Bangalore and Hyderabad are two Indian cities that have done wonders in the field of technology
As someone who has lived most of his life in the north of the subcontinent, the fascination of visiting the south had been haunting me in my twilight years. Having grown up in the then United Provinces and having spent much of my working life in Pakistan, my exposure to South Indian people and culture was rather minimal, confined to occasional encounters during my somewhat extended periods of stay abroad. My previous visits to India, although several, were confined to the north, with the exception of Kolkata and Mumbai.
On several earlier occasions, I had tried to visit South India, but visa restrictions on the number of cities to be visited and the presence of family members in them, prevented my dream from being realized. Yet, I didn’t give up hope and waited for a chance, which finally came towards the end of last year. An invitation from a research institute in Kolkata to participate in a seminar at the beginning of last December and another from my sister-in-law to attend her son’s marriage in Allahabad towards the end of the same month, provided a perfect ploy to realize my cherished dream. And I grabbed the opportunity with both hands.
Our perceptions of South India have, of course, undergone a sea-change since the much talked-about IT revolution in India, a subject which was also the theme of the paper I presented at the Kolkata seminar and which had rekindled my desire to visit two of the most vibrant cities of South India — Hyderabad and Bangalore. My interest in visiting these cities, apart from other reasons, was to get a personal feel of the IT revolution, which is rapidly transforming not only the country’s economy, but also its politics and work ethics for which these cities have now become an epitome.
While the two cities share the IT boom which is the driving force of their rapid growth, they have very different characteristics and profiles. In terms of history also, the death and defiance of Tipu Sultan and the capitulation and betrayal of the Nizams, present striking contrasts. Both cities were capitals of princely states before independence and both claim to be the fifth most populous cities of India (after Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Chennai). If Hyderabad can be called the city of the past, Bangalore is the “city of the future” as Nehru called it when his government decided soon after independence to establish its aerospace centre and defence research laboratories there, providing the base for its shift towards computer technology.
HYDERABAD
Hyderabad, of course, is not a typical South Indian city, because of the cultural influence of the Muslims. Hyderabad city is a sprawling urban centre with an area of 100sq.miles strewn with a wealth of Muslim architecture and fairy-tale Nizam palaces, including the one that’s has been converted into a hospital. Hyderabad’s twin city, Secunderbad, is separated by the Husain Sagar, an artificial lake. The city is nearly 400 years old and is dotted with beautiful mosques and minarets, bazaars and bridges, hills and lakes. Like all major cities in the subcontinent, it is heavily overcrowded and polluted, though it does not look quite as bad as Karachi or Delhi.
Hyderabad has a fascinating history, reflected in the beautiful architecture of its buildings. It was founded as a satellite city of Golconda, the capital of the Qutb Shahi dynasty which ruled the Deccan for almost 171 years. All the seven rulers of the dynasty were patrons of learning and were great builders as was evident from the buildings in the Golconda fort that we visited. Their well-preserved mausoleums are an awe-aspiring tourist attraction.
Soon after India gained independence and after a brief “police action” by India which put down the Quixotic resistance of the pro-Pakistani Razakars, the Hyderabad state merged with the Union of India. On November 1, 1956 the map of India was redrawn into linguistic states, and Hyderabad became the capital of Andhra Pradesh, with Telugu as its state language. A period of linguistic nationalism followed with a strong accent on religious revivalism epitomized by the films of N.T. Rama Rao, who became its chief minister and a religious and political icon, besides being a movie hero.
He was succeeded by Chandrababu Naidu who shifted the emphasis to technology and can be considered as the godfather of IT in Andhra Pradesh. He was the first chief executive of a state who introduced e-governance and himself used a laptop to run the government. He established Hyderabad’s Hitec City as a rival to the more established Bangalore’s electronic city.
Despite being catapulted into the IT age, old and new live side by side in Hyderabad. While office towers sprout in new industrial parks, a change comes more slowly to the city’s old market district, centred round the famous Char Minar, where bangles, shoes and other goods are still sold from crowded shops. Muslim women in burqas are seen frequently and shops selling hijab and traditional Muslim garments do roaring business.
Hyderabad’s Hitec City was created in a special-development zone in the late 1990s. The state’s website promotes the 67-acre zone as “an integrated techno-township, a concept that provides world-class infrastructure facilities for the IT industry under one roof. The state has designated 5,000 acres around Hitec City as Cyberabad “to give a fillip to the development of IT infrastructure”. As a result, Andhra Pradesh’s software exports quadrupled from 1998 to 2000, from $62 million to $238 million, almost the same level as Pakistan’s overall software exports in 2004. Microsoft was among the first tenants in Hitec City’s debut building, Cyber Towers, which the prime minister of India opened in 1998. Neighbouring tenants in the 580,000-square-foot building include Oracle, GE Capital, Toshiba, Infosys and HSBC.
BANGALORE
The visit to Bangalore was far more fascinating and novel than Hyderabad. Although I happened to know an Indian family friend who had recently moved from the US to establish a factory for a US hardware subsidiary in Bangalore’s Electronic City and whose charming family were our hosts, we found it quite distinctive than any other city in the subcontinent. It’s a very well organized and orderly city than those in the north of the subcontinent, including Pakistan. The people, though of very varied geographical and social backgrounds, looked different and generally well-behaved and well educated.
