Chandrahas Shetty.

• 1959: IISc had already established Bengaluru as a major scientific and engineering centre. • 1970s: Karnataka’s public sector ecosystem — HAL, BEL, ITI and others — created a strong industrial and technical talent base. • 1978: R.K. Baliga, a Kannadiga visionary, spearheaded Electronics City. Karnataka deserves enormous credit for this vision. • 1983: Infosys moved its headquarters to Bengaluru. Wipro and later global technology giants helped transform the city. • 1990s: Karnataka’s IT policies, economic liberalisation and global investment accelerated the IT revolution. • 2006: A NIAS study found that only 35% of Bengaluru’s IT professionals were born in Karnataka, while just 27% identified as Kannada speakers. • FY 2023–24: Karnataka generated approximately ₹4.09 lakh crore in STPI-registered IT exports — around 43% of India’s total. So let’s get the history straight. Kannadigas provided the land, institutional ecosystem, political vision, infrastructure and entrepreneurial foundations. They deserve recognition and respect for that. But millions of Indians from Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Maharashtra, North India and elsewhere came here, built companies, wrote code, managed teams, invested money and helped make Bengaluru a global technology destination. Neither side built this city alone. Kannadigas don’t need to erase migrants’ contributions to take pride in Bengaluru. And migrants don’t need to deny Karnataka’s contribution to feel they belong here. Bengaluru is Karnataka’s crown jewel. But its IT success is a collective Indian achievement. Regional pride is beautiful. Regional hatred is not.