Bangalore, officiallyknown asBengaluru, is the Capital of the Indian State of Karnataka. It has a population of over ten million,making it a megacityand the Third populous City and 5th most populous urban agglomeration in India.It is located in Southern India on the Deccan Pleteau . Its elevation is over 900m (3,000ft) above sea level, the highest of India’s major cities.
A succession of South Indian dynasties, theWestern Gangas, theCholasand theHoysalas, ruled the present region of Bangalore until in 1537 CE,Kempé Gowdā– a feudal ruler under theVijayanagara Empire– established a mud fortconsidered to be the foundation of modern Bangalore. In 1638, theMarāthāsconquered and ruled Bangalore for almost 50 years, after which theMughalscaptured and sold the city to theMysore Kingdomof theWadiyar dynasty. It was captured by theBritishafter victory in theFourth Anglo-Mysore War(1799), who returned administrative control of the city to theMaharaja of Mysore. The old city developed in the dominions of theMaharaja of Mysoreand was made capital of thePrincely State of Mysore, which existed as a nominally sovereign entity of theBritish Raj.
In 1809, the British shifted theircantonmentto Bangalore, outside the old city, and a town grew up around it, which was governed as part ofBritish India. FollowingIndia’s independencein 1947, Bangalore became the capital ofMysore State, and remained 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 existingKannadaname,Bengalūru, was declared theofficial nameof the city in 2006.
Bangalore is sometimes referred to as the “Silicon Valley of India” (or “IT capital of India”) because of its role as the nation’s leadinginformation technology(IT) exporter.Indian technological organisationsISRO,Infosys,WiproandHALare headquartered in the city. A demographically diverse city, Bangalore is the second fastest-growing major metropolis in India.It is home to many educational and research institutions in India, such asIndian Institute of Science(IISc),Indian Institute of Management (Bangalore)(IIMB),National Institute of Fashion Technology, Bangalore,National Institute of Design, Bangalore(NID R&D Campus),National Law School of India University(NLSIU) andNational Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences(NIMHANS). Numerous state-ownedaerospaceanddefence organisations, such asBharat Electronics,Hindustan AeronauticsandNational Aerospace Laboratoriesare located in the city. The city also houses theKannada film industry.