Located 1,000m above sea level, Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka state, is a vibrant cosmopolitan city, a major industrial and commercial centre of the country. Compared to Hyderabad, Bangalore is a young city having been founded in the early 16th century by Kempe Gowda, a feudal chieftain.
Bangalore’s historical fame came in the 18th century when under Hyder Ali and Tipu Sultan it became an important fortress city in the struggle against the British. The ruins of that period are still visible in various parts of the city.
Bangalore is variously known as the Silicon Valley of the East, the nerve centre of India’s software industry, the garden city, the fifth largest city of India and the capital city of the state of Karnataka. It is a strange mixture of the old and the new, work and leisure, culture and technology.
The IT boom has helped boost the population of Bangalore by more than 70 per cent over the past 20 years, to about 6.5 million. The city attracts people in large numbers, from all over the country, and abroad, who come to look for better job opportunities, and higher education.
In the new and culturally diverse and open Bangalore, IT is king. Bangalore works on a 24-hour time-line, instead of the 12-hour schedule in the rest of the subcontinent. Its techies run a relay with their compatriots across in California to deliver another software solution in record time. The new Bangalore is trendy, yuppie and hip. Pizzas, hamburgers, vadas, idlis and dossas (Mysore dossa is my pick), as well as chicken tandoori, karhai gosht and chicken biryani are relished with fervour.
Bangalore is also the seat of the software moghuls of India. Its new architecture consists of highrise tubular buildings in the image of Microsoft’s Seattle headquarters.
There was, of course, much more to see in and around Bangalore than the marvels of the IT industry. The former princely state of Mysore, which is a few hours drive form Bangalore, has much to offer by way of architecture, history, scenic beauty and its famous silk fabrics. In our four day stay, we spent a day visiting Mysore. Among these Tipu Sultan’s fort where he charged at the British soldiers with his legendary sword was most inspiring. An obelisk in the fort marks the place where he fell — betrayed by his own men. The fort holds within it a mosque and the Ranganathaswamy Temple, showing Tipu’s tolerance for and respect of other religions. Outside the fort is the Gumbaz, Tipu’s tomb with splendid ebony doors inlaid with ivory. Also worthy of a visit was Tipu’s summer palace, Daria Daulat Bagh, built in 1784,is located here. Made of teak, this Indo-Sarcenic structure has ornate and beautiful frescoes. It is now a museum and tells eloquently of Tipu’s valour and his losing battle against the British.
Among the scenic beauties of Mysore is the famous Bindavan Gardens, located at the KR Sagar Dam which is reputedly one of the best gardens in South India. Spread over 150 acres, it has since the 1960s provided the backdrop to many Indian films.
As someone who has lived most of his life in the north of the subcontinent, the fascination of visiting the south had been haunting me in my twilight years. Having grown up in the then United Provinces and having spent much of my working life in Pakistan, my exposure to South Indian people and culture was rather minimal, confined to occasional encounters during my somewhat extended periods of stay abroad. My previous visits to India, although several, were confined to the north, with the exception of Kolkata and Mumbai.
Hyderabad, of course, is not a typical South Indian city, because of the cultural influence of the Muslims. Hyderabad city is a sprawling urban centre with an area of 100sq.miles strewn with a wealth of Muslim architecture and fairy-tale Nizam palaces, including the one that’s has been converted into a hospital. Hyderabad’s twin city, Secunderbad, is separated by the Husain Sagar, an artificial lake. The city is nearly 400 years old and is dotted with beautiful mosques and minarets, bazaars and bridges, hills and lakes. Like all major cities in the subcontinent, it is heavily overcrowded and polluted, though it does not look quite as bad as Karachi or Delhi.
The visit to Bangalore was far more fascinating and novel than Hyderabad. Although I happened to know an Indian family friend who had recently moved from the US to establish a factory for a US hardware subsidiary in Bangalore’s Electronic City and whose charming family were our hosts, we found it quite distinctive than any other city in the subcontinent. It’s a very well organized and orderly city than those in the north of the subcontinent, including Pakistan. The people, though of very varied geographical and social backgrounds, looked different and generally well-behaved and well educated.
In the new and culturally diverse and open Bangalore, IT is king. Bangalore works on a 24-hour time-line, instead of the 12-hour schedule in the rest of the subcontinent. Its techies run a relay with their compatriots across in California to deliver another software solution in record time. The new Bangalore is trendy, yuppie and hip. Pizzas, hamburgers, vadas, idlis and dossas (Mysore dossa is my pick), as well as chicken tandoori, karhai gosht and chicken biryani are relished with fervour.
There was, of course, much more to see in and around Bangalore than the marvels of the IT industry. The former princely state of Mysore, which is a few hours drive form Bangalore, has much to offer by way of architecture, history, scenic beauty and its famous silk fabrics. In our four day stay, we spent a day visiting Mysore. Among these Tipu Sultan’s fort where he charged at the British soldiers with his legendary sword was most inspiring. An obelisk in the fort marks the place where he fell — betrayed by his own men. The fort holds within it a mosque and the Ranganathaswamy Temple, showing Tipu’s tolerance for and respect of other religions. Outside the fort is the Gumbaz, Tipu’s tomb with splendid ebony doors inlaid with ivory. Also worthy of a visit was Tipu’s summer palace, Daria Daulat Bagh, built in 1784,is located here. Made of teak, this Indo-Sarcenic structure has ornate and beautiful frescoes. It is now a museum and tells eloquently of Tipu’s valour and his losing battle against the British.
