| ?Pune Maharashtra • India | |
| Nickname: Queen of the Deccan | |
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| Coordinates: 18°32′N 73°51′E / 18.53, 73.85 | |
| Time zone | IST (UTC+5:30) |
| Area • Elevation |
1,359 km² (525 sq mi) • 560 m (1,837 ft) |
| District(s) | Pune |
| Subdistrict | Haveli taluka |
| Population • Density • Metro |
5,064,700 (2008[update]) • 7,214 /km² (18,684 /sq mi) • 5,695,000 (8th) (2008) |
| Codes • Pincode • Telephone • Vehicle |
• 411 0xx • +91(20) • MH 12 (Pune),MH 14 (Pimpri-Chinchwad) |
| Website: www.pune.gov.in | |
Coordinates: 18°32′N 73°51′E / 18.53, 73.85
Pune is known to have existed as a town since 937 AD. Shivaji, the founder of the Maratha Empire, lived in Pune as a boy, and later oversaw significant growth and development of the town during his reign. In 1730, Pune became an important political centre as the seat of the Peshwa, the prime minister of the Chhatrapati of Satara. After the town was annexed to British India in 1817, it served as a cantonment town and as the "monsoon capital" of the Bombay Presidency until the independence of India. In independent India, Pune is known for its educational facilities, having more than a hundred educational institutes and nine universities. It also boasts a growing industrial hinterland, with many information technology and automotive companies setting up factories in Pune district.
Name
The name Pune(known earlier as Poona) derives from Punya Nagari (Sanskrit,"City of Virtue"). The oldest reference to this name is on a Rashtrakuta copper plate dated to 937, in which the town is referred to as Punya-Vishaya or Punak Vishaya. By the 13th century, it had come to be known as Kasbe Pune or Punavadi. Although the city's name is sometimes transcribed as Poona in English, a practise particularly common during the British Raj, the spelling "Pune" has now become standard.
Pune is also known as The Oxford of the East, due to the various educational institutions, and also sometimes referred to as The Detroit of India owing to the many manufacturing companies, particularly automobile giants, having their base within the city's metropolitan area.
History
Early and Medieval
Copper plates dated to 758 and 768 show that, by the 8th century, an agricultural settlement known as Punnaka existed where Pune is today. The plates indicate that this region was ruled by the Rashtrakutas. The Pataleshwar rock-cut temple complex was also built during this era.
Pune was a part of Yadava Empire of Deogiri from the 9th century to 1327. It was later ruled by the Nizamshahi sultans, until it was annexed by the Mughal empire in the 17th century. In 1595, Maloji Bhosale was appointed the Jahagirdar of Pune and Supe by the Mughals.
Maratha and Peshwa rule
In 1625, Shahaji Bhonsle appointed Rango Bapuji Dhadphale as the administrator of Pune. He was one of the first major developers of the town, overseeing the construction of the Kasba, Somwar, Ravivar and Shaniwar Peths. Construction also began on the Lal Mahal palace, as Shahaji's son, Shivaji Bhonsle (later Chattrapati Shivaji) was to move there with his mother Jilabai. The Lal Mahal was completed in 1640. Jijabai is said to have commissioned the building of the Kasba Ganpati temple herself. The Ganapati idol consecrated at this temple is regarded as the presiding deity (gramadevta) of the city.
From 1630 to 1647, Dadoji Kondev, Shivaji's childhood mentor and teacher, oversaw development and construction in the area. As a child, Shivaji is said to have commemorated agricultural activities personally by using specially made golden ploughs. After Shivaji was crowned Chhatrapati (King) in 1647, he oversaw further development in Pune, including the construction of the Guruwar, Somwar, Ganesh and Ghorpade Peths.
Baji Rao I became Peshwa of the Maratha empire, ruled by Chattrapati Shahuji, in 1720. By 1730, the palace of Shaniwarwada had been constructed on the banks of the Mutha river, ushering in the era of Peshwa control of the city. The patronage of the Peshwas resulted in the construction of many temples and bridges in the city, including the Parvati temple and the Sadashiv, Narayan, Rasta and Nana Peths. The Peshwas fell into decline after their loss in the Third Battle of Panipat in 1761. In 1802, Pune was captured from the Peshwa by Yaswantrao Holkar in the Battle of Poona, directly precipitating the Second Anglo-Maratha War of 1803-05.
