Bangalore

Bangalore
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For other uses, see Bangalore (disambiguation).
Bengaluru
????????
Metropolis
Clockwise from top: UB City, Infosys, Glass house at Lal Bagh, Vidhana Soudha, S
hiva statue, Bagmane Tech Park
Clockwise from top: UB City, Infosys, Glass house at Lal Bagh, Vidhana Soudha, S
hiva statue, Bagmane Tech Park
Nickname(s): Silicon valley of India, Garden City of India.
Bengaluru is located in Karnataka
Bengaluru
Bengaluru
Location in Karnataka
Coordinates: 12°58'N 77°34'ECoordinates: 12°58'N 77°34'E
Country India
State Karnataka
Region Bayaluseeme
District Bangalore Urban
Native Language Kannada
Established 1537
Founded by Kempegowda I
Government
Type MayorCouncil
Body BBMP
Mayor B S Satyanarayana
Commissioner Lakshminarayana[1]
Area
Metropolis 741 km2 (286 sq mi)
Elevation[2] 920 m (3,020 ft)
Population (2014)[3]
Rank 3rd
Metro[4] 10,178,146
Demonym Bangalorean
Time zone IST (UTC+5:30)
Pincode(s) 560 xxx
Area code(s) 91-(0)80-XXXX XXXX
Vehicle registration KA-01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 41, 50, 51, 53, 58,59,60,61
Official language Kannada and English
Climate Aw (Köppen)
Website www.bbmp.gov.in
Bengaluru (Bengaluru, ['be?g??u??u] ( listen)) also known as Bangalore, is the t
hird largest city in India and is the center of India's fifth-largest metropolit
an area. Located in southern India on the Deccan Plateau, it is the capital of t
he southern Indian state of Karnataka. Bangalore is known as the "Silicon Valley
of India" because of its role as the nation's leading information technology (I
T) exporter.[5][6][7] Located at a height of over 3,000 feet (914.4 m) above sea
level, Bangalore is known for its pleasant climate throughout the year.It is th
e highest metro city in India.[8] The city is amongst the top ten preferred entr
epreneurial locations in the world.[9]
A succession of South Indian dynasties, the Western Gangas, the Cholas and the H
oysalas, ruled the present region of Bangalore until in 1537 CE, Kempé Gowda a feu
datory ruler under the Vijayanagara Empire established a mud fort considered to
be the foundation of modern Bangalore. In 1638, the Marathas conquered and ruled
Bangalore for almost 50 years, after which the Mughals captured and sold the ci
ty to the Mysore Kingdom. It later passed into the hands of Hyder Ali and his so
n Tipu Sultan, and was captured by the British after victory in the Fourth Anglo
-Mysore War (1799), who returned administrative control of the city to the Mahar
aja of Mysore. The old city developed in the dominions of the Maharaja of Mysore
, and was made capital of the Princely State of Mysore, which existed as a nomin
ally sovereign entity of the British Raj. In 1809, the British shifted their can
tonment to Bangalore, outside the old city, and a town grew up around it, which
was governed as part of British India. Following India's independence in 1947, B
angalore became the capital of Mysore State, and remained capital when the new I
ndian state of Karnataka was formed in 1956. The two urban settlements of Bangal
ore city and cantonment which had developed as independent entities merged into
a single urban centre in 1949. The existing Kannada name Bengaluru, was declared
as the official name of the city in 2006.
Bangalore is home to many well-recognised educational and research institutions
in India, such as Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Indian Institute of Manage
ment (Bangalore) (IIMB), and National Institute of Mental Health and Neuroscienc
es (NIMHANS). Numerous public sector heavy industries, technology companies, aer
ospace, telecommunications, and defence organisations, such as Bharat Electronic
s Limited (BEL), Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL), National Aerospace Laborat
ories (NAL), Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Infosys, and Wipro are h
eadquartered in the city. A demographically diverse city, Bangalore is a major e
conomic and cultural hub and the second-fastest growing major metropolis in Indi
a.[10] The city also houses the Kannada film industry. As a growing metropolitan
city in a developing country, Bangalore confronts substantial pollution and oth
er logistical and socio-economic problems.[11][12] With a gross domestic product
(GDP) of US$83 billion, Bangalore is fourth among the top 15 cities contributin
g to India's overall GDP.[13]
Contents
1 Etymology
2 History
2.1 Early and medieval history
2.2 Foundation and early modern history
2.3 Later modern and contemporary history
3 Geography
3.1 Climate
4 Demographics
5 Civic administration
5.1 Pollution control
5.2 Slums
5.3 Waste management
6 Economy
7 Transport
7.1 Air
7.2 Rail
7.3 Road
8 Culture
8.1 Art and literature
8.2 Theatre, music, and dance
9 Education
10 Media
11 Sports
11.1 City based clubs
12 See also
13 References
14 Further reading
15 External links
Etymology
The name "Bangalore" represents an anglicised version of the Kannada language na
me, "Benga?uru" ???????? ['be?g??u?ru] ( listen). The earliest reference to the
name "Bengaluru" was found in a ninth-century Western Ganga Dynasty stone inscri
ption on a "vira gallu" (????????) (literally, "hero stone", a rock edict extoll
ing the virtues of a warrior). In this inscription found in Begur, "Bengaluru" i
s referred to as a place in which a battle was fought in 890 CE. It states that
the place was part of the Ganga Kingdom until 1004 and was known as "Bengaval-ur
u", the "City of Guards" in Halegannada (Old Kannada).[14][15]
An apocryphal, though popular, anecdote recounts that the 12th century Hoysala k
ing Veera Ballala II, while on a hunting expedition, lost his way in the forest.
