Bengalore
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the
capital Capital may refer to: Common uses * Capital city, a municipality of primary status ** List of national capital cities * Capital letter, an upper-case letter Economics and social sciences * Capital (economics), the durable produced goods used f ...
and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a
metropolitan Metropolitan may refer to: * Metropolitan area, a region consisting of a densely populated urban core and its less-populated surrounding territories * Metropolitan borough, a form of local government district in England * Metropolitan county, a typ ...
population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most populous urban agglomeration in India, as well as the largest city in South India, and the 27th largest city in the world. Located on the Deccan Plateau, at a height of over above sea level, Bangalore has a pleasant climate throughout the year, with its parks and green spaces earning it the reputation as the "Garden City" of India. Its elevation is the highest among the major cities of India. An aerospace, heavy engineering and electronics hub since the 1960s, Bangalore is widely regarded as the "Silicon Valley of India" because of its role as the nation's leading information technology (IT) exporter.

In the Ease of Living Index 2020 (published by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs), it was ranked the most livable Indian city with a population of over a million. It also ranks among the highest Indian cities in terms of global livability rankings as well. The city's history dates back to around 890 CE, as found in a stone inscription found at the Nageshwara Temple in Begur, Bangalore. In 1537 CE, Kempé Gowdā – a feudal ruler under the Vijayanagara Empire – established a mud fort, considered the foundation of modern Bangalore and its oldest areas, or ''petes'', which still exist. After the fall of the Vijayanagar empire, Kempe Gowda declared independence; in 1638, a large Adil Shahi Bijapur army defeated Kempe Gowda III, and Bangalore was came under
Shahaji Bhonsle Shahaji Bhonsale (Pronunciation: əɦad͡ʒiː c. 1594 – 1664) was a military leader of India in the 17th century, who served the Ahmadnagar Sultanate, the Bijapur Sultanate, and the Mughal Empire at various points in his career. As a membe ...
as a
jagir A jagir ( fa, , translit=Jāgir), also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar (Zamindar) system. It developed during the Islamic rule era of the Indian subcontinent, start ...
Which later became his capital .The Mughals later captured Bangalore and sold it to
Chikkadevaraja Wodeyar Devaraja Wodeyar II (22 September 1645 – 16 November 1704) was the fourteenth maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore from 1673 to 1704. During this time, Mysore saw further significant expansion after his predecessors. During his rule, centralise ...
(1673–1704), the then ruler of the
Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...
. When Haider Ali seized control of the Kingdom of Mysore, the administration of Bangalore passed into his hands. The city was captured by the British East India Company after victory in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799), who returned administrative control of the city to the Maharaja of Mysore. The old city developed under the dominions of the Maharaja of Mysore and was made capital of the Princely State of Mysore, which existed as a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj. In 1809, the British shifted their
cantonment A cantonment (, , or ) is a military quarters. In Bangladesh, India and other parts of South Asia, a ''cantonment'' refers to a permanent military station (a term from the British India, colonial-era). In military of the United States, United Stat ...
to Bangalore, outside the old city, and a town grew up around it, governed as part of British India. Following India's independence in 1947, Bangalore became the capital of Mysore State, and remained the capital when the new Indian state of Karnataka was formed in 1956. The two urban settlements of Bangalore – city and cantonment – which had developed as independent entities merged into a single urban centre in 1949. The existing Kannada name, ''Bengalūru'', was declared the city's
official name A legal name is the name that identifies a person for legal, administrative and other official purposes. A person's legal birth name generally is the name of the person that was given for the purpose of registration of the birth and which then ap ...
in 2006. Bangalore is the second fastest-growing major metropolis in India. Recent estimates of the metro economy of its urban area have ranked Bangalore either the fourth or fifth most productive metro area of India.

It is home to many educational and research institutions. Numerous state-owned aerospace and defence organisations are located in the city. The city also houses the Kannada film industry and is a hub of sporting events.


Etymology

''Bangalore'' is an
anglicised Anglicisation is the process by which a place or person becomes influenced by English culture or British culture, or a process of cultural and/or linguistic change in which something non-English becomes English. It can also refer to the influen ...
version of the city's Kannada name ''Bengalūru'' ( kn, ಬೆಂಗಳೂರು, link=no, ). It was the name of a village near Kodigehalli in Bangalore city today and was used by Kempegowda to christen the city as Bangalore at the time of its foundation. The earliest reference to the name "Bengalūru" was found in a ninth-century Western Ganga dynasty stone inscription on a ''vīra gallu'' ( kn, ವೀರಗಲ್ಲು, link=no; , a rock edict extolling the virtues of a warrior). According to an inscription found in Begur, "Bengalūrū" was the place of a battle in 890  CE. An
apocryphal Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...
story states that the twelfth-century Hoysala king 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 beans"), which eventually evolved into "Bengalūru".
Suryanath Kamath Suryanath Upendra Kamath (26 April 1937 – 21 October 2015) was an Indian historian who served as the Chief Editor of the Karnataka State Gazetteer from 1981 to 1995. Early life Kamath was born in a Konkani-speaking family on 26 April 1937. ...
has put forward an explanation of a possible floral origin of the name as derived from ''benga'', the Kannada term for '' Pterocarpus marsupium'' (also known as the Indian Kino Tree), a species of dry and moist deciduous trees that grows abundantly in the region. On 11 December 2005, the Government of Karnataka accepted a proposal by Jnanpith Award winner U. R. Ananthamurthy to
rename Rename may refer to: * Rename (computing), rename of a file on a computer * RENAME (command), command to rename a file in various operating systems * Rename (relational algebra) In relational algebra, a rename is a unary operation written as \r ...
Bangalore to ''Bengalūru''. On 27 September 2006, the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) passed a resolution to implement the name change. The government of Karnataka accepted the proposal and it was decided to officially implement the name change from 1 November 2006. The Union government approved this request, along with name changes for 11 other Karnataka cities, in October 2014. Hence, Bangalore was renamed to "Bengaluru" on 1 November 2014.


