All Details About Pune

Pune is situated in Maharashtra about 174 kilometers from Mumbai. It is the eighth largest city in India and the second largest city in Maharashtra with a population of 5,518,688. Marathi is the mother tongue of the people living here. Pune is the capital of the Pune District which includes the cantonments of Pune, Khadki and Dehu Road and the towns of Junnar, Narayangaon, Khed, Chakan, Lonavla – Khandala, Bhor, Saswad, Jejuri, Nasrapur, Pirangut, Daund, Shirur, Indapur, Walchandnagar, Bhigwan, Baramati, Talegaon Dabhade, Wadgaon, etc. The other main city is Pimpri-Chinchwad and Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad are called as the twin cities. Its original name was Punawadi.

Historical Details About Pune

The name Pune originated from the Sanskrit name Punyanagara which means the city of virtue. It is also called as Poona. The place was ruled by the Ahmadnagar Sultanate and later in 17^th century it came under the Mughal rule. When Shivaji was made as the king of Maratha Empire in 1674 he developed the city further. After the Third Anglo-Maratha War in 1817 it went into the hands of British government. In 1896-97 the city lost half of its population in the bubonic plague.

Pune underwent many changes and developments after the independence of India. When the floods destroyed most of the city in July 1961, new city was built with modern town planning. Since then there were tremendous developments in this city and became an industrial city.

Climate and Geographical Details of Pune

Pune district spreads over 15.642 square kilometers and is situated at an altitude of 560 meters above mean sea level. It is a hilly city with Vetal Hill being the largest among them. It covers 5.10% of the total area of Maharashtra. It has Ahmadnagar in the northeast, Solapur in the southeast, Satara in south, Raigad in west and Thane in the northeast as its boundaries. The city is located at the foothills of the Sahyadri Mountains.

Southwest monsoon winds bring rainfall to the city and it gets most of them in the months of July and August. The average temperature of the city ranges from 20 to 28 degree centigrade. April and May are the hottest months with maximum temperature of 36 degree centigrade. Bhor and Velha areas the earthquake prone areas with risk zone – IV meaning high damage risk. Other parts of the district are risk zone – III. The Rivers Bhima, Mula, Mutha, Indrayani, Ghod, Mina, Nira, Pushpavati and Pavana bring floods to many parts of the district. The heavy rainfall also brings landslides in places like Ambegaon, Junnar and Mulshi.

Economy of Pune

Pune boasts the sixth biggest economy in India and ranks second in its per capita income next only to Chandigarh in India. The first industry started here was the Kirloskar Group in 1945. Then many automotive companies like General Motors, Volkwagen and Fiat started its manufacturing houses that it came to be called as the Motor City of India. There are two industrial estates in Pune. Some of the companies that are located here are Bharat Forge, Mahindra and Mahindra, Hindustan Antibiotics, Mercedes Benz India, Serum India, Duro Shocks, Loni, Whirlpool, LG, Frito Lay, Coca Cola, Kinetic Honda, etc.

Some of the IT companies located here are Infosys, Tech Mahindra, Wipro, Satyam, Geometric Software, Patni, CMS Computer Limited, Syntel Inc, Geometric Software Solutions PVT LTD, Veritas Software Corporation, Suma Soft Pvt Ltd, Tata Technologies, etc. The Software Technology Park of India was set up by the Ministry of Information and Technology India to provide consulting, training and other services.

Culture of Pune

Pune has a Marathi culture and education arts and crafts are given importance. During December every year cultural programs are organized overnight. Though there is modernization, there is a blend of culture and heritage. Pune festival is conducted as a mark of culture and Shaniwarwada Dance Festival is a part of it. Together with that the festivals like Diwali, Id ul Alha, Id ul Fitr, Christmas, Ganesh festival, Janmashtami, Navarathri, Dashahara, Holi and Rakshabandan are celebrated here. Other events are Sawai Gandharva, Osho Festival, Chaturshringi Fair, Pune International Film Festival and Ganesh Mahotsav.

After Hinduism, Islam is the second largest religion here and so there are many mosques like Jaama Masjid, Azam Campus Masjid and Chand Tara Masjid located here. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Pune is situated here and serves as the religious place of Christians. The various communities like Marathas, Gujaratis, Brahmins, Mali, Mahar, Shwetambar Jains, Marwaris and Sindhis along with Muslims and Christians live with harmony in Pune.

