Pune is one of the historical cities of India with a glorious past, an innovative
present and a promising future Pune has been popularly known as Queen of the Deccan,
Cultural capital of Maharashtra, Pensioner's paradise and Santanchi Bhoomi or land
of the saints as many great saints of Maharashtra had chosen Pune as their Karmabhoomi.
If we have a look at Pune history, Pune was known as Punnaka an agricultural settlement
in the 8th century. The earliest evidences found from the region reveal that the
Rashtrakootas ruled this region during the same period. Later on, the city has been
mentioned as Kasba Pune. Pune's medieval roots are also evident in number of temples
and mosques. The present name "Pune" is derived from Punya Nagari (land
of the sacred). The Pune Gazetteer explains the term Pune as Punya a holy place.
In Hindu tradition, a confluence (sangama) of two rivers is sacred. Hence this city
where there is a confluence of two rivers is Punyanagari. After the Rashtrakootas,
Pune was ruled by the Yadava dynasty. After the fall of this dynasty, it came under
Muslim dominance till the middle of the 17th century. The Rashtrakutas are believed
to be the earliest rulers of the city. By the 11th century, it developed into a
small town called Kasba Pune or Punavadi, under the Mughal rule. The most important
period in the history of Pune was the empire of Peshwas. At this time the city became
a centre for learning. Pune or Punyanagri as it is called has had a glorious past
of nearly 1000 years. Pune’s history is both illustrious and romantic. The city’s
historical associations are fast woven with Shivaji Maharaj, the Peshwas and Lokmanya
Tilak. It was here, in the Lal Mahal that Shivaji boldly attacked Aurangzeb’s uncle,
Shaista Khan and won back the lost territories. Later it was ruled by the Peshwas.
When Bajirao-I became the Peshwa, he made Pune the headquarters of the army and
the Shaniwar Wada was built, Also Bazaars and shopping plazas, Palaces and ritzy
hotels, Temples, mosques, churches and even a synagogue to visit. This sprawling
metropolis preserves its ancient forts, ornate palaces, lush gardens, shopping arcades,
educational institutions and rolling hills. The Ganapati festival celebrated yearly,
called the Pune Festival has made its mark on the tourist map of India. Pune is
inextricably linked to the life of the great Maratha hero and king, Chhatrapati
Shivaji.
The era of Pune's fame began when Chhatrapati Shivaji came to stay here with his
mother Jijabai in 1635-36 A.D. Shivaji and his mother lived in a mansion known as
"Lal Mahal," a replica of which still can be visited at its original location
in the city. With the emergence of Chhatrapati Shivaji, who founded the Maratha
Empire, Pune became known to the Delhi sultanate. Shivaji spent his early childhood
in Pune at Lal Mahal, a palace built by his father Shahaji, where Shivaji's mother
Jijabai lived for a decade. Dadoji Konddev Shivaji's mentor developed Pune city.
He constructed a temple of Ganesha called Kasba Ganapati. This is the grama devata
where invitations for all religious functions are first offered be it for a marriage,
upanayana ceremony or any other functions. It was in this Lal Mahal that Shivaji
attacked the Moghuls and defeated Shahistekhan, the uncle of Aurangazeb. After the
death of Shivaji in 1680 A.D. and the cold blooded murder of his son Sambhaji, Aurangazeb
named Pune as Muhiyabad. Pune gained importance during the period of the second
Peshwa Thorala (senior) Bajirao who ruled from 1720 A.D. to 1740 A.D. The various
mahals or buildings were constructed by different Peshwas. There are still remains
of a fountain with thousand outlets called Hazari Karanje. It was Thorala Bajirao
who expanded the Maratha Empire into north and central provinces. Nanasaheb Peshwa
succeeded Thorala Bajirao Peshwa and ruled the Maratha kingdom from 1740 A.D. to
1761 A.D. He tried to control the Nizam and maintained peace. He was instrumental
in urbanising Pune city and encouraged the setting up of Peths or wards in Pune.