British Raj
The Third Anglo Maratha War broke out between the Marathas and the British in 1817. Peshwas were defeated at the Battle of Khadki (then transcribed Kirkee) near Pune, and the city was seized. It was placed under the administration of the Bombay Presidency, and the British built a large military cantonment to the east of the city (now used by the Indian Army). The Pune Municipality was established in 1858. Pune was at one time the "monsoon capital" of the Bombay Presidency.
Nanasaheb Peshwa the adopted son of the last Peshwa Bajirao II, rose against British East India Company rule in 1856, as part of the Indian mutiny. He was helped by Rani Lakshmibai of Jhansi and Tatya Tope. After the mutiny failed, the final remnants of the Maratha empire were annexed to British India.
Pune was an important centre for the social and religious reform movements of the late 19th century. Many prominent social reformers lived here, including Mahadev Govind Ranade, Ramakrishna GopalBhandarkar, Gopal Krishna Ghokle, Maharshi Vitthal Ramaji Shinde and Jyotirao Phule. The most important political reformer of this era was Bal Gangadhar Tilak, who dominated the Indian political scene for six decades.
Tilak was a prominent activist early in the Indian independence movement. Shivaram Rajguru and Nathuram Godse, two other important political activists, were both born near Pune.
Geography
Pune is located 560m (1,837 ft) above sea level on the western margin of the Deccan plateau. It is situated on the leeward side of the Sahyadri mountain range (the Western Ghats), which separate it from the Arabian sea. It is a relatively hilly city, with its tallest hill, Vetal hill, rising to 800m (2,625 ft) above sea level. Just outside the city, the Sinhagad fort is located at a height of 1300m.
Central Pune is located at the confluence of the Mula and Mutha rivers. The Pavana and Indrayani rivers, tributaries of the Bhima river, traverse the northwestern outskirts of the metropolitan Pune.
Pune lies very close to the seismically active zone around Koyna Dam, about 100 km south of the city, and has been rated in Zone4 (on a scale of 2 to 5, with 5 being the most prone to earthquakes) by the India Meteorological Department. Pune has experienced some moderate-intensity and many low-intensity earthquakes in its history. Although no major earthquakes have originated in Pune itself, an earthquake of magnitude 3.2 took place in the Katraj region near Pune on May17, a low intensity earthquake observed on night of 30th July 08,the intensity of the earth quake was meaured at 4.2 as per news resources around 12:41 am. The epicenter for the Earth Quake was in Koyna Dam field 2004.
Climate
| Climate chart for Pune | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| J | F | M | A | M | J | J | A | S | O | N | D |
|
0
30
11 |
3
32
12 |
2
35
16 |
11
38
20 |
40
37
22 |
138
32
23 |
163
28
22 |
129
27
22 |
155
29
21 |
68
31
18 |
28
30
14 |
4
29
12 |
| temperatures in °C precipitation totals in mm source: Weather Underground | |||||||||||
Pune has a tropical wet and dry climate with average temperatures ranging between 20°C to 28°C.
Pune experiences three distinct seasons: summer, monsoon and winter. Typical summer months are from March to May, with maximum temperatures ranging from 30 to 38 °C (85 to 100 °F). The warmest month in Pune is April; although summer doesn't end until May, the city often receives locally developed heavy thundershowers in May (although humidity remains high). Even during the hottest months, the nights are usually cool due to Pune's high altitude. The highest temperature ever recorded was 43.3°C on April 30, 1897.
The monsoon lasts from June to October, with moderate rainfall and temperatures ranging from 10°C to 28°C (50°F to 82°F). Most of the 722mm of rainfall in the city fall between June and September, and July is the wettest month of the year. Pune once received rainfall on 29 consecutive days.
Winter begins in November; November in particular is known as the Rosy Cold (Marathi: गुलाबी थंडी). The daytime temperature hovers around 28 °C (83 °F) while night temperature is below 10 °C (50 °F) for most of December and January, often dropping to 5 or 6 °C (42 °F). The lowest temperature ever located was 1.7 °C on January 17,1935
Transport
Pune relies largely on roads for transport within the city, although a mass rapid transport system is being planned. It is well connected to all the other cities in India by road, rail and airline connections. Although it has an international airport, there are only two direct international flights, to Dubai and Frakfurt.The Pune-Singapore service was suspended.
Road
Both public transport (autorickshaws and buses) and private transport (cars, motorcycles and scooters) are popular in Pune. According to one study, there were then 400,000 cars and 1.6 million two-wheelers in Pune in 2007. More than 200,000 vehicles are added to the traffic in Pune every year.
