Hi....
"Namma Bengaluru" means "My Bangalore". It is kannada form of saying " My Bangalore."
Well, City of Bangalore has it's own Charm and Vibrant Culture.
Bangalore is the capital of Karnataka state. Located on the Deccan
Plateau in the south-eastern part of Karnataka. Bangalore is India's third most populous city and fifth-most populous
urban agglomeration. Bangalore is well-known as the hub of India's
information technology sector.
Bangalore lies in the southeast of the South
Indian state of Karnataka. It is in the heart of the Mysore
Plateau at an average elevation of 900 m (2,953 ft). It is
located at 12.97°N 77.56°E and covers an area of
741 km² (286 mi²).
Bangalore experiences a tropical savanna climate with distinct wet and dry
seasons. Due to its high elevation, Bangalore usually enjoys a more moderate climate
throughout the year, although occasional heat waves can make things very
uncomfortable in the summer.
History
Well, City of Bangalore has vast history hidden in it's roots.
Bangalore, or Bengaluru, as it is known today, was founded
by Kempe
Gowda, who built a mud fort at the site in 1537. Modern Bangalore had its
beginning in 1537 by a vassal of the Vijayanagara Empire, Kempé
Gowda I, who built a mud-brick fort at the site that would become the
central part of modern Bangalore. Kempé Gowda referred to the new town as his
"gandubhūmi" or "Land of Heroes".
 |
| Kempe Gowda |
After the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire, Bangalore's rule
changed several times. Kempé Gowda declared independence, then in 1638, a large
Adil Shahi
Bijapur army led by Ranadulla Khan and accompanied by Shāhji Bhōnslé
defeated Kempé Gowda III, and Bangalore was given to Shāhji as a jagir (feudal
estate). In 1687, the Mughal general Kasim Khan, under orders from Aurangzeb,
defeated Ekoji I,
son of Shāhji, and leased Bangalore to Chikkadevaraja Wodeyar (1673–1704), the
ruler of Mysore kingdom. After the death of Krishnaraja
Wodeyar II in 1759, Hyder Ali, Commander-in-Chief of the Mysore Army,
proclaimed himself the de facto ruler of Mysore. The kingdom later passed to
Hyder Ali's son Tipu Sultan.
 |
| Lord Cornwallis |
Bangalore fort was captured by the British armies under Lord
Cornwallis on 21 March 1791 during the Third Anglo-Mysore War and formed a centre
for British resistance against Tipu Sultan.Following Tipu Sultan's death in the Fourth Anglo-Mysore War (1799), the British
returned administrative control of the Bangalore "pētē" to the Maharaja of Mysore, choosing only to retain the Cantonment
under their jurisdiction. The 'Residency' of Mysore
State was first established in Mysore city in 1799 and later shifted to Bangalore in the year
1804. It was abolished in the year 1843 only to be revived in 1881 at Bangalore
and to be closed down permanently in 1947, with Indian independence.
Transport
Air
Bangalore is served by the Bengaluru International Airport started
operations from 24 May 2008. The city was earlier served by the HAL Airport which was India's
fourth busiest airport. It is now the fourth busiest airport in India in terms
of passenger traffic and the number of air traffic movements (ATMs) with about
280 per day. The airport is around 40 km from the city centre. The most
hassle-free way to commute is by taxi. Easy cabs have taxis present in the rank
at the airport. There are also certain private cab companies.
Rail
A rapid
transit system called the Namma Metro
is being built. A 7 km stretch from Bayappanahalli to MG Road was opened
to public on 20 October 2011.
Bangalore comes under Bangalore railway division of the South Western Railway zone of the Indian
Railways. Bangalore City Railway station and
Yesvantpur Junction connect it to the rest of the country through the Indian
Railways. The Bangalore Rajdhani Express connects
the city to New Delhi, the capital of India. The sprawling Rail Wheel Factory
is Asia's second largest manufacturer of Wheel & Axle for Railways and headquartered
in Yelahanka, Bangalore.
Bus
Buses operated by Bangalore Metropolitan
Transport Corporation (BMTC) are an important and reliable means of public
transport available in the city. BMTC runs air-conditioned luxury buses on
major routes, and also operates shuttle services from various parts of the city
to the Bengaluru International Airport. The Karnataka State Road
Transport Corporation operates 6,918 buses on 6,352 schedules, connecting
Bangalore with other parts of Karnataka as well as other states. The main bus
depots that KSRTC maintains are the Kempegowda Bus Station, locally known as
"Majestic bus stand", where most of the out station buses ply from.
Culture
The city celebrates its oldest festival, "Karaga
Shaktyotsava" or Bangalore Karaga. Deepavali,
the "Festival of Lights", transcends demographic and religious lines
and is an important festival, along with the nine nights of Navratri. Other
traditional Indian festivals such as Ganesh
Chaturthi, Ugadi/Gudi Padwa,
Sankranthi,
Eid
ul-Fitr, and Christmas are also celebrated.