History


Early and medieval history

A discovery of
Stone Age The Stone Age was a broad prehistoric period during which stone was widely used to make tools with an edge, a point, or a percussion surface. The period lasted for roughly 3.4 million years, and ended between 4,000 BC and 2,000 BC, with t ...
artefacts during the
2001 Census of India The 2001 Census of India was the 14th in a series of censuses held in India every decade since 1871. The population of India was counted as 1,028,737,436 consisting of 532,223,090 males and 496,514,346 females. Total population increased by 18 ...
at Jalahalli, Sidhapura and Jadigenahalli, all of which are located on Bangalore's outskirts today, suggest human settlement around 4000 BCE. Around 1,000 BCE (during the Iron Age), burial grounds were established at Koramangala and
Chikkajala Chikkajala is a village in Bangalore Urban district of Karnataka, India. History The village has the ruins of an ancient Fort, known as Chikkajala Fort. There are also temple ruins beside the fort. Hoysala king, Vishnuvardhana (1108-1152) constr ...
on the outskirts of Bangalore. Coins of the Roman emperors Augustus, Tiberius, and
Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusu ...
found at Yeswanthpur and HAL Airport indicate that the region was involved in trans-oceanic trade with the Romans and other civilisations in 27 BCE. The region of modern-day Bangalore was part of several successive South Indian kingdoms. Between the fourth and tenth centuries, the region was ruled by the Western Ganga dynasty of Karnataka, the first dynasty to set up effective control over the region. According to Edgar Thurston, there were twenty-eight kings who ruled Gangavadi from the start of the Christian era until its conquest by the Cholas. The Western Gangas ruled the region initially as a sovereign power (350–550 CE), and later as feudatories of the Chalukyas of Badami, followed by the Rashtrakutas until the tenth century. The Begur Nageshwara Temple was commissioned around 860, during the reign of the Western Ganga King Ereganga Nitimarga I, and extended by his successor Nitimarga II. Around 1004, during the reign of Raja Raja Chola I, the
Cholas The Chola dynasty was a Tamil thalassocratic empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated to the 3rd century BCE d ...
defeated the Western Gangas under the command of the crown prince Rajendra Chola I, and captured Bangalore. During this period, the Bangalore region witnessed the migration of many groups—warriors, administrators, traders, artisans, pastorals, cultivators, and religious personnel from Tamil Nadu and other Kannada-speaking regions. The Chokkanathaswamy temple at Domlur, the Aigandapura complex near
Hesaraghatta Hesaraghatta Lake is a manmade reservoir located 18 km to the north-west of Bengaluru in Karnataka state, India. It is a fresh water lake created in the year 1894 across the Arkavathy River to meet the drinking water needs of the city. Sir ...
,
Mukthi Natheshwara Temple Mukthi Natheshwara Temple located in Binnamangala, Nelamangala, Karnataka, India, is dedicated to the deity Mukthi Natheshwara (the Hindu god Shiva). It dates back to the Rajaraja Chola Rajaraja I (947 CE – 1014 CE), born Arunmozhi Var ...
at Binnamangala, Choleshwara Temple at Begur,
Someshwara Temple Someshwara Somanatha Temple is situated on the banks of Arabian Sea at the Western Ghats of South India away from Mangalore. The temple is known as Rudrapada Kshetra, and is also a pilgrimage centre for performing Pitrakrayas (last rituals of d ...
at Ulsoor, date from the
Chola The Chola dynasty was a Tamils, Tamil thalassocratic Tamil Dynasties, empire of southern India and one of the longest-ruling dynasties in the history of the world. The earliest datable references to the Chola are from inscriptions dated ...
era. In 1117, the Hoysala king Vishnuvardhana defeated the Cholas in the Battle of Talakad in south Karnataka, and extended its rule over the region. Vishnuvardhana expelled the Cholas from all parts of the Mysore state. By the end of the 13th 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. Veera Ballala III had appointed a civic head at Hudi (now within Bangalore Municipal Corporation limits), thus promoting the village to the status of a town. After Veera Ballala III's death 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 (1485–1491), the Tuluvas (1491–1565), and the Aravidu (1565–1646). During the reign of the Vijayanagara Empire, Achyuta Deva Raya of the Tuluva dynasty raised the Shivasamudra Dam across the
Arkavati The Arkavati is an important mountain river in Karnataka, India, originating at Nandi Hills of Chikkaballapura district. It is a tributary of the Kaveri, which it joins at 34 km south of Kanakapura, Ramanagara District called Sangama in ...
river at
Hesaraghatta Hesaraghatta Lake is a manmade reservoir located 18 km to the north-west of Bengaluru in Karnataka state, India. It is a fresh water lake created in the year 1894 across the Arkavathy River to meet the drinking water needs of the city. Sir ...
, whose reservoir is the present city's supply of regular piped water.


Foundation and early modern history

Modern Bangalore was begun in 1537 by a
chief Chief may refer to: Title or rank Military and law enforcement * Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force * Chief of police, the head of a police department * Chief of the boa ...
of the Vijayanagara Empire, Kempe Gowda I, who aligned with the Vijayanagara empire to campaign against Gangaraja (whom he defeated and expelled to Kanchi), and who built a mud-brick fort for the people at the site that would become the central part of modern Bangalore. Kempe Gowda was restricted by rules made by Achuta Deva Raya, who feared the potential power of Kempe Gowda and did not allow a formidable stone fort. Kempe Gowda referred to the new town as his "gandubhūmi" or "Land of Heroes". Within the fort, the town was divided into smaller divisions, each called a ''pete'' (). The town had two main streets—Chikkapeté Street and Doddapeté Street. Their intersection formed the Doddapeté Square—the heart of Bangalore. Kempe Gowda I's successor, Kempe Gowda II, built four towers that marked Bangalore's boundary. During the Vijayanagara rule, many saints and poets referred to Bangalore as "Devarāyanagara" and "Kalyānapura" or "Kalyānapuri" ("Auspicious City"). After the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565 in the Battle of Talikota, Bangalore's rule changed hands several times. Kempe Gowda declared independence, then in 1638, a large Adil Shahi Bijapur army led by Ranadulla Khan and accompanied by his second in command Shāhji Bhōnslē defeated Kempe Gowda III, and Bangalore was given to Shāhji as a ''
jagir A jagir ( fa, , translit=Jāgir), also spelled as jageer, was a type of feudal land grant in the Indian subcontinent at the foundation of its Jagirdar (Zamindar) system. It developed during the Islamic rule era of the Indian subcontinent, start ...
'' (feudal estate). around 1639
Shahaji Bhonsle Shahaji Bhonsale (Pronunciation: əɦad͡ʒiː c. 1594 – 1664) was a military leader of India in the 17th century, who served the Ahmadnagar Sultanate, the Bijapur Sultanate, and the Mughal Empire at various points in his career. As a membe ...
given order to reconstruction of destroyed City and building new lakes to solve water shortage of region. Mughal Mughal or Moghul may refer to: Related to the Mughal Empire * Mughal Empire of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries * Mughal dynasty * Mughal emperors * Mughal people, a social group of Central and South Asia * Mughal architecture * Mug ...
general Kasim Khan, under orders from
Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
, defeated
Ekoji I Vyankojirajah Bhonsle (born 1632) or Ekojirajah I Bhonsle was the younger half-brother of Shivaji and founder of Maratha rule in Thanjavur in modern day Tamil Nadu. He was the progenitor of the junior branch of the Bhonsle family which ruled ...
, son of Shāhji, and sold Bangalore to
Chikkadevaraja Wodeyar Devaraja Wodeyar II (22 September 1645 – 16 November 1704) was the fourteenth maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore from 1673 to 1704. During this time, Mysore saw further significant expansion after his predecessors. During his rule, centralise ...
(1673–1704), the then ruler of the
Kingdom of Mysore The Kingdom of Mysore was a realm in South India, southern India, traditionally believed to have been founded in 1399 in the vicinity of the modern city of Mysore. From 1799 until 1950, it was a princely state, until 1947 in a subsidiary allia ...
for three lakh rupees. After the death of Krishnaraja Wodeyar II in 1759, 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 Delhi and Mysore gates at the northern and southern ends of the city in 1760. The kingdom later passed to Hyder Ali's son Tipu Sultan. Hyder and Tipu directed the building of the Lal Bagh Botanical Gardens in 1760. Under them, Bangalore developed into a commercial and military centre of strategic importance. The Bangalore fort was captured by British forces under Lord Cornwallis on 21 March 1791 during the Third Anglo-Mysore War and formed a centre for British resistance against Tipu Sultan. Following Tipu's death in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799), the British returned administrative control of the Bangalore pētē to the Maharaja of Mysore and was incorporated into the Princely State of Mysore, which existed as a nominally sovereign entity of the British Raj. The old pētē developed in the dominions of the Maharaja of Mysore. The Residency of 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 Bangalore and closed down permanently in 1947, with Indian independence. The British found Bangalore to be a pleasant and appropriate place to station their
garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mil ...
and therefore moved their cantonment to Bangalore from Seringapatam in 1809 near Ulsoor, about northeast of the city. A town grew up around the cantonment, by absorbing several villages in the area. The new centre had its own municipal and administrative apparatus, though technically it was a British enclave within the territory of the Wodeyar Kings of the Princely State of Mysore. 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 Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
(now Chennai), in 1864.