Tired and hungry, he came across a poor old woman who served him boiled beans.
The grateful king named the place "benda-kaal-uru" (literally, "town of boiled b
eans"), which eventually evolved into "Bengaluru".[14][16][17] Suryanath Kamath
has put forward an explanation of a possible floral origin of the name, being de
rived from benga, the Kannada term for Pterocarpus marsupium (also known as the
Indian Kino Tree), a species of dry and moist deciduous trees, that grew abundan
tly in the region.[18]
On 11 December 2005, the Government of Karnataka announced that it had accepted
a proposal by Jnanpith Award winner U. R. Ananthamurthy to rename Bangalore to B
engaluru.[19] On 27 September 2006, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP
) passed a resolution to implement the proposed name change.[20] The government
of Karnataka accepted the proposal, and it was decided to officially implement t
he name change from 1 November 2006.[21][22] However, this process has stalled d
ue to delays in getting clearances from the Union Home Ministry.[23]
History
Main article: History of Bangalore
Early and medieval history
The Begur Nageshwara Temple was built in Bangalore around c. 860, during the rei
gn of the Western Ganga Dynasty.
Someshwara Temple dates from the Chola era
A recent discovery of Stone Age artifacts during the 2001 census of India at Jal
ahalli, Sidhapura and Jadigenahalli, all of which are located on Bangalore's out
skirts today, suggest probable human settlement around 4,000 BCE.[24] Around 1,0
00 BCE (Iron Age), burial grounds were established at Koramangala and Chikkajala
on the outskirts of Bangalore. Coins of the Roman emperors Augustus, Tiberius,
and Claudius found at Yeswanthpur and HAL indicate that Bangalore was involved i
n trans-oceanic trade with ancient civilisations in 27 BCE.[25]
The region of modern day Bangalore was part of several successive South Indian k
ingdoms. Between the fourth and the tenth centuries, the Bangalore region was ru
led by the Western Ganga Dynasty of Karnataka, the first dynasty to set up effec
tive control over the region.[26] According to Edgar Thurston[27] there were twe
nty eight kings who ruled Gangavadi from the start of the Christian era till its
conquest by the Cholas. These kings belonged to two distinct dynasties: the ear
lier line of the Solar race which had a succession of seven kings of the Ratti o
r Reddi tribe, and the later line of the Ganga race. The Western Gangas ruled th
e region initially as a sovereign power (350 550), and later as feudatories of t
he Chalukyas of Badami, followed by the Rashtrakutas till the tenth century.[18]
The Begur Nageshwara Temple was commissioned around 860, during the reign of th
e Western Ganga King Ereganga Nitimarga I and extended by his successor Nitimarg
a II.[28][29] Around 1004, during the reign of Rajendra Chola I, the Cholas defe
ated the Western Gangas, and captured Bangalore.[28] During this period, the Ban
galore region witnessed the migration of many groups - warriors, administrators,
traders, artisans, pastorals, cultivators, and religious personnel from Tamil N
adu and other Kannada speaking regions.[26] The Chokkanathaswamy temple at Domlu
r, the Aigandapura complex near Hesaraghatta, Mukthi Natheshwara Temple at Binna
mangala, Choleshwara Temple at Begur, Someshwara Temple at Madiwala, date from t
he Chola era.[28]
In 1117, the Hoysala king Vishnuvardhana defeated the Cholas in the Battle of Ta
lakad in south Karnataka, and extended its rule over the region.[28] Vishnuvardh
ana expelled the Cholas from all parts of Mysore state.[30] By the end of the 13
th century, Bangalore became a source of contention between two warring cousins,
the Hoysala ruler Veera Ballala III of Halebidu and Ramanatha, who administered
from the Hoysala held territory in Tamil Nadu.[28] Veera Ballala III had appoin
ted a civic head at Hudi (now within Bangalore Municipal Corporation limits), th
us promoting the village to the status of a town. After Veera Ballala III's deat
h in 1343, the next empire to rule the region was the Vijayanagara Empire, which
itself saw the rise of four dynasties, the Sangamas (1336 1485), the Saluvas (1
485 1491), the Tuluvas (1491 1565), and the Aravidu (1565 1646).[31] During the
reign of the Vijayanagara Empire, Achyuta Deva Raya of the Tuluva Dynasty raised
the Shivasamudra Dam across the Arkavati river at Hesaraghatta, whose reservoir
is the present city's supply of regular piped water.[32]
Foundation and early modern history
Bangalore Fort in 1860 showing fortifications and barracks. The fort was origina
lly built by Kempe Gowda I as a mud fort in 1537.
