Pune is a very rapidly developing city in the State of Maharashtra, India with advantage over many other cities.. Surrounded by mountains and hills, it is located about 150 km south of Mumbai. It is connected to Mumbai by an expressway which has now reduced traveling time between these two cities to about 2.5-3 hours. It is well connected to Banglore, Hyderabad, Chennai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Mumbai, Goa etc by direct flights. Pune Airport now enjoys a status of international airport with many direct international flights. Beautiful hilly surroundings offer a quick weekend get away to many fine resorts. A 4-5 hours scenic drive takes you to the beaches of Konkan belt on Arabian Sea.
Historically Pune has been an education city with trend even continuing today. Many colleges and Universities in Pune offer graduate and post-graduate education in medicine, pharmacy, engineering, basic sciences, management, liberal arts, dentistry, commerce, information technology etc. With students and workforce arriving from various parts of India and world, Pune has now become a true cosmopolitan city. Languages are no longer barriers as most of the folks now communicate in Hindi and English.
Pune is experiencing an upsurge in business activities in both service and manufacturing sector. Some of the major manufacturing activities in and around Pune include automobile, electronics, appliances, metal forging/casting etc. Some of the major employers in and around Pune include, Daimler-Chrysler, Telco, Bajaj Auto, Cummins Diesel, Force motors, Kinetic, Bharat Forge, Atlas Copco, Alfa Laval, Forbes Marshall, Sandvik, LG, Samsung, Whirlpool, Kirloskar etc. Three major automobile manufacturers General Motors, Volks Wagon and Mahindra have decided to put up manufacturing facilities in Talegaon and Chakan area.
The service sector includes Information Technology (IT) sector mainly nestled in Hinjewadi InfoTech Park. Pune has become a major hub for BPO in form of software research and development as well as call center. Some of the software and IT companies in Pune include, Infosys, Wipro, Persistent, KPIT, Tata Consultancy, Cognizant, Geometric Solutions, Veritas, IBM, Kanbay etc. Besides these major employers, there are many small and mid-size IT companies.
There is also a very rapid growth in Pharmaceutical, Biotechnology and Horticulture sector in and around Pune. Its close proximity to Mumbai and a very pleasant year round weather has also attracted many individuals from Mumbai to buy properties in Pune. Excellent job opportunities and good education system have also made Pune a popular destination for returning NRIs.
This continuing growth of business activities in Pune is leading to an all time high growth rate in infrastructure development and construction industry. The increased demand for housing as well as commercial property is attracting funds from domestic and overseas investors. Pune, with its world class health care system and pleasant year round weather, is also experiencing a growth in Health Tourism and retirement communities.
