The eighth largest city in India and the second largest in the state of Maharashtra, Pune, is a charming town known for its rich and vibrant culture. Also called the cultural capital of Maharashtra, Pune lies close to the Western Ghat Mountains and is just a short distance away from the exotic hill stations of the west like Lonavala, Khandala and Mahabaleshwar. The city was ruled by a number of distinct rulers. Peshwas were one amongst them. Pune grew and developed immensely under their rule. Peshwas were intellectual, artistic and literary people therefore they insisted on the development of more and more educational institutes, temples and art and culture centers in the city. With its many institutions along with the educational ones i.e sports, yoga, ayurveda, culture and social services, the city is proudly called the 'Oxford of the east'.
Pune is also an industrial hub with lots of industries having their base in the city. The city is most thronged by automobiles and IT companies. Giants like General Motors, Fiat, Bajaj, Kinetic, Volkswagen etc are all set in the vicinity of the city. Pune therefore is one of the major employment generator in the country, offering jobs to bulk of people around the year. Pune is also known for its beautiful and exotic hill stations, lakes, temples, museums and other architectural marvels of the bygone era. The city fetches a large number of foreign and domestic tourists throughout the year.
History of Pune
Pune has a very rich and enticing history attached to it. The city was ruled by a string of rulers since its inception. First the Rashtrakootas then Yadavas then Muslims and then the great Marathas and Pehwas. Pune was earlier called 'Punyanagri' or 'Punnaka'. The City had witnessed the birth of Shivaji Raje, the founder of 'Maratha Empire' and son of 'Shahji', the Maratha General and 'Jija Bai'. The history of Pune is closely linked with the life of Shivaji. Shivaji was nurtured under the care and guidance of his mother in the Lal Mahal, a palace built by his father Shahji. Jijaji bai was opposed to the foreign rulers due to their derision and callousness towards the local population, she therefore instilled in Shivaji a natural love for self-determination and an aversion to external political domination. Later when Shivaji grew young he was given the rule of Pune by his father. Shivaji was very brave and determined, he regained the Muslim invaded regions and formed an independent Maratha Kingdom in 1674, with Raigad (Pune) as its Capital. Shivaji died in 1680 forwarding the onus of ruling the Maratha Empire on his successors.
The then Maratha rulers appointed Peshwas (prime minister) as the head of their government for the smooth functioning of their empire. Later the Peshwas became the de facto rulers of the Maratha Empire. The Peshwas were great lovers of art, literature and culture. It was during their reign that Pune observed the maximum growth both in terms of education and arts. Many temples, forts, palaces and educational institutes were built to spread literacy amongst the commoners of the Empire. Pune till date enjoys the literary status and is viewed as the hub of education and technology. The temples and architectural monuments constructed during the rule of Peshwas, are now serving as the eye candy for tourists and draw a large number of globetrotters to this city.
Culture
The Culture of Pune has attained a cosmopolitian character considering the influx of a large number of people from all states and cities of the country. Pune is an educational hub. It has a number of institutes both educational and vocational listed to its credit. Also being one of the famous industrial cities, Pune houses an array of software and automobile companies. These factors are enough to attract people of all castes, creeds, religions and faiths to this city. There is no one religion followed in Pune rather it is a melting pot of several with Hinduism being the most followed one. As people from all nooks and corners of the country stay here therefore a number of languages are spoken in the city. However being a part of Maharashtra, the dominant language remains Marathi which is followed by Hindi.
The people of Pune are very amicable and fun loving. They also take keen interest in the arts, crafts, music, spirituality, etc. The city also houses several architectural marvels of the bygone era. Many tourists from in and around the country come to visit these mesmerizing old world icons around the year. Puneites are also great food lovers. They love spicey and aromatic food and also put in lot of efforts to get the desired taste in their food. The best part of the city is that it never sleeps. One can see the roads and people active even in the middle of the night. This is credited to the ongoing spirit of 'Never say Die' amongst its people. People are either awake because of work or for fun but yes one thing for sure is that the city is always cheerful and in best of its moods.
Culture
The Culture of Pune has attained a cosmopolitian character considering the influx of a large number of people from all states and cities of the country. Pune is an educational hub. It has a number of institutes both educational and vocational listed to its credit. Also being one of the famous industrial cities, Pune houses an array of software and automobile companies. These factors are enough to attract people of all castes, creeds, religions and faiths to this city. There is no one religion followed in Pune rather it is a melting pot of several with Hinduism being the most followed one. As people from all nooks and corners of the country stay here therefore a number of languages are spoken in the city. However being a part of Maharashtra, the dominant language remains Marathi which is followed by Hindi.
The people of Pune are very amicable and fun loving. They also take keen interest in the arts, crafts, music, spirituality, etc. The city also houses several architectural marvels of the bygone era. Many tourists from in and around the country come to visit these mesmerizing old world icons around the year. Puneites are also great food lovers. They love spicey and aromatic food and also put in lot of efforts to get the desired taste in their food. The best part of the city is that it never sleeps. One can see the roads and people active even in the middle of the night. This is credited to the ongoing spirit of 'Never say Die' amongst its people. People are either awake because of work or for fun but yes one thing for sure is that the city is always cheerful and in best of its moods.
ClimatePune the cultural capital of Maharashtra, witnesses a tropical wet and dry climate with average temperatures ranging between 20 °C to 28 °C. The city is located 560 m (1,837 ft) above sea level on the western edge of the Deccan Plateau.
Monsoon - Pune receives moderate rainfall in the rainy season (Jun - Oct) and gets very humid during Monsoons. July being the wettest month.
Summer - Max. Temp is around 38˚C and the Min. Temp is around 30 ˚C. The summer months are from March till mid of May with April being the hottest month. Evenings and nights are often cool due to high altitude.
Winter - Max. Temp is around 28˚C and the Min. Temp is around 10 ˚C. Evenings and nights are quite cold. December and January being the coldest months with night temperature often dropping to 5 - 6˚C.
The best time to visit Pune is between Oct - March, when climate conditions are at their best, after the humid rains and before the hot summers.
How to Reach
By Air : Pune has an International Airport. The city is well connected with major metropolitan cities in India - Mumbai, Delhi etc through direct flights around the year.
By Train : Pune has two railway stations, one in the city and the other at Shivajinagar. The city is directly connected with the major cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai by regular trains. Trains are easily available throughout the year.
By Road : Pune is well-connected to other cities by Indian Highways and State highways. National Highway 4 (NH 4) connects it to Mumbai and Bangalore, NH 9 to Solapur and Hyderabad, and NH 50 to Nashik . State highways connect it to Ahmedabad, Aurangabad and Alandi. To commute with in the city you can avail the public transport i.e buses and cabs.