Some of the important personalities of Pune are Lalitkumar Jain, Nitin Ashtekar, Anu Aga, Arti Kirloskar, Vijay Bhatkar, Fatechand Ranka, Pratap Govindrao Pawar, Sham Agarwal, Amrita Thapar, Shefali Lahoti, Dhanraj Pillay, Hrishikesh Kanitkar, Mahatma Jyotiba Phule, Savitribai Phule, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, P. L.Deshpande, Jayant Narlikar, Maharshi Dhondo Keshav Karve, Laxmanrao Kirloskar, Bal Gandharva, Vijay Bhatkar, Acharya Atre, Baba Adhav, Bal Gandharva, Pravin Gaikwad, etc.

Educational Details About Pune

There are nine universities in Pune and hundreds of education institutions located here. University of Pune established in 1948 is very famous here. There are Maharashtra State Board Syllabus, ICSE Syllabus, CBSE Syllabus and NIOS Syllabus followed here. Fergussion College is the oldest college established in 1885.

Some of the schools in Pune are Nethaji Subhashchandra Bose Madhyamik Vidhyalaya, Savitribai Phule PRashala, Kai.Bahurao Sanas Kanyashala, Mahatma Phule Madhyamik Vidhyalaya, Karmaveer Bhaurao Patil Vidhyala, Dr. Nanasaheb Parulekar Kanya Vidhyalaya, Dr. Sarvapalli Radhakrishnan Prashala, Subhedar Ramji Maloji Ambedkar Vidhyalaya, etc.

Some of the colleges in Pune are Government College of Engineering, Sir, Parashurambhau College, I. L. S. Law College, Nowrojee Wadia College, Tilak Ayurveda Mahavidhyalaya, Astang Ayurved Mahavidhyalaya, Tilak College of Education, SVMP’s College of Engineering, Cummins College of Engineering for Women, Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College, Armed Forces Medical College, etc.

Some of the research institutes located here are National Chemical Laboratory, Inter university Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics, National Centre for Radio Astrophysics, Centre for Development of Advanced Computing, National Institute of Virology, Central Water and Power Research Station, National Centre for Cell Sciences, Automotive Research Association of India, Indian Institute of Tropical Meteorology, Armament Research Development Establishment, High Energy Materials Research Laboratory, Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, etc.

Transport Facilities in Pune

Pune International Airport is located in Lohegan and it is located at the military airport. New airport is to be constructed in the Chakan and Rajgurunagar area at a distance of 40 km from the main city. Many services like Air India, Air India Express, Go Air, IndiGo, Jagson Airlines, Jet Airways, Kingfisher, Lufthansa and Spicejet are operating regular services to Pune.

The city railway station is the Pune Railway Station and is well connected by broad gauge to many parts of India. The total length of the broad gauge track rail length is 311 kilometers and the two main train junctions in the Pune district are Pune and Daund. The Pune Suburban Railway runs between Pune and Lonavala connecting the stations of Pune City, Shivaji Nagar, Khadki, Dapodi, Kasarwadi, Pimpri, Chindhwad, Akurdi, Dehu Road, Begdewadi, Ghorawadi, Talegaon, Wadgaon, Kanhe, Kamshet, Malwali and Lonavali.

The public buses in Pune are operated by the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Limited. The Pune Bus Rapid Transit System is run for the first time in India with separate lanes for the buses. NH 4 connecting Mumbai and Chennai, NH 9 connecting Pune and Vijayawada and NH 50 connecting Pune and Nasik runs through the district. The total road length of the district is 13, 642 kilometers. Private cars and auto rickshaws are there to take you around the city.

Infrastructure of Pune

Some of the hospitals located in Pune are Aditya Birla Memorial Hospital, Bora Hospital, Deenanath Mangeshkar Hospital, Ashtang Ayurved Hospital and Panchkarma, Aundh Chest Hosptial, Chitale ENT Hospital, DY Patil Hospital and Research Centre, Deodhar Eye Hospital, Kering Hospital, Karne Accident Hospital, Kamala Nehru Hospital, K E M Hospital Research Centre, Joshi Clinic, Jog Hospital, Jehangir Hospital, Jalan’s Healthcare and Diabetes Care Center, Inlaks And Bhudhrani Hospital, Hardikar Hospital, Gupte Hospital, Krishna Hospital, Lokmanya Care Hospital, Medipoint Hospital, Naidu Hospital, NM Wadia Hospital, Nobel Hospital, Poona Hospital and Research Centre, Ratna Memorial Hospital, Ruby Hall clinic, Sahyadri Hospital, Sahyadri Super Speciality Hospital, Sai Sneh Hospital and Diagnostic Center, Samarth Hospital, Sancheti Hospital, Sanjeevan Hospital, Sasson General Hospital, Shree Hospital, Stree Clinic, Suraj Hospital, Surya Hospital, Suryaprabha Nursing Home, etc.

