Pune, the cultural capital of the state of
Maharashtra is known by many an interesting sobriquet; the
Queen of the Deccan and the Oxford of the East being the most
famous of them. The city's proximity to Mumbai, India's commercial
capital has seen both the corporate world and the student community
evince great interest in it. Pune, nestling among the foothills
of the famed Sahyadri range, is known for its salubrious climate
and its warm, hospitable people. Its quaint bylanes and Victorian
bungalows vie for attention along with modern architectural
wonders and net-age technology. Culture and tradition flourish
hand in hand with several 17th and 18th century palaces and
temples standing together with new-age multinational enterprises.
Pune is the seat of several institutions of higher learning.
The city is also a significant milestone in the history of
India, having been a Maratha stronghold and having given
India some of her most memorable personalities, the most famous
of them being Shivaji Maharaj, the Maratha king who defied
the Moghul emperor Aurangzeb. The city also served as the head
quarters of the mighty Maratha Empire under the Peshwas.
Many social reformers, revolutionaries, political leaders,
researchers, scientists, educationists and sportsmen have been
nurtured in Pune. Pune is very much a modern city, yet one
that retains its old values and traditions. 
Today, racing ahead on the Information Technology highway, Pune
has taken a quantum leap. Suddenly, this erstwhile sleepy hamlet
is bustling with frenzied activity. The state government is laying
six tracks of fiber optic cable along the expressway. Every inch
of space in the 400-acre IT park set up by MIDC and STPI has
been sold out, with another 400-acre park under development.
Financials boast of IT investments in Pune totalling over Rs.
100 crore in 2000-01 alone.
The city's engineering colleges and IT institutes spew out 3,000
IT professionals every year. Result: absolutely no dearth of
trained manpower. Nasscom's promotion of IT in Pune in itself
speaks a lot for its industry acceptance. Obviously, industry
acceptance and corporate acceptance go hand in hand. Wipro, as
part of its expansion drive, has chosen Pune as the first base
for its global R&D
center.
Surely, Pune, as Destination IT needs no further introduction.
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