Later modern and contemporary history

In the 19th century, Bangalore essentially became a twin city, with the "pētē", whose residents were predominantly Kannadigas and the cantonment created by the British. Throughout the 19th century, the Cantonment gradually expanded and acquired a distinct cultural and political salience as it was governed directly by the British and was known as the Civil and Military Station of Bangalore. While it remained in the princely territory of Mysore, Cantonment had a large military presence and a cosmopolitan civilian population that came from outside the princely state of Mysore, including British and
Anglo-Indians Anglo-Indian people fall into two different groups: those with mixed Indian and British ancestry, and people of British descent born or residing in India. The latter sense is now mainly historical, but confusions can arise. The ''Oxford English ...
army officers. Bangalore was hit by a plague epidemic in 1898 that claimed nearly 3,500 lives. The crisis caused by the outbreak catalysed the city's sanitation process. Telephone lines were laid to help co-ordinate anti-plague operations. Regulations for building new houses with proper sanitation facilities came into effect. A health officer was appointed and the city divided into four wards for better co-ordination. Victoria Hospital was inaugurated in 1900 by Lord Curzon, the then Governor-General of British India. New extensions in Malleswaram and
Basavanagudi Basavanagudi is a residential and commercial locality in the Indian city of Bangalore. It is located in South Bangalore, along the borders of Jayanagar. The name "Basavanagudi" refers to the Bull Temple, which contains a monolith statue of the ...
were developed in the north and south of the pētē. In 1903, motor vehicles came to be introduced in Bangalore. In 1906, Bangalore became one of the first cities in India to have electricity from hydro power, powered by the
hydroelectric Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other renewable sources combined and ...
plant situated in Shivanasamudra. The Indian Institute of Science was established in 1909, which subsequently played a major role in developing the city as a science research hub. In 1912, the Bangalore torpedo, an offensive explosive weapon widely used in World War I and World War II, was devised in Bangalore by
British army officer This is a list of senior officers of the British Army. See also Commander in Chief of the Forces, Chief of the General Staff, and Chief of the Imperial General Staff. Captains-General of the British Army, 1707–1809 See article on Captain gene ...
Captain McClintock of the Madras Sappers and Miners. Bangalore's reputation as the "Garden City of India" began in 1927 with the silver jubilee celebrations of the rule of
Krishnaraja Wodeyar IV Maharaja Krishnaraja Wadiyar IV (Nalwadi Krishnaraja Wadiyar; 4 June 1884 – 3 August 1940) was the twenty-fourth maharaja of the Kingdom of Mysore, from 1902 until his death in 1940. He is popularly called ''Rajarshi'' ( sa, rājarṣi, li ...
. Several projects such as the construction of parks, public buildings and hospitals were instituted to improve the city. Bangalore played an important role during the Indian independence movement. Mahatma Gandhi visited the city in 1927 and 1934 and addressed public meetings here. In 1926, the labour unrest in Binny Mills due to demand by textile workers for payment of bonus resulted in lathi charging and police firing, resulting in the death of four workers, and several injuries. In July 1928, there were notable communal disturbances in Bangalore, like when a Ganesh idol was removed from a school compound in the Sultanpet area of Bangalore. In 1940, the first flight between Bangalore and Bombay took off, which placed the city on India's urban map. After India's independence in August 1947, Bangalore remained in the newly carved Mysore State of which the Maharaja of Mysore was the '' Rajapramukh'' (appointed governor). The "City Improvement Trust" was formed in 1945, and in 1949, the "City" and the "Cantonment" merged to form the Bangalore City Corporation. The Government of Karnataka later constituted the
Bangalore Development Authority The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) of Bangalore, India, is a governmental organization (referred to within India as a parastatal entity) and the principal planning authority for Bangalore. Its function, under the Karnataka Town and Countr ...
in 1976 to coordinate the activities of these two bodies. Public sector employment and education provided opportunities for Kannadigas from the rest of the state to migrate to the city. Bangalore experienced rapid growth in the decades 1941–51 and 1971–81, which saw the arrival of many immigrants from northern Karnataka. By 1961, Bangalore had become the sixth-largest city in India, with a population of 1,207,000. In the following decades, Bangalore's manufacturing base continued to expand with the establishment of private companies such as MICO (Motor Industries Company), which set up its manufacturing plant in the city. By the 1980s, urbanisation had spilled over the current boundaries, and in 1986, the Bangalore Metropolitan Region Development Authority, was established to co-ordinate the development of the entire region as a single unit. On 8 February 1981, a major fire broke out at Venus Circus in Bangalore, where more than 92 people died, the majority of them children. Bangalore experienced a growth in its real estate market in the 1980s and 1990s, spurred by capital investors from other parts of the country who converted Bangalore's large plots and colonial
bungalow A bungalow is a small house or cottage that is either single-story or has a second story built into a sloping roof (usually with dormer windows), and may be surrounded by wide verandas. The first house in England that was classified as a b ...
s into multi-storied apartments. In 1985, Texas Instruments became the first multinational corporation to set up base in Bangalore. Other information technology companies followed suit and by the end of the 20th century, Bangalore had established itself as the '' Silicon Valley of India''. Today, Bangalore is India's third most populous city. During the 21st century, Bangalore has had major terrorist attacks in
2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...
,
2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
, and
2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...
.


Geography

Bangalore lies in the southeast of the South Indian state of Karnataka. It is in the heart of the Mysore Plateau (a region of the larger Cretaceous Deccan Plateau) at an average elevation of . It is located at and covers . The majority of the city of Bangalore lies in the Bangalore Urban district of Karnataka and the surrounding rural areas are a part of the
Bangalore Rural district Bangalore Rural district, is one of the 31 districts in Karnataka, India. It was formed in 1986, when Bangalore District was divided into Bangalore Rural and Bangalore Urban. Presently in Bangalore Rural district, there are 1 division, 4 taluk ...
. The Government of Karnataka has carved out the new district of Ramanagara from the old Bangalore Rural district. Bangalore's topography is generally flat, although the western parts of the city are hilly. The highest point is Vidyaranyapura
Doddabettahalli Doddabettahalli is a village located in the Bangalore North Taluk, Karnataka, India. It is the highest natural point in Bangalore. The gentle slopes and valleys on either side of this ridge hold better prospects of ground water utilization. The ...
, above sea level, situated to the northwest of the city. No major rivers run through the city, although the Arkavathi and
South Pennar The South Pennar River (also known as ''Dakshina Pinakini'' in Kannada and ''Thenpennai or Ponnaiyar'' or ''Pennaiyar'' in Tamil) is a river in India. Bangalore, Hosur, Tiruvannamalai, and Cuddalore are the important cities on the banks of Sout ...
cross paths at the Nandi Hills, to the north.
River Vrishabhavathi The Vrishabhavathi River is a minor river, a tributary of the Arkavathy, that flows through the south of the Indian city of Bangalore. The river was once so pristine that the water from it was used for drinking and used by the famous Gali Anjane ...
, a minor tributary of the Arkavathi, arises within the city at Basavanagudi and flows through the city. The rivers Arkavathi and Vrishabhavathi together carry much of Bangalore's
sewage Sewage (or domestic sewage, domestic wastewater, municipal wastewater) is a type of wastewater that is produced by a community of people. It is typically transported through a sewer system. Sewage consists of wastewater discharged from residenc ...
. A
sewerage Sewerage (or sewage system) is the infrastructure that conveys sewage or surface runoff (stormwater, meltwater, rainwater) using sewers. It encompasses components such as receiving drainage, drains, manholes, pumping stations, storm overflows, a ...
system, constructed in 1922, covers of the city and connects with five sewage treatment centres located in the city's periphery. In the 16th century, Kempe Gowda I constructed many lakes to meet the town's water requirements. The Kempambudhi Kere, since overrun by modern development, was prominent among those lakes. In the first half of the 20th century, the Nandi Hills waterworks were commissioned by Sir Mirza Ismail ( Diwan of Mysore, 1926–41 CE) to provide a water supply to the city. The river Kaveri provides around 80% of the city's water supply and the remaining 20% is obtained from the Thippagondanahalli and Hesaraghatta reservoirs of the Arkavathi river. Bangalore receives of water a day, more than any other Indian city, but Bangalore does face occasional water shortages, especially during summer and in years with low rainfall. A random sampling of the
air quality index An air quality index (AQI) is used by government agencies to communicate to the public how polluted the air currently is or how polluted it is forecast to become. AQI information is obtained by averaging readings from an air quality sensor, whi ...
(AQI) of twenty stations within the city ranged from 76 to 314, suggesting heavy to severe air pollution around areas of high traffic. Bangalore has a handful of freshwater lakes and water tanks, the largest of which are Madivala tank,
Hebbal Lake Hebbal Lake may refer to: * Hebbal Lake, Bangalore, a lake in Karnataka, India *Hebbal Lake, Mysore, Karnataka, India * Hebbal Reservoir, Heggadadevankote, Heggadadevankote Taluk, Mysore district, Karnataka, India India, officially the Repub ...
, Ulsoor Lake, Yediyur Lake and
Sankey Tank Sankey tank (Kannada:ಸ್ಯಾಂಕಿ ಕೆರೆ), a manmade lake or tank, is situated in the western part of Bangalore in the middle of the neighbourhoods of Malleshwaram, Vyalikaval and Sadashivanagar. The lake covers an area of about ...
. However, about 90% of Bangalore's lakes are polluted; the city government began revival and conservation efforts in December 2020. Groundwater occurs in silty to sandy layers of the alluvial sediments. The
Peninsular Gneiss Peninsular Gneiss or Peninsular Gniessic Complex are the gneissic complex of the metamorphics found all over the Indian Peninsula, on top of which, the supra-crustal Dharwar System have been laid down. The term was first fashioned by W.F.Smeeth o ...
ic Complex (PGC) is the most dominant rock unit in the area and includes granites, gneisses and migmatites, while the soils of Bangalore consist of red
laterite Laterite is both a soil and a rock type rich in iron and aluminium and is commonly considered to have formed in hot and wet tropical areas. Nearly all laterites are of rusty-red coloration, because of high iron oxide content. They develop by ...
and red, fine
loam Loam (in geology and soil science) is soil composed mostly of sand (particle size > ), silt (particle size > ), and a smaller amount of clay (particle size < ). By weight, its mineral composition is about 40–40–20% concentration of sand–sil ...
y to clayey soils. The city's vegetation is mostly large deciduous canopy and some
coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family ( Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, the seed, or the ...
trees. Many trees are frequently felled to pave way for infrastructure development. Though Bangalore has been classified as a part of the seismic zone II (a stable zone), it has experienced earthquakes of magnitude as high as 4.5 on the Richter scale.