He constructed the famous Parvati Temple complex, a pride of Pune city. He designed
a water supply system from Katraj Lake that lies to the south of Pune city. A number
of temples and palaces were constructed during his time. Due to some misunderstandings
in the family that ensued thereafter, the Maratha power came to an end in 1818 A.D.,
when the British led by Mount Stuart Elphinstone defeated them and established the
British Raj in this region. During this period, the French, the Portuguese and the
British powers established contacts with the Peshwas, sent representatives for various
functions. Pune and Delhi were the only centres of power during this century. Pune
has been recognised as a seat of learning and the Deccan College (1851) led the
educational movement in Pune. Tilak, Agarkar, Bhandarkar and other luminaries of
the 19th century studied in the Deccan College. They studied in English language,
but a literary movement was started by organising the first Marathi literary conference
in 1878 A.D. Justice Mahadev Govind Ranade, V. K. Chiplunkar and others took lead
in this sphere of life. Tilak, Agarkar, Nam Joshi and Principal Apte founded the
Deccan Education Society and its Fergusson College in 1885 A.D. The New English
School (1880), the Nutan Marathi Vidyalaya (1883) and the MES Society's High School
(1875) were started. Soon after, a high school for Indian girls was established
in 1884 A.D. A new generation of educated Indians started the freedom movement under
the leadership of Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak. He started two newspapers, the Maratha
in English and the Kesri in Marathi. Through these newspapers, Tilak aroused interest
in national education, national language, swadeshi and swarajya the four fold aims
for independence. "Swaraj is my birthright" was the slogan given by Tilak
to the rest of India. Gopal Krishna Gokhale is another builder of modern India
who established the Servants of India Society and represented Indian interests in
the imperial legislative council. Mahatma Gandhi considered him his guru. Maharshi
Dhondo Keshav Karve is yet another gem of modern India, who throughout his life
fought for the upliftment of women, started a college for them and established the
first Indian University for women, named SNDT Women's University. He was awarded
the Bharat Ratna in 1958. Senior Wrangler R. P. Paranjape is another luminary from
Pune who sacrificed higher salaries and worked as the principal of Fergusson College
for over twenty years. Mahatma Jyotiba Phule started education for women and struggled
hard for the upliftment of the depressed classes. Shrimati Anandibai Joshi was the
first lady to complete medical education in the USA. Thus, we find the origin of
various movements - social, religious, educational, political, economic and literary,
in Pune city.
The Pune Municipal Corporation administers the city. Its boundaries extend over
400 square kilometres and it has a population of close to four million. Thus Pune
city has been developed into a Pune metropolitan area, just equal in area to that
of Greater Mumbai. It is located 192 km (by rail) and 160 km (by road) from Mumbai
and is 559 meters above the mean sea level. Being surrounded by beautiful hills
and the Sinhagad fort, it has a temperate climate. Water, which is plentiful, is
supplied to the city from Panshet, Khadakwasla and Varasgaon dams all located about
30 kilometers from Pune. Pune is among the greenest urban areas in the country with
more than 40 per cent of its area under green cover. Situated at the convergence
of the Mula and Mutha Rivers, Pune is the second largest city of Maharashtra and
the 8th largest city of India. Home to many reputed colleges and universities, the
city has earned itself the nickname of 'Oxford of the East'. Moreover, it is also
been hailed as the 'Automobile City', for housing some of the best automobile manufacturers
in India.
Mostly the Peths meaning market place in Pune are named after the days of the week,
but some Peths are named after their founders. Let us have a glimpse into the origin
of these Peths. Pune was a very small place in ancient times. People stayed around
the present Mahatma Phule Mandai and Shaniwar Wada. But as the population started
to increase, the boundaries of Pune started expanding. The Eastern Pune or the portion
on the other side of the river is known as the old Pune. Recently developed areas
are Deccan Gymkhana, Kothrudh, Karve Nagar and Pashan. The first Peth founded was
Kasba Peth.
The Eastern Pune is the original Pune, as the city is very ancient therefore it
does not look very well planned. The old Pune is divided into various Peths. These
Peths were urbanized in different times by different people for some definite purposes.
In these Peths the old construction could be seen even now, and the glimpses of
the old traditional Pune. There are different reasons for different names given
to the Peths. A typical kind of atmosphere can be experienced in every Peth.
People staying in a particular Peth have their own accents and life styles. There
used to be a person who was known as a 'Mahajan', he was authorized to establish
a particular Peth. He was responsible for providing various facilities to the residents
of that Peth like providing Water Supply, Shops, Bazaars, Dharam Shalas and other
facilities. He used to set up temples, Market Places, shops etc., the tax from these
areas was also been collected by this individual, which he used to pay the Government
every year.