Some of the star value hotels and top hotels in Pune are Le Meridien, Sun – n – Sand, Taj Blue Diamond, Gordon House, Best Western Pride Hotel, Aurora Towers, Kohinoor Executive, the Central Park, Oakwood, Sagar Plaza, Maurya Residency, Tej Regency, Swaroop, Shreyas, Shantai, Satkar, Rupam, Pleasant, Parkview, Parichey, Natraj, Manasi, Lokesh, Ketan, Kapila, Dreamland, Chetak, Ashirwad, Alankar, Ajit, Farmer’s Inn, Central Lodge, Utsav Deluxe, Safari, Shree Panchratna, Ranajeet, Regency, Rajdhani, Pearl, Pathik, Mayur, Gulmohr, Choice, Green Gate Resort, Tourist International, Suyash, Shalimar, Homeland, Gauri Inn, Baron Lakeside Resort, Ashiyana, Srimaan, Nandavan, Meru, Panchshil, Woodland, Central Park Studios, Sunderban, The President, Durga, etc.

The flea markets and shopping areas are located around Laxmiroad, Tulsibaug, Fashion Street, Juna Bazaar, M. G. Road, Vishram Baug Wada, Koregaon Park and Hongkong Lane. Other big shopping malls in the city are Vishal Mega Mart, Big Bazaar, Men’s Avenue, Jai Hind, Kakde Mall, Shopper’s Stop, Fabindia, K K Market, Vama, Thathasthu, Pantaloons, Lee, Pepe Jeans, The Raymond Shop, Spykar, Cotton King Pvt Ltd, Butterfly, Mom and Me, Sonpari, Sleepins, Mother and Child, Kids Junction, Mothers Care, Bonsaii and Prakash Departmental Store.

Some of the religious places located in Pune are Lal Dewal, Kasba Ganpati, Pataleshwar Temple, Gurudwara, Derasar, Lal Dewal, Srimant Shree Dagdu Sheth Halvai Ganpati, Chaturshrungi Temple, Ashtavinayak, Alandi, Methodist Marathi Church, The Church of the Holy Name, Christ Church, All Saints Church, etc.

Places of Interest in Pune

The details about Pune will not be complete without mentioning about the tourist places and the places of interest located here. The tourist spots in and around the city are

Lal Deval: This red brick Gothic style architecture was built by David Sassoon in 1867 and was the finest synagogue in Pune.

Bund Garden: This was constructed by Jamshedji Jeejeebhoy and is also called as Mahatma Gandhi Udyan and is situated on the bank of the Mula Mutha River. Boating facilities are available here.

The Osho International Commune: Founded by Osho Rajneesh in 1990 and his Samadhi is situated here with Koregaon Park and its beautiful gardens.

Aga Khan Palace: This is built in Italian style with arches and lawns and Mahatma Gandhi and Kasturba Gandhi were under house arrest by British here.

Shindyanchi Chhatri: This Rajasthani architectural monument is built in the memory of the warrior of the Maratha army Mahadji Shinde.

Pataleshwar Cave Temples: These cave temples in Shivaji Nagar dates back to the eighth century and was carved out of a single rock with huge pillars, Nandi Bull and Shiva Shrine.

Shaniwar Wada: This was built in 1736 by the Peshwa rulers and the Wada fort was destroyed by fire in 1827.

Parvati Hill and Temples: This was built in 17^th century and had its main idol in gold which was stolen in 1932 and now has silver idol plated with gold. You need to climb 108 steps to reach to the top.

Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum: The antique products, palace doors, pottery, ancient lamps and musical instruments, etc are displayed here.

Bal Gandharv Mandir: Exhibitions, orchestra and concerts are conducted in this Marathi Theatre.

Tilak Smarak Mandir: This is built in the memory of the freedom fighter Lokmanya Tilak and has a small museum within it.

Saras Baug: This is the weekend retreat of people of Pune and has Peshwe Park nearby with a zoo.

The Katraj Snake Park: Houses reptiles, birds, turtles and some animals too.

Sinhagad Fort: This fort was won by Tanaji, the soldier of Shivaji Maharaj.

Apart from these places other tourist attractions are Shrimant Dagdusheth Halwai Ganpati, Khadakwasla Dam, Empress Garden, Tulsi Baug, Race Course, Jangli Maharaj Road, Koregaon Park, Botanical Garden and Nehru Stadium.

All these details about Pune will create an interest in anyone to visit this wonderful place.