Bangalore has a wide and varied mix of restaurant types and
cuisines and Bangaloreans deem eating out as an intrinsic part of their
culture. Roadside vendors, tea stalls, and South Indian, North Indian, Chinese
and Western fast food are all very popular in the city. Udupi
restaurants are very popular and serve predominantly vegetarian, regional
cuisine.
Bangalore is home to the Kannada film industry, which churns out about
80 Kannada movies each year.Bangalore also has a very active and vibrant theatre culture
with popular theatres being Raindra Kalakshetra and
the more recently opened Ranga Shankara.
Bangalore is sometimes called as the "Pub
Capital of India" and the "Rock/Metal capital of India" because of
its underground music scene and it is one of the premier places to hold
international rock concerts.
Tourist Attractions
Bangalore is known as the Garden City of India because
of its greenery and the presence of many public parks, including the Lal Bagh and Cubbon Park.
Lal Bagh or Lal Bagh Botanical Gardens, meaning The Red Garden
in English, is a well known botanical garden in southern Bangalore,
India. The garden was originally commissioned by Hyder Ali, the ruler of
Mysore, and later finished by his son Tipu Sultan. It has a famous
glass house which hosts an annual flower show. Lal Bagh is a 240-acre
(971,000 sq.m. - almost 1 km².) garden and is located in south
Bangalore. It holds a number of flower shows, especially on the Republic
Day (26 January). The garden has over 1,000 species of flora. The
garden also has trees that are over 100 years old.
Lal Bagh remains open daily from 6:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. throughout the
year. For the benefit of joggers, tourists and fitness enthusiasts,
entry is free from 6:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. and from 6:00 p.m. to 7:00
p.m. At other times, a fee of Rs.10/- is charged. Entry for school
children and the disabled is free all day.
Lal
Bagh is well connected by Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation
buses from Kempegowda Bus Station/Shivaji Nagar. All buses towards
Jayanagar/Banashankari areas pass through one of the four gates of Lal
Bagh.
Cubbon Park
Cubbon Park (Kannada: ಕಬ್ಬನ್ ಪಾರ್ಕ್) is a landmark 'lung' area of the Bangalore city, located (12.97°N 77.6°E)
within the heart of city in the Central Administrative Area. Originally
created in 1870, when Major General Richard Sankey was the then British
Chief Engineer of Mysore state, it covered an area of 100 acres
(0.40 km2) and subsequent expansion has taken place and the area reported now is about 300 acres (1.2 km2). Indigenous and exotic botanical species found in the park are about 68
genera and 96 species with a total of around 6000 plants/trees.
The Park is accessible from M.G. Road, Kasturba road, Hudson Circle and Ambedkar
Veedhi (Road). The motorable roads which run through the park are
allowed for light motor vehicles only. All locations of the park are
accessible through walking paths. The Park is open to the public at all
times but the roads are closed for traffic from 5 A.M to 8 A.M every
day.
Bangalore Fort
was originally built by Kempe Gowda in 1537 a feudatory of the
Vijaynagar Empire and the founder of Bangalore as a mud fort. It was
converted into a stone fort by Haider Ali in 1761. It was a stronghold
of Tipu Sultan that was captured by the army of the British East India
Company led by Lord Cornwallis on 21 March 1791 during the Third Mysore
War (1790–1792). Only the Delhi gate of the fort presently exists on
Krishnarajendra Road
bearing a marble plaque recording the spot where a breach in the fort
wall delivered Bangalore Fort to the British. There also exists a wooden
palace of Tipu sultan, and his armoury in the old fort area. The fort
has provided the setting for the treasure hunt in the book Riddle of the
Seventh Stone.
Government buildings
The
Vidhana Soudha, located in Bengaluru (Bangalore), is the seat of the
state legislature of Karnataka. It is an imposing building, constructed
in a style sometimes described as Mysore Neo-Dravidian, and incorporates elements of Indo-Saracenic and Dravidian styles.The construction was completed in 1956.
Vidhana
Soudha is the brainchild of Kengal Hanumanthaiah and built by chief
engineer B.R. Manickam.
Attara
Kacheri, (Karnataka High Court), overlooks Vidhana
Sabha. It is a red brick and stone building in the Greco-Roman
style of architecture. It houses the High Court for the state of Karnataka.
Museums
The
Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium in Bengaluru was founded by Bangalore City
Corporation
in 1989. Since 1992 it is managed by the newly formed Bangalore
Association for Science Education (BASE). The Planetarium has a 15 m.
diameter dome with a seating capacity of 210. It is equipped with a
German Carl Zeiss 'Space master' Planetarium projector. The planetarium
is located on Sir. T. Chowdaiah Road and there is a Science center and a
Science park in the premises.
The Sky Theater shows at Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium are very popular
and attract about more than 2 lakhs visitors per year. Visuals such as
Cartoons, Paintings,. Computer animations, video clippings and special
effects are liberally used in the programmes at the sky theater.