Climate

Bangalore has a tropical savanna climate ( Köppen climate classification ''Aw'') with distinct wet and
dry Dry or dryness most often refers to: * Lack of rainfall, which may refer to ** Arid regions ** Drought * Dry or dry area, relating to legal prohibition of selling, serving, or imbibing alcoholic beverages * Dry humor, deadpan * Dryness (medica ...
seasons. Due to its high elevation, Bangalore usually enjoys a more moderate climate throughout the year, although occasional heat waves can make summer somewhat uncomfortable. The coolest month is January with an average low temperature of and the hottest month is April with an average high of . The highest temperature ever recorded in Bangalore is , recorded 24 April 2016, corresponding with the strong El Niño in that year. The lowest ever recorded is in January 1884. Winter temperatures rarely drop below , and summer temperatures seldom exceed . Bangalore receives rainfall from both the northeast and the southwest monsoons, and the wettest months is September, followed by October and August. The summer heat is moderated by fairly frequent thunderstorms, which occasionally cause power outages and local flooding. Most of the rainfall occurs during the late afternoon or evening and rain before noon is infrequent. November 2015 (290.4 mm) was recorded as one of the wettest months in Bangalore with heavy rains causing severe flooding in some areas, and closure of a number of organisations for over a couple of days. The heaviest rainfall recorded in a 24-hour period is recorded on 1 October 1997. In 2022, Bangalore faced a large amount of rainfall, which was 368% more than the yearly average. Several areas were flooded, and power supply was also cut off.


Demographics

Bangalore is a megacity with a population of 8,443,675 in the city and 10,456,000 in the urban agglomeration,Bangalore Metropolitan/City Population section of up from 8.5 million at the 2011 census. It is the third most populous city in India, the 18th most populous city in the world and the fifth most populous urban agglomeration in India. With a growth rate of 38% during the decade, Bangalore was the fastest-growing Indian metropolis after New Delhi between 1991 and 2001. Residents of Bangalore are referred to as "Bangaloreans" in English, ''Bengaloorinavaru or Bengaloorigaru'' in Kannada and ''Banglori'' in Hindi or Urdu. People from other states have migrated to Bangalore, study, or work there as well.  census of India, 78.9% of Bangalore's population is
Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism.Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...
, a little less than the national average. Scroll down to BBMP (M. Corp. + OG) in the document at row no. 596.
Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
s comprise 13.9% of the population, roughly the same as their national average. Christians and Jains account for 5.6% and 1.0% of the population, respectively, double that of their national averages. The city has a literacy rate of 90%. Roughly 10% of Bangalore's population lives in
slum A slum is a highly populated urban residential area consisting of densely packed housing units of weak build quality and often associated with poverty. The infrastructure in slums is often deteriorated or incomplete, and they are primarily inh ...
s. Census of India, 2001. 2006. Government of India—a relatively low proportion when compared to other cities in the developing world such as Mumbai (50%) and Nairobi (60%).Warah, Rasna
"Slums Are the Heartbeat of Cities"
. The EastAfrican. 2006. National Media Group Ltd. 6 October 2003
The 2008  National Crime Records Bureau statistics indicate that Bangalore accounts for 8.5% of the total crimes reported from 35 major cities in India which is an increase in the crime rate when compared to the number of crimes fifteen years ago. In the ''Ease of Living Index 2020 (''published by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs), it was ranked the most livable Indian city with a population of over a million. Bangalore has the same major urbanisation problems seen in many fast-growing cities in developing countries: rapidly escalating social inequality, mass displacement and dispossession, the proliferation of slum settlements, and epidemic public health crisis due to severe water shortage and sewage problems in poor and working-class neighbourhoods.


Language

The official language of Bangalore is Kannada, spoken by 42.05% of the population. The second-largest language is Tamil, spoken by 16.34% of the population. 13.73% speak
Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...
, 13.00% Urdu, 4.64% Hindi, 3.16% Malayalam and 2.05% have
Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...
as their first language. See BBMP (M Corp. +OG) (Part) Other major languages in the city include Konkani, Marwari,
Tulu Tulu may refer to: People *Derartu Tulu (born 1972), Ethiopian long-distance runner *Walid Yacoubou (born 1997), Togolese footballer nicknamed "Tulu" India *Tulu calendar, traditional solar calendar generally used in the regions of southwest Kar ...
,
Odia Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to: * Odia people in Odisha, India * Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family * Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...
and Gujarati. The Kannada language spoken in Bangalore is a form called as 'Old Mysuru Kannada' which is also used in most of the southern part of Karnataka. A vernacular dialect of this, known as
Bangalore Kannada Bangalore Kannada is a vernacular dialect of the Indian language, Kannada, which serves as the official language of the state of Karnataka, as the native language by the majority people of Karnataka classical languages of India. This dialect is ...
, is spoken among the youth in Bangalore and the adjoining Mysore regions. English is extensively spoken and is the principal language of the professional and business class. The major communities of Bangalore who share a long history in the city, other than the Kannadigas, are the Telugus and Tamilians, who both migrated to Bangalore in search of a better livelihood, and the Dakhanis. Already in the 16th century, Bangalore had few Tamil or Telugu or speakers, who spoke Kannada for business. Telugu-speaking people initially came to Bangalore on invitation by the Mysore royalty. Other native communities are the Tuluvas and the
Konkanis The Konkan people ( Konkani) Konkanis : are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group native to the Konkan region of the Indian subcontinent who speak various dialects of the Konkani language. Konkani is the state language of Goa and also spoken b ...
of coastal Karnataka, and the Kodavas of the state's
Kodagu district Kodagu (also known by its former name Coorg) is an administrative district in the Karnataka state of India. Before 1956, it was an administratively separate Coorg State, at which point it was merged into an enlarged Mysore State. It occupies ...
. The migrant communities include Maharashtrians,
Punjabis The Punjabis ( Punjabi: ; ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ; romanised as Panjābīs), are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group associated with the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of eastern Pakistan and northwestern India. The ...
,
Rajasthanis Rajasthani people or Rajasthanis are a group of Indo-Aryan peoples native to Rajasthan ("the land of kingdoms"), a state in Northern India. Their language, Rajasthani, is a part of the western group of Indo-Aryan languages. History The fi ...
, Gujaratis, Tamilians, Telugus, Malayalis, Odias, Sindhis, Biharis, Jharkhandis, and Bengalis. Bangalore once had a large Anglo-Indian population, the second-largest after Calcutta. Today, there are around 10,000 Anglo-Indians in Bangalore. Bangalorean Christians include Tamil Christians, Mangalorean Catholics, Kannadiga Christians, Malayali Syrian Christians and Northeast Indian Christians. Muslims form a very diverse population, consisting of Dakhini and Urdu-speaking Muslims, Kutchi Memons, Labbay and Mappilas. Other languages with sizeable numbers of speakers include Konkani, Bengali, Marwari,
Tulu Tulu may refer to: People *Derartu Tulu (born 1972), Ethiopian long-distance runner *Walid Yacoubou (born 1997), Togolese footballer nicknamed "Tulu" India *Tulu calendar, traditional solar calendar generally used in the regions of southwest Kar ...
,
Odia Odia, also spelled Oriya or Odiya, may refer to: * Odia people in Odisha, India * Odia language, an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family * Odia alphabet, a writing system used for the Odia languag ...
, Gujarati, Kodagu,
Punjabi Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to: * Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan * Punjabi language * Punjabi people * Punjabi dialects and languages Punjabi may also refer to: * Punjabi (horse), a British Th ...
, Lambadi, Sindhi and
Nepali Nepali or Nepalese may refer to : Concerning Nepal * Anything of, from, or related to Nepal * Nepali people, citizens of Nepal * Nepali language, an Indo-Aryan language found in Nepal, the current official national language and a language spoken ...
.


