Bangalore |
Bangalore(1) is the principal administrative, cultural, commercial, industrial, and knowledge capital of the state of Karnataka. Greater Bangalore,(2) an area of 741 km2 agglomerating the city, neighbouring municipal councils and outgrowths, was ‘notified’ (established) in December 2006 (Figure 1). A tiny village in the 12th century, it grew to become one of the fastest growing cities in the world by the 21st century and to figure among the million-plus cities in India.(3) Bangalore has grown spatially more than 10 times since 1949 (Table 1). The city enjoys a pleasant and salubrious climate throughout the year. Its treelined streets, numerous parks and abundant greenery have led to it being called the ’Garden City’ of India. It has also been identified as the country’s ‘Silicon Valley’ and it is one of the technological innovation hubs with a technological achievement index (TAI) of 13 (4) according to the Human Development Report (United Nations Development Programme, 2001). However, with all the hype about growth in IT and IT based industries, Bangalore also houses numerous other leading commercial and educational institutions, and industries like textiles, aviation, space, biotechnology, etc. As an immediate consequence of this growth in the last decade, apart from creating a ripple effect in the local economy, there has also been great pressure on infrastructure and resources like water supply, energy, public transportation, land, etc. The local body and other parastatal agencies responsible for delivery of basic services are facing stiff challenges in catering to this demand.
Quite recently there have been serious attempts by sociologists and urban planners to characterise the city. Heitzman (2004) has analysed the nature of growth that the city experienced with the emergence of the information society, while bringing out the ingredients that led to the transformation of planning methodologies and spatial planning tools for the city. Nair (2005) has exemplified Bangalore as ‘the promise of the metropolis’ while illustrating the urban fabric of Bangalore over the last century. In this profile, an attempt is made to bring out the status of current infrastructure and various facets of planning and governance.
The next section deals with the origin and history of the city followed by a description of climate, geography and environment. The subsequent section considers culture, demography and economics. Lastly, the urban agenda addressing governance and infrastructure discussing the stakeholders involved, challenges in managing urban infrastructure and issues in planning and development are elaborated.
(1) The name, Bangalore has been proposed for renaming to ‘Bengalooru’ by the State government following suit of Bombay to Mumbai, Madras to Chennai and Calcutta to Kolkota. However, we use Bangalore all through.
(2) The Urban Development Department, Government of Karnataka has issued gazette notification vide No. UDD/92/ MNY/2006, dated 2.11.2006 for constituting the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (Greater Bangalore City Corporation) merging the existing area of Bangalore City Corporation, 8 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) and 111 Villages of Bangalore Urban District.
(3) Bangalore is the fifth largest metropolis in India currently with a population of about 7 million.
(4) Almost on par with San Francisco, USA, while Silicon Valley, USA is number 1 with TAI of 16.