There is a Science Park around the Jawaharlal Nehru Planetarium at
Bangalore. The visitors to this planetarium will have an opportunity to
learn some elements of science in a natural and playful manner due to
the science park at the planetarium. The Science park creates the right
scientific ambience around the activities conducted at the Science
Center. Some of the models on display at the Science park of this
planetarium are the models of D.N.A., Resonant Swings, Whispering
Dishes, Sun Dial, Giant Kaleidoscope, Model of a PSLV rocket.
Government Museum (Bangalore) established in 1865 by L.B. Bowring.
It is now an Archaeological Museum and has a rare collection of
archaeological and geological artifacts including old jewellery,
sculpture, coins and inscriptions. The museum is also home to the
Halmidi inscription, the earliest Kannada inscription ever found (450
AD).
The Visvesvaraya Industrial and Technological Museum
(VITM) is a museum in Bangalore, India. Its management comes under the
National Council of Science Museums (NCSM), Government of India.
Vishveshwaray Museum is not a 'museum' in its classical sense, because
it has interactive exhibits unlike stationary models of a museum. It is
more of a "Science Centre". Each floor of this museum is dedicated to a
scientific discipline.
The 'Engine Hall' exhibits engines of various automobiles, machines used
in industry, a jet aircraft engine, and other mechanical devices.
The 'Space Gallery' is about rocket science and the history of space exploration.
On the first floor of the Museum we have the 'Fun Science gallery' that
displays exhibits on sciences of sound, optics, fluids, math and
perception. This is a real fun-filled exhibition and people throng each
and every exhibit in large numbers to operate them.
Nature
The Doda Alada Mara (also spelled Dodda Alada Mara), literally translated to Big Banyan Tree,
is a giant Banyan tree located in the village of Ramohalli, near
kengeri approximately 60 kilometers west of the city of Bangalore,
Karnataka, India. This single plant covers 3 acres (12,000 m2) and is one of the largest of its kind. It is said to be at least 400 years old.
Bugle Rock
is a massive rock in the Basavanagudi area of South Bangalore, in the
state of Karnataka. It is an abrupt rise above the ground of peninsular
gneiss
as the main rock formation and with an assessed age of about 3,000
million years. Bugle Rock has generated wide interest among the
scientific community.
Nandi Hills or Nandidurg (Anglicised forms include Nandidrug and Nandydroog)
is an ancient hill fortress of southern India, in the Chikkaballapur
district of Karnataka state. It is located just 10 km from Chickballapur
town and approximately 60 km from the city of Bangalore. The hills are
nestled between the neighboring towns of Nandi, Muddenahalli, and
Kanivenarayanapura. The hills are traditionally held as the origin of
the Arkavathy river.
Wildlife
Bannerghatta Biological Park
was carved out of the Bannerghatta National Park in the year 2002. It
is situated 22 km south of Bangalore, Karnataka, India. The journey to
the park takes nearly one and a half hours from Bangalore. This hilly
place is the home for one of the richest natural, zoological reserves.
The 25,000 acre (104.27 km²) zoological park makes this a major tourist
attraction of Bangalore.
Bangalore Aquarium
is the second largest aquarium in India. It is located at the entrance
of Cubbon Park in Bangalore, India, and was established in 1983. It has a
variety of exotic cultivable as well as ornamental fish on display.
Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary also known as Paksi Kashi of Karnataka
is a Bird Sanctuary in the Mandya District of the state of Karnataka in
India. It is the largest bird sanctuary in the state, only 0.67 km². in
area, which is about 40 acres and comprises six islets on the banks of
the Kaveri river. Ranganthittu is located three kilometers away from the
historic town of Srirangapatna and 16 kilometres (9.9 mi) north of
Mysore. The sanctuary attracted about 2.90 lakh visitors during 2011-12,
which shows its notability as important bird sanctuary of India.
Places of Worship
Dodda Basavana Gudi (the Bull Temple)
is situated in the N.R. Colony, Basavanagudi, area of South Bangalore,
part of the largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. The Hindu
temple is inside the a park called Bugle Rock.
Nandi Temple
is exclusively for the worship of the sacred bull (Basava in Kannada)
in Hinduism, known as Nandi, Lord Shiva's vahana, . The word "nandi"
means "joyful" in Sanskrit.
The
bull referred to is a sacred Hindu demi-god, known as Nandi; Nandi is a
close devotee and attendant of Shiva. Dodda Basavana Gudi is said to be
the biggest temple to Nandi in the world. The stone cult image of Nandi
is continually covered with new layers of butter, benne in the local language of Kannada. There is a cult image of the elephant-headed Hindu deity son of shiva Ganesha close by.
Shopping
- Brigade Road is one of the busiest commercial centers of Bangalore where you can get any sort of shopping done.
- Commercial Street is a busy commercial centre of Bangalore for getting all sorts of shopping done.
- MG road was previously known as "South Parade" is the most important landmark of Bangalore.
- Chikpet is famous for traditional roadside shopping close to Majestic bus stand.
- Forum and Garuda Mall. Bangalore has numerous shopping malls.