Civic administration


Management

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP, ''Greater Bangalore Municipal Corporation'') is in charge of civic administration of the city. It was formed in 2007 by merging 100 wards of the erstwhile ''Bangalore Mahanagara Palike'', with seven neighbouring City Municipal Councils, one Town Municipal Council and 110 villages around Bangalore. The number of wards increased to 198 in 2009. The BBMP is run by a city council of 250 members, including 198  corporators representing each of the
wards Ward may refer to: Division or unit * Hospital ward, a hospital division, floor, or room set aside for a particular class or group of patients, for example the psychiatric ward * Prison ward, a division of a penal institution such as a priso ...
of the city and 52 other elected representatives, consisting of members of Parliament and the state legislature. Elections to the council are held once every five years and are decided by popular vote. Members contesting elections to the council usually represent one or more of the state's political parties. A mayor and deputy mayor are also elected from the elected members of the council. Elections to the BBMP were held on 28 March 2010, after a gap of three and a half years since the expiry of the previous elected body's term, and the Bharatiya Janata Party was voted into powerthe first time it had ever won a civic poll in the city. Indian National Congress councillor Sampath Raj became the city's mayor in September 2017; the vote was boycotted by the BJP. In September 2018, Indian National Congress councillor Gangambike Mallikarjun was elected as mayor, replacing
Sampath Raj Sampath Raj (born 25 December 1968) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Tamil language, Tamil and Telugu language, Telugu films, in addition to Kannada and Malayalam films. He is best known for appearing in each film of director Ven ...
. In 2019 BJP's
M Goutham Kumar M Goutham Kumar ( kn, ಮೀ ಗೌತಮ್ ಕುಮಾರ್) is an Indian politician who was the 53rd Mayor of Bangalore ( Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike). He was elected from Jogupalya Ward, belonging to Shanthinagar Assembly Constit ...
took charge as mayor. On 10 September 2020, the term of the BBMP council ended and Gaurav Gupta was appointed as the administrator of BBMP. The municipal commissioner of Bangalore is Tushar Giri Nath, and the police commissioner is Pratap Reddy. Bangalore's rapid growth has created several administrative problems relating to
traffic congestion Traffic congestion is a condition in transport that is characterized by slower speeds, longer trip times, and increased vehicular queueing. Traffic congestion on urban road networks has increased substantially since the 1950s. When traffic de ...
and degrading infrastructure. The unplanned nature of growth in the city resulted in massive traffic gridlocks; a flyover system and one-way traffic systems were introduced, which were only moderately successful. A 2003 ''Battelle Environmental Evaluation System'' (BEES) evaluation of Bangalore's physical, biological and socioeconomic parameters indicated that Bangalore's water quality and terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems were close to ideal, while the city's socioeconomic parameters (traffic, quality of life) air quality and noise pollution were poor. . Bangalore Metropolitan Rapid Transport Corporation Limited. 2006. Government of Karnataka. 2005. (pp. 30–32) The BBMP works in conjunction with the
Bangalore Development Authority The Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) of Bangalore, India, is a governmental organization (referred to within India as a parastatal entity) and the principal planning authority for Bangalore. Its function, under the Karnataka Town and Countr ...
(BDA) and the Agenda for Bangalore's Infrastructure and Development Task Force (ABIDe) to design and implement civic and infrastructural projects. The
Bangalore City Police The Bangalore City Police (BCP) is the law-enforcement agency of the South Indian city of Bangalore. The BCP works under the Karnataka State Police jurisdiction and is headed by the Commissioner of Police, Bangalore City, currently Pratap Redd ...
(BCP) has seven geographic zones, includes the Traffic Police, the City Armed Reserve, the Central Crime Branch and the City Crime Record Bureau and runs 86 police stations, including two all-women police stations."Bangalore City Police"
. Bangalore City Police. 2006. Karnataka State Police.
Other units within the BCP include Traffic Police, City Armed Reserve (CAR), City Special Branch (CSB), City Crime Branch (CCB) and City Crime Records Bureau (CCRB). As capital of the state of Karnataka, Bangalore houses important state government facilities such as the Karnataka High Court, the
Vidhana Soudha Vidhana Soudha () in Bangalore, India, is the seat of the state legislature of Karnataka. It is constructed in a style described as '' Neo-Dravidian'', and incorporates elements of various Dravidian styles. Construction was started in 1952 ...
(the home of the Karnataka state legislature) and Raj Bhavan (the residence of the governor of Karnataka). Bangalore contributes four members to the lower house of the Indian Parliament, the '' Lok Sabha'', from its four constituencies: Bangalore Rural, Bangalore Central,
Bangalore North Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most p ...
, and
Bangalore South Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
, and 28 members to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly. Electricity in Bangalore is regulated through the Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM), while water supply and sanitation facilities are provided by the Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB). The city has offices of the Consulate General of Germany, France, Japan, Israel, British Deputy High Commission, along with honorary consulates of Ireland, Finland, Switzerland, Maldives, Mongolia, Sri Lanka and Peru. It also has a trade office of Canada and a virtual Consulate of the United States.


Pollution control

As of 2022, Bangalore produces around 6000  metric tonnes of
solid waste Municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage in the United States and rubbish in Britain, is a waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public. "Garbage" can also refer specifically to food waste, ...
per day. This waste is transported from collection units located near Hesaraghatta Lake, to the garbage dumping sites. The city has considerable dust pollution, hazardous waste disposal, and disorganised, unscientific waste retrievals. The IT hub, the Whitefield region, is the most polluted area in Bangalore. In 2016, a study found that over 36% of diesel vehicles in the city exceed the national limit for emissions. Anil Kumar, Commissioner of the BBMP, said: "The deteriorating air quality in cities and its impact on public health is an area of growing concern for city authorities. While much is already being done about collecting and monitoring air quality data, little focus has been given on managing the impacts that bad air quality is having on the health of citizens."


Slums

 report submitted to the World Bank by Karnataka Slum Clearance Board, Bangalore had 862 slums out of around 2000
slum A slum is a highly populated urban residential area consisting of densely packed housing units of weak build quality and often associated with poverty. The infrastructure in slums is often deteriorated or incomplete, and they are primarily inh ...
s in all of Karnataka. 42% of the households migrated from different parts of India like Chennai, Hyderabad and most of North India, and 43% of the households had remained in the slums for over 10 years. The Karnataka Municipality works to shift 300 families annually to newly constructed buildings. One-third of these slum clearance projects lacked basic service connections, 60% of slum dwellers lacked complete water supply lines and shared BWSSB water supply.


Waste management

Ιn 2012, Bangalore generated 2.1 million tonnes of Municipal Solid Waste, or 194.3 kilograms per person. Waste management in Karnataka is regulated by the Karnataka State Pollution Control Board (KSPCB) under the aegis of the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB), a Central Government entity. As part of the Waste Management Guidelines, the government of Karnataka through the KSPCB has authorised a few well-established companies to manage
biomedical Biomedicine (also referred to as Western medicine, mainstream medicine or conventional medicine)
and other hazardous waste in Karnataka.


