after the weekend. “We can’t afford three days of shutdown—this isn’t a mall, we operate on weekdays,” said Lav Shishodiya, who estimated a ₹20 lakh loss.
Bhaskar from the Sangha cited “miscommunication,” claiming the intent was to dump construction material, not debris. But for traders, the damage was already done.
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