Public buses within the city and its suburbs are operated by the Pune Mahanagar Parivahan Mahamandal Ltd. (PMPML). A Pune Bus Rapid Transit system has been proposed, in which dedicated bus lanes would allow buses to travel quickly through the city. Buses to towns within Pune district surrounding Pune, as well as cities throughout Maharashtra are run by the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation.Private bus companies also run buses to major cities throughout India, especially Mumbai.
Pune is well-connected to other cities by Indian Highways and state highways. National Highway 4 (NH 4) connects it to Mumbai and Banglore, NH 9 to Solapur and Hyderabad, and NH50 to Nashik. State highways connect it to Ahemadnagar, Aurangabad, and Alandi.
Since 2002, Pune has been connected to Mumbai via the Mumbai-Pune Expreesway, India's first six-lane high-speed expressway. Both pre-paid air-conditioned "cool" cabs and private bus companies ply this route, connecting Mumbai and Pune in three hours.Out of the total distance of 165 km from Mumbai to Pune, the Express Highway part is 96 km.A ring-road is being planned to be constructed for the convienience of traffic.
Pune has witnessed an extraordinary growth in vehicular density and has consequently seen an alarmingly high increase in traffic offenses, accidents, and fatalities resulting from these.
Rail
A rapid transit system has been proposed in Pune, and is scheduled to begin operations in 2010. It is being planned in consultation with Delhi Metro Rail Corporation Ltd, the corporation which built and operates the Delhi Metro. Three routes have been identified thus far:
- Warje-Chinchwad, via Karve road, Jangli Maharaj road, Shivajinagar, and the Pune-Mumbai road (22 km, elevated)
- Shivajinagar-Kalyaninagar, via Raja Bahadur Mill road and the Pune-Ahmednagar road (13 km, elevated)
- Agriculture College-Swargate, via Shivaji road (10 km, underground)
The city has two railway stations, one in the city and the other at Shivajinagar. Both stations are administrated by the Pune division of the Central Railways, which extends from after Lonavala (which is administered by the Mumbai CSTM division) to before Daund (which is under the Solapur division), to Baramati, and to Kolhapur (via Miraj). All the railway lines to Pune are broad guage, with double electrified lines (1500 volt DC traction) to Lonavala, a double non-electrified line to Daund, and single non-electrified lines to Kolhapur via Miraj and Baramati via Daund.
Local trains (EMUs) connect Pune to the industrial town of Pimpri-Chinchwad and the hill station of Lonavla, while daily express trains connect Pune to Mumbai, Howrah, Delhi, Jammutawi, Chennai, Hyderabad, Bangalore, and so on.
At Pune, there is diesel locomotive shed (DLS) and electric trip shed (ETS).
Air
Pune Airport is an international airport at Lohegaon, operated by the Airports Authority of India. It shares its runways with the neighbouring Indian Air Force base. Apart from domestic flights to all major Indian cities, this airport serves two international direct flights: one to Dubai (operated by Air India Express), and one to Frankfurt (operated by Lufthansa).
The Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation is responsible for the design and construction of a new Pune International Airport. The area between Chakan and Rajgurunagar, around the villages of Chandus and Shiroli, is currently being considered as a construction site. If constructed here, it will be 40 km from central Pune along the Pune-Nashik National highway (NH-50).
Civic Administration
The city of Pune is managed by the Pune municipal Corporation (PMC). The Corporation consists of 149 directly elected councilors, who are led by the Mayor of Pune, a titular position mainly acting as an ambassador and representative of the city. Actual executive power is vested in the Municipal Commisionar, an officer of the IAS who is appointed by the state government.
Apart from the PMC, four other administrative bodies are active within the Pune metropolitan area:
- Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC), responsible for Pimpri-Chichwad and its surroundings,
- Khadki Cantonment Board (KCB)responsible for Khadki ,
- Pune Cantonment Board (PCB), responsible for Pune Cantonment, and
- Dehu Road Cantonment Board, responsible for the Dehu Road area.
A plan to establish a single Pune Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (PMRDA), consisting of the combined municipal councils, corporations, and other local governments of Pune, Pimpri-Chinchwad, Lonavla,Talegaon, Bhor, Shirur,Saswad, the three cantonments and hundred villages near the city, has been considered since 1997, but might come to fruition this year. This body will then be the executing authority which will acquire and develop reserve land to improve the infrastruction of the Pune metropolitan area.
The Pune Police is headed by the Police Commisonar of Pune , an officer of the Indian Police Service . The Police report to the state ministry.
Military establishments
Pune has been a prominent cantonment town since the early 1800s. Several important battles were fought in and around Pune, including the battle of Khadki (1817) and the battle of Koregaon (1818). Many military establishments have been set up here.
