Pune - Maharashtra

Pune, formerly known as Poona is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second-largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the center of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 meters above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula and Mutha rivers. Pune city is the administrative capital of the Pune district.

Economy

As one of the largest cities in India, and as a result of its many colleges and universities, Pune is emerging as a prominent location for IT and manufacturing companies to expand. Pune has the eighth-largest metropolitan economies and the sixth-highest per capita income in the country.

The automotive sector is prominent in Pune. It is home to the Automotive Research Association of India, which is responsible for the homologation of all vehicles available in India. All sectors of the automotive industry are represented, from two-wheelers and autorickshaws to cars, tractors, tempos, excavators, and trucks. Automotive companies like Tata Motors, Mahindra & Mahindra, Mercedes Benz, Force Motors (Firodia-Group), Kinetic Motors have set ups in Pune. Automotive companies including General Motors, Volkswagen, and Fiat have set up greenfield facilities near Pune, leading The Independent to cite Pune as India's "Motor City". Several automotive component manufacturers like Saint-Gobain Sekurit, TATA Autocomp Systems Limited, Robert Bosch GmbH, ZF Friedrichshafen AG, Visteon, and Continental Corporation are located here.

India's largest engineering conglomerate, the Kirloskar Group, was the first to bring industry to Pune by setting up Kirloskar Oil Engines Ltd. in 1945 at Kirkee in Pune. The Group was originally set up in Kirloskarwadi. Kirloskar Brothers Limited (India’s largest manufacturer and exporter of pumps and the largest infrastructure pumping project contractor in Asia), Kirloskar Oil Engines (India's largest diesel engine company), Kirloskar Pneumatics Co. Ltd., and other Kirloskar companies are based in Pune.

The Hinjawadi IT Park (officially called the Rajeev Gandhi IT Park) is a project being started by MIDC to house the IT sector in Pune. When completed, the Hinjawadi IT Park is expected to have an area of about 2,800 acres (11 km2). The estimated investment in the project is INR60 crore (US$10.86 million).To facilitate economic growth, the government made liberal incentives in its IT and ITES Policy, 2003 and leased properties on MIDC land. The IT sector employs more than 70,000 people. Major software companies in Pune include Infosys, Persistent Systems, Geometric Limited, 3dPLM Software Solutions Ltd., Symphony Services, Wipro, TCS, Cognizant, Symantec, Amdocs, Tech Mahindra, Syntel, Fujitsu, L&T Infotech, Zensar, Atos, Cybage, IBM global, Sybase, Allscripts and Crest Premedia Solutions (P) Ltd. Software giant Microsoft intends to set up an INR700 crore (US$126.7 million) project in Hinjewadi.