Most private schools and government offices in the city are likely to remain closed on Thursday in view of the statewide bandh.
Many organisations have called a bandh to support the state's cause in the Mahadayi river water dispute.
The Karnataka State Government Employees' Association is not only participating in the shutdown but also giving away a day's salary for the cause.
Citing safety concerns, the Associated Managements of Primary and Secondary Schools in Karnataka said member-schools would remain closed on January 25.
The holiday hinders teachers from covering the syllabus ahead of the upcoming exams, but schools will conduct additional classes on Saturday, the association says.
Mansoor A Khan of the Managements of Independent CBSE Schools Association (MICSA) said individual schools were free to take a call. "But they will most likely declare a holiday as we don't know what the law and order situation could be," he said.
V Shankar, deputy commissioner for Bengaluru Urban district, said he would discuss the matter with officials and make an announcement. He holds the authority to declare holidays for all schools and colleges in the district.
Bangalore University has postponed all exams scheduled for January 25.
It has put up the revised schedule on its website bangaloreuniversity.ac.in. Time and venue remain unchanged, a statement said.
KSRTC and BMTC officials said they would operate buses as long as there was no threat to their security.
H V Anantha Subbarao, the general secretary of the KSRTC Staff and Workers Federation, said its members supported the cause but wouldn't participate in the bandh.
However, past experience shows that bus services are stopped or severely curtailed on bandh days.