Economy

Bangalore is second fastest growing metropolis in India. Bangalore contributes 38% of India's total IT exports. Its economy is primarily
service oriented and industrial, dominated by information technology, telecommunication, biotechnology, and manufacturing of electronics, machinery, automobiles, food, etc. Major industrial areas around Bangalore are
Adugodi Adugodi is a neighborhood in Bangalore, India. It is located along Hosur Road, close to Jayanagara, Koramangala and Madiwala. The Forum (shopping mall) and Shantinagar Bus Station The Atal Bihari Vajpayee Traffic and Transit Management Cen ...
, Bidadi,
Bommanahalli Bommanahalli is a locality in Bengaluru and one of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike#Zones, zones of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, BBMP. It is located adjacent to Hosur Road National Highway 44 (India) in India and is proximate to the ...
, Bommasandra, Domlur,
Hoodi Hoodi, once a village, is now an expanding district in Bangalore, India. It is around east of the Kempegowda Bus stand and from International Tech Park, the information technology hub of Bangalore. It is on the Whitefield - International T ...
, Whitefield, Doddaballapura, Hoskote,
Bashettihalli Bashettihalli, is a suburb of Doddaballapura in the state of Karnataka Karnataka (; ISO: , , also known as Karunāḍu) is a state in the southwestern region of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, with the passage of the States Reor ...
, Yelahanka,
Electronic City Electronic City is an information technology hub in Bangalore, India, located in Anekal taluk. It is one of India's largest electronic/IT industrial parks, spread over 800 acres (3.2 km²) in Konappana Agrahara and Doddathogur villages. ...
, Peenya, Krishnarajapuram, Bellandur, Narasapura, Rajajinagar,
Mahadevapura Mahadevapura is a suburb and one of the zones of BBMP in Bangalore Urban district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It was a city municipal council. It is well connected with Outer Ring Road, Whitefield Road and Krishnarajapuram Railway Station ...
etc. It is the fifth Indian city to host maximum numbers of Fortune Companies, after Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai. The growth of IT has presented the city with unique challenges. Ideological clashes sometimes occur between the city's IT moguls, who demand an improvement in the city's infrastructure; and the state government, whose electorate is primarily from rural Karnataka. The encouragement of high-tech industry in Bangalore, for example, has not favoured local employment development, but instead increased land values and forced out small enterprise. The state has also resisted the massive investments required to reverse the rapid decline in city transport, driving new and expanding businesses elsewhere in India. Bangalore is a hub for Indian biotechnology-related industry and in 2005 was home to around 47% of the 265 biotechnology companies in India, including Biocon, India's largest biotechnology company, giving Bangalore the nickname of the "Biotech Capital of India". Bangalore is also the country's fourth largest
fast-moving consumer goods Fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), also known as consumer packaged goods (CPG), are products that are sold quickly and at a relatively low cost. Examples include non-durable household goods such as packaged foods, beverages, toiletries, cand ...
(FMCG) market."Bangalore most affluent market"
. 2006. Rediff.com. 23 August 2006.
''Forbes'' considers Bangalore one of "The Next Decade's Fastest-Growing Cities". The city is the third largest hub for
high-net-worth individual High-net-worth individual (HNWI) is a term used by some segments of the financial services industry to designate persons whose investible wealth (assets such as stocks and bonds) exceeds a given amount. Typically, these individuals are defined ...
s. As of 2007, it is home to over 10,000 millionaires who have an investment surplus of ."Bangalore third richest city in country"
.2007. ''The Times of India'' 1 April 2007
, Bangalore was home to 7,700 millionaires and 8 billionaires, with a total wealth of $320 billion. The city is widely regarded as the " Silicon Valley of Asia", as the largest IT hub of the continent. Infosys, Wipro, Mindtree, Mphasis, Flipkart, Myntra are headquartered in Bangalore. Information technology companies located in the city contributed 33% of India's ₹1,442 billion (US$20 billion) IT exports in 2006–07. Bangalore's IT industry is divided into three main clusters: Software Technology Parks of India (STPI); International Tech Park, Bangalore (ITPB); and
Electronic City Electronic City is an information technology hub in Bangalore, India, located in Anekal taluk. It is one of India's largest electronic/IT industrial parks, spread over 800 acres (3.2 km²) in Konappana Agrahara and Doddathogur villages. ...
. Most of the IT companies are located in
Bommanahalli Bommanahalli is a locality in Bengaluru and one of the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike#Zones, zones of Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike, BBMP. It is located adjacent to Hosur Road National Highway 44 (India) in India and is proximate to the ...
, Domlur, Whitefield,
Electronic City Electronic City is an information technology hub in Bangalore, India, located in Anekal taluk. It is one of India's largest electronic/IT industrial parks, spread over 800 acres (3.2 km²) in Konappana Agrahara and Doddathogur villages. ...
, Krishnarajapuram, Bellandur,
Mahadevapura Mahadevapura is a suburb and one of the zones of BBMP in Bangalore Urban district in the Indian state of Karnataka. It was a city municipal council. It is well connected with Outer Ring Road, Whitefield Road and Krishnarajapuram Railway Station ...
.


Transport


Air

Bangalore is served by
Kempegowda International Airport Kempegowda International Airport is an international airport serving Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka, India. Spread over , it is located about north of the city near the suburb of Devanahalli. It is owned and operated by Bengaluru Inte ...
, located at Devanahalli, about from the city centre. Formerly Bangalore International Airport, the airport started operations from 24 May 2008 and is privately managed by a consortium led by the GVK Group. The city was earlier served by the HAL Airport at Vimanapura, a residential locality in the eastern part of the city. The airport is the third-busiest in India after Delhi and Mumbai in terms of passenger and airplane traffic. Taxis and air-conditioned Volvo buses operated by BMTC connect the airport with the city.


Railways and Metro

As of 2022, a rapid transit system called the '' Namma Metro'' is being built in stages. Initially opened with the stretch from Baiyappanahalli to MG Road in 2011, roads totaling for the north–south and east–west lines were made operational in June 2017. Phase 2 of the metro covering is under construction and includes two new lines along with the extension of the existing north–south and east–west lines. There are also plans to extend the north–south line to the airport, covering a distance of . Bangalore is a divisional headquarters in the South Western Railway zone of the Indian Railways. There are four major railway stations in the city: Krantiveera Sangolli Rayanna Railway Station; Bangalore Cantonment railway station; Yeshwantapur Junction and Krishnarajapuram railway station, with railway lines towards Jolarpettai in the east; Guntakal in the north; Kadapa (only operational until Kolar) in the northeast; Tumkur in the northwest; Hassan and Mangalore in the west; Mysore in the southwest; and
Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada Ontario * Bruce County ** Salem, Arran–Elderslie, Ontario, in the municipality of Arran–Elderslie ** Salem, South Bruce, Ontario, in the municipality of South Bruce * Salem, Dufferin County, Ontario, part ...
in the south. There is also a railway line from Baiyappanahalli to Vimanapura, no longer in use. Though Bangalore has no commuter rail as of 2022, there have been demands for a suburban rail service because of the large number of employees working in the IT corridor areas of Whitefield, Outer Ring Road and Electronic City. The Rail Wheel Factory is Asia's second-largest manufacturer of wheel and axle for railways and is headquartered in Yelahanka, Bangalore.