Bangalore Palace, built in 1887 in Tudor architectural style was modelled on the
Windsor Castle in England.[33]
Modern Bangalore had its beginning in 1537 by a vassal of the Vijayanagara Empir
e, Kempé Gowda I, who aligned with the Vijayanagara empire to campaign against Gan
garaja who he defeated and expelled to Kanchi, and who built a mud-brick fort fo
r the people at the site that would become the central part of modern Bangalore.
Kempe Gowda was restricted by rules placed by Achuta Deva Raya who feared the p
otential power of KempeGowda and did not allow for a formidalbe stone fort. Kempé
Gowda referred to the new town as his "gandubhumi" or "Land of Heroes".[17] With
in the fort, the town was divided into smaller divisionseach called a "pete" (IPA
: [pe?te?]). The town had two main streetsChikkapeté Street, which ran east-west, a
nd Doddapeté Street, which ran north-south. Their intersection formed the Doddapeté
Squarethe heart of Bangalore. Kempé Gowda I's successor, Kempé Gowda II, built four t
owers that marked Bangalore's boundary. During the Vijayanagara rule, many saint
s and poets referred to Bangalore as "Devarayanagara" and "Kalyanapura" or "Kaly
anapuri" ("Auspicious City").[34]
After the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565 in the Battle of Talikota, Ban
galore's rule changed hands several times. Kempé Gowda declared independence, then
in 1638, a large Adil Shahi Bijapur army led by Ranadulla Khan and accompanied
by his second in command Shahji Bhonslé defeated Kempé Gowda III,[34] and Bangalore
was given to Shahji as a jagir (feudal estate). In 1687, the Mughal general Kasi
m Khan, under orders from Aurangzeb, defeated Ekoji I, son of Shahji, and sold B
angalore to Chikkadevaraja Wodeyar (16731704), the then ruler of the Kingdom of M
ysore for three lakh rupees.[35] After the death of Krishnaraja Wodeyar II in 17
59, Hyder Ali, Commander-in-Chief of the Mysore Army, proclaimed himself the de
facto ruler of the Kingdom of Mysore. Hyder Ali is credited with building the De
lhi and Mysore gates at the northern and southern ends of the city in 1760.[36]
The kingdom later passed to Hyder Ali's son Tipu Sultan. Hyder and Tipu contribu
ted towards the beautification of the city by building Lal Bagh Botanical Garden
s in 1760. Under them, Bangalore developed into a commercial and military centre
of strategic importance.[34]
Bangalore fort was captured by the British armies under Lord Cornwallis on 21 Ma
rch 1791 during the Third Anglo-Mysore War and formed a centre for British resis
tance against Tipu Sultan.[37] Following Tipu's death in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore
War (1799), the British returned administrative control of the Bangalore "pete"
to the Maharaja of Mysore and was incorporated into the Princely State of Mysor
e, which existed as a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj. The old cit
y ("pete") developed in the dominions of the Maharaja of Mysore. The Residency o
f Mysore State was first established in Mysore City in 1799 and later shifted to
Bangalore in 1804. It was abolished in 1843 only to be revived in 1881 at Banga
lore and to be closed down permanently in 1947, with Indian independence.[38] Th
e British found Bangalore to be a pleasant and appropriate place to station thei
r garrison and therefore moved their cantonment to Bangalore from Seringapatam i
n 1809 near Halsur, about four miles north-east of the City. A town grew up arou
nd the cantonment, by absorbing several villages in the area. The new centre had
its own municipal and administrative apparatus, though technically it was a Bri
tish enclave within the territory of the Wodeyar Kings of the Princely State of
Mysore.[39] Two important developments which contributed to the rapid growth of
the city, include the introduction of telegraph connections to all major Indian
cities in 1853, and a rail connection to Madras in 1864.[40]