Bus

Buses operated by Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation (BMTC) are a staple of city public transport. While commuters can buy tickets on boarding these buses, BMTC also provides an option of a bus pass to frequent users. BMTC runs air-conditioned luxury buses on major routes and operates shuttle services from various parts of the city to
Kempegowda International Airport Kempegowda International Airport is an international airport serving Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka, India. Spread over , it is located about north of the city near the suburb of Devanahalli. It is owned and operated by Bengaluru Inte ...
. The Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation operates 6,918 buses on 6,352 schedules, connecting Bangalore with other parts of Karnataka and with neighbouring states. The main bus depots that
KSRTC KSRTC may refer to: * Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation * Kerala State Road Transport Corporation Kerala State Road Transport Corporation (KSRTC) is a state-owned road transport corporation in the Indian state of Kerala. It is one o ...
maintains are the Kempegowda Bus Station, locally known as "Majestic bus stand", where most of the buses going out of the city ply from. Some of the KSRTC buses to Tamil Nadu, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh ply from
Shantinagar Bus Station The Atal Bihari Vajpayee Traffic and Transit Management Center (Atal Bihari Vajpayee TTMC) is a bus station in Shantinagara, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. Long distance buses of KSRTC, TNSTC and SETC buses bound towards Tamil Nadu and KSRT ...
, Satellite Bus Station at Mysore Road and Baiyappanahalli satellite bus station. BMTC and KSRTC were the first operators in India to introduce Volvo city buses and intra-city coaches in India. Three-wheeled, yellow and black or yellow and green auto-rickshaws, referred to as ''autos'', are popular for transport. They are metered and can accommodate up to three passengers. Taxis are usually available via phone calls or online services; they are metered and generally more expensive than auto-rickshaws.


Road

An average of 1,750 vehicles are registered daily in Bangalore Regional Transport Offices (RTOs). The total number of vehicles as of 2020 are around vehicles, and the city's roads total .


Culture

Bangalore is known as the "Garden City of India" because of its greenery, broad streets, and presence of many public parks, such as Lal Bagh and Cubbon Park. In May 2012, guidebook publisher Lonely Planet ranked Bangalore third among the world's top ten cities to visit. Biannual flower shows are held at the Lal Bagh Botanical Gardens during the weeks of India's Republic Day and
Independence Day An independence day is an annual event commemorating the anniversary of a nation's independence or statehood, usually after ceasing to be a group or part of another nation or state, or more rarely after the end of a military occupation. Man ...
.
Bangalore Karaga Bengaluru Karaga is an annual festival celebrated in the heart of Bangalore, primarily by the Thigala community. The Karaga festival is generally led by the men of the community. Gallery File:Decorations Day Before Karaga Festival.jpg, Work ...
or "Karaga Shaktyotsava" is one of Bangalore's oldest festivals and is dedicated to the Hindu goddess
Draupadi Draupadi ( sa, द्रौपदी, draupadī, Daughter of Drupada), also referred to as Krishnaa, Panchali, and Yagyaseni, is the main female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata,'' and the common consort of the five Pandava brothers ...
. It is celebrated annually by the Thigala community over a period of nine days in March or April. The Someshwara Car festival, held annually in April, is a procession of the idol of the Halasuru Someshwara Temple (Ulsoor) led by the Vokkaligas, a major landholding community in southern Karnataka. Karnataka Rajyotsava is widely celebrated on 1 November and is a public holiday in the city, to mark the formation of Karnataka state on 1 November 1956. Other popular festivals in Bangalore are Ugadi, Ram Navami,
Eid ul-Fitr , nickname = Festival of Breaking the Fast, Lesser Eid, Sweet Eid, Sugar Feast , observedby = Muslims , type = Islamic , longtype = Islamic , significance = Commemoration to mark the end of fasting in Ramadan , dat ...
,
Ganesh Chaturthi Ganesh Chaturthi (ISO: ), also known as Vinayak Chaturthi (), or Ganeshotsav () is a Hindu festival commemorating the birth of the Hindu god Ganesha. The festival is marked with the installation of Ganesha's clay idols privately in homes and p ...
, St. Mary's feast, Dasara, Deepawali and Christmas. Bangalore's social and economic diversity is reflected in its cuisine. Roadside vendors,
tea stall Tea is an aromatic beverage prepared by pouring hot or boiling water over cured or fresh leaves of '' Camellia sinensis'', an evergreen shrub native to East Asia which probably originated in the borderlands of southwestern China and north ...
s, and South Indian, North Indian, Chinese and Western fast food are all popular. Udupi restaurants are popular and serve predominantly vegetarian, regional cuisine. Bangalore is also home to many vegan restaurants and vegan activism groups, and has been named as India's most vegan-friendly city by
PETA Peta or PETA may refer to: Acronym * Pembela Tanah Air, a militia established by the occupying Japanese in Indonesia in 1943 * People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, an American animal rights organization * People Eating Tasty Animals, an ...
's Indian branch.


Art and literature

Compared to Delhi and Mumbai, Bangalore lacked a contemporary art scene until the 1990s, when several art galleries emerged, including the government-established National Gallery of Modern Art. Bangalore's international art festival, ''Art Bangalore'', was established in 2010.
Kannada literature Kannada literature is the Text corpus, corpus of written forms of the Kannada language, a member of the Dravidian language, Dravidian Language family, family spoken mainly in the Indian state of Karnataka and written in the Kannada script. A ...
flourished in Bangalore even before Kempe Gowda laid the city's foundations. During the 18th and 19th centuries, Kannada literature was enriched by the '' Vachanas'' (a form of rhythmic writing) composed by the heads of the Veerashaiva Mathas (monastery) in Bangalore. The headquarters of the Kannada Sahitya Parishat, a nonprofit organisation that promotes the Kannada language, is located in Bangalore. The city has its own literary festival, known as the "Bangalore Literature Festival", inaugurated in 2012. The
Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath Karnataka Chitrakala Parishath ( kn, ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ ಚಿತ್ರಕಲಾ ಪರಿಷತ್) is a visual art complex located in Bangalore. The complex has 18 galleries. 13 of these galleries carry a permanent collection of paintings ...
is an art gallery that showcases a collection of painting, sculptures, and various other forms of art. The Indian Cartoon Gallery is located in the heart of Bangalore, dedicated to the art of cartooning, and is the first of its kind in India. The gallery conducts fresh cartoon exhibitions of various professional as well as amateur cartoonists every month. The gallery has been organised by the
Indian Institute of Cartoonists Indian Institute of Cartoonists is an organisation based in Bangalore that serves to promote and preserve cartooning and cartoonists in India. Founded in 2001, the institute hosts the Indian Cartoon Gallery with rotating exhibits focusing on di ...
based in Bangalore that serves to promote and preserve the work of eminent cartoonists in India. The institute has organised more than one hundred exhibitions of cartoons.


Theatre, music, and dance

Bangalore is home to the Kannada film industry, which produces about 200 Kannada feature films each year. Bangalore also has an active theatre culture; popular theatres include Ravindra Kalakshetra and the Ranga Shankara. The city has an active English- and foreign-language theatre scene; popular theatres include Ranga Shankara and Chowdiah Memorial Hall. Kannada theatre is popular in Bangalore and consists mostly of political satire and light comedy. Plays are organised mostly by community organisations, but some by amateur groups. Drama companies touring India under the auspices of the British Council and Max Müller Bhavan also stage performances in the city frequently. The Alliance Française de Bangalore also hosts numerous plays throughout the year. Bangalore is also a major centre of
Indian classical music Indian classical music is the classical music of the Indian subcontinent. It has two major traditions: the North Indian classical music known as '' Hindustani'' and the South Indian expression known as '' Carnatic''. These traditions were not ...
and dance. The cultural scene features a diverse set of music concerts, dance performances and plays. Performances of Carnatic (South Indian) and Hindustani classical music, Hindustani (North Indian) classical music, and dance forms like Bharat Natyam, Kuchipudi, Kathakali, Kathak, and Odissi are very popular. Yakshagana, a theatre art indigenous to coastal Karnataka is often played in town halls. The two main music seasons in Bangalore are April–May during the Rama Navami, Ram Navami festival, and September–October during the Dusshera festival, when music activities by cultural organisations are at their peak. Though both classical and contemporary music are played in Bangalore, rock music dominates the music of urban Bangalore; Bangalore has its own subgenre of rock, "Bangalore Rock", an amalgamation of classic rock, hard rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, and some jazz and blues. Notable bands from Bangalore include Raghu Dixit Project, Kryptos (band), Kryptos, Inner Sanctum (band), Inner Sanctum, Agam (band), Agam, All the fat children, and Swaratma. Bangalore is sometimes called as the "public house, Pub Capital of India" and the "Rock/Metal Capital of India" because of its underground music scene.


Education


Schools

Bangalore has a literacy rate of around 88%, according to the 2011 Census of India, 2011 national census. Until the early 19th century, education in Bangalore was mainly run by religious leaders and restricted to students of that religion. The western system of education was introduced during the rule of Mummadi Krishnaraja Wodeyar. In 1832, the British Wesleyan Mission established the first English school, the United Mission School, Wesleyan Canarese School. The fathers of the Paris Foreign Missions established the St. Joseph's Boys' High School, Bangalore, St. Joseph's European School in 1858. The Bangalore High School was started by the Mysore government in 1858 and the Bishop Cotton Boys' School was started in 1865. In 1945 when World War II came to an end, King George Royal Indian Military Colleges was started at Bangalore by George VI, King George VI; the school is popularly known as Bangalore Military School Primary, middle school and secondary education in Bangalore is offered by various schools which are affiliated to one of the government or government recognised private boards of education, such as the Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC), Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (CISCE), International Baccalaureate (IB), International General Certificate of Secondary Education (IGCSE) and National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS). List of schools in Bangalore, Schools in Bangalore are either government run or are private (both aided and un-aided by the government). Bangalore has a significant number of international schools due to large number of expats and people employed in the Information technology, IT sector. After completing their secondary education, students either attend a pre-university course or continue an equivalent high school course in one of three streams – Liberal arts, arts, commerce or science – in various combinations. Alternatively, students may enroll in diploma courses. Upon completing the required coursework, students enroll in general or professional degrees in universities through lateral entry.


Universities

Established in 1858, the Central College of Bangalore is the city's oldest college. It was affiliated originally with University of Mysore and subsequently with Bangalore University. In 1882 priests from the Paris Foreign Missions Society established St. Joseph's College, Bangalore, St. Joseph's College. Bangalore University was established in 1886; it is affiliated with over 500 colleges and has a total student enrolment of over 300,000. The university has two campuses within Bangalore – Jnanabharathi and Central College. University Visvesvaraya College of Engineering was established in 1917 by M. Visvesvaraya and is affiliated with many private engineering colleges. Some private institutions in Bangalore include Symbiosis International University, SVKM's NMIMS, CMR University, Christ University, Jain University, PES University, Dayananda Sagar University and Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences. Private medical colleges include St. John's Medical College, M. S. Ramaiah Medical College, Kempegowda Institute of Medical Sciences, and Vydehi Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre. The M. P. Birla Institute of Fundamental Research has a branch in Bangalore.


Media

The first printing press in Bangalore was established in 1840 in Kannada by the Wesleyan Christian Mission. In 1859, the bi-weekly ''Bangalore Herald'' became the first English newspaper to be published in Bangalore, and in 1860, the ''Mysore Vrittanta Bodhini'' became the first Kannada newspaper to be circulated in Bangalore. ''Vijaya Karnataka'' and ''The Times of India'' are the most widely circulated newspapers in Kannada and English, respectively, closely followed by the ''Prajavani'' and ''Deccan Herald'–'' both owned by the Printers (Mysore) Limited, the largest print media house in Karnataka. Other circulated newspapers include ''Vijayavani, Vijayvani'', ''Vishwavani News, Vishwavani'', ''Kannada Prabha, Kannadaprabha'', ''Sanjevani'', ''Bangalore Mirror'', ''Udayavani'' provide localised news updates. All India Radio, the Indian national state radio service, started broadcasting from its Bangalore station on 2 November 1955. All broadcasts were Amplitude modulation, AM until 2001, when Radio City (Indian radio station), Radio City became the first private channel in India to start transmitting Frequency modulation, FM radio from Bangalore; a number of other FM channels have been initiated since. The city probably has India's oldest Amateur radio, amateur (ham) radio club – the Bangalore Amateur Radio Club (VU2ARC), established in 1959. Bangalore got its first television network when Doordarshan established a relay centre on 1 November 1981. A production centre was established in the Doordarshan's Bangalore office in 1983, thereby allowing the introduction of a news program in Kannada on 19 November 1983. Doordarshan also launched a Kannada satellite channel on 15 August 1991, now named DD Chandana. STAR TV (Asia), Star TV was the first Bangalorean private satellite channel, starting in September 1991. Direct To Home (DTH) services also became available in Bangalore from around 2007. The first Internet service provider in Bangalore was STPI, which started offering internet services in early 1990s. This Internet service was, however, restricted to corporates until VSNL started offering Dial-up Internet access, dial-up internet services to the general public at the end of 1995. Bangalore has the largest number of broadband Internet connections in India. Namma Wifi is a free municipal wireless network in Bangalore, the first free WiFi in India. It began operations on 24 January 2014. Service is available at M.G. Road, Brigade Road, and other locations. The service is operated by D-VoiS and is paid for by the Karnataka state government. Bangalore was the first city in India to have access to 4G mobile internet services.


Sports

Cricket is the most popular sport in the city. Bangalore's many parks and gardens allow for impromptu games. Many national cricketers have come from Bangalore, including former captains Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble. Some other notable Bangaloreans who have represented India include Gundappa Viswanath, Syed Kirmani, E. A. S. Prasanna, B. S. Chandrasekhar, Roger Binny, Venkatesh Prasad, Sunil Joshi, Robin Uthappa, Vinay Kumar, KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Mayank Agarwal, Brijesh Patel and Stuart Binny. Bangalore's international cricket stadium is the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, which has a seating capacity of 40,000 and has hosted matches during the 1987 Cricket World Cup, 1996 Cricket World Cup and the 2011 Cricket World Cup. The Chinnaswamy Stadium is the home of India's National Cricket Academy. The Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore is based in the city. Association football also has a significant following and has produced several notable players. The Indian Super League club Bengaluru FC are based in the city. It hosted some games of the 2014 Unity World Cup. The I-League 2nd Division clubs FC Bengaluru United, Ozone FC and South United FC are also based in Bangalore. The city hosts the Women's Tennis Association (WTA) Bangalore Open tournament annually. Beginning September 2008, Bangalore has also been hosting the Kingfisher Airlines Tennis Open Association of Tennis Professionals, ATP tournament annually.Bangalore replaces Mumbai on ATP Tour circuit
. CBSSportsline.com.
Bangalore is home to the Bangalore rugby football club (BRFC). The city also has a number of elite clubs, like Century Club, The Bangalore Golf Club, the Bowring Institute and the exclusive Bangalore Club, whose previous members include Winston Churchill and the Maharaja of Mysore. India's Davis Cup team members Mahesh BhupathiProfile
. CBSSports.com. CBS Interactive
and Rohan Bopanna reside in Bangalore. Other sportspeople from Bangalore include national swimming champion Nisha Millet, world snooker champion Pankaj Advani (billiards player), Pankaj Advani and former All England Open badminton champion Prakash Padukone. Bangalore's Kanteerava Indoor Stadium hosted the SABA Championship in 2015 and 2016. India's national basketball team won the gold medal on both occasions. Bangalore is home to the Bengaluru Beast—the 2017 vice-champion of India's top professional basketball division, the UBA Pro Basketball League. The Kanteerava Indoor Stadium and Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, Sheraton Grand has hosted various kabaddi matches, including the entire Pro Kabaddi League 2021–22 Pro Kabaddi League season, Season 8. The Bengaluru Bulls is one of the teams in this league.


Sister cities

* Minsk, Belarus (1973) * Cleveland, Ohio, United States (1992) * San Francisco, California, United States (2008) * Chengdu, Sichuan, China (2013)


See also

* List of people from Bangalore * List of neighbourhoods in Bangalore * List of tallest buildings in Bangalore * List of tourist attractions in Bangalore * List of Chola temples in Bangalore * Taluks of Bangalore * Tourism in Karnataka


References


Works cited

* * * * * * * * *


Further reading

* * * * * *  . Digital Libraries and Archives. 2006. Virginia Tech. 27 April 2004. * *


External links


Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike

Official website of Bangalore Development Authority
* {{Authority control Bangalore, 1537 establishments in India Cities and towns in Bangalore Urban district Cities in Karnataka High-technology business districts in India Indian capital cities Metropolitan cities in India Populated places established in 1537 Geographical articles missing image alternative text