page_title: History of Pune
section_title: Post-Independence (1947–present)
hierarchical_section_title: History of Pune / Post-Independence (1947–present)
caption_attribution_description: English: Mutha river near Onkareshwar temple in 1986
context_page_description: Pune is the 9th most populous city in India and the second-largest in the state of Maharashtra, after the state capital Mumbai. The history of the city is closely related to the rise of the Maratha empire from the 17th–18th century. During the 18th century, Pune became the political centre of the Indian subcontinent; as the seat of the Peshwas, who were the prime ministers of the Maratha Empire.
  After the fall of Peshwa rule in 1818, the new British rulers made the city one of their major military bases. Prior to the British takeover, the city was confined to the eastern bank of the Mutha river. Since then, the city has grown on both sides of the river. In the 19th and early 20th century, Pune was considered by the British as the center of political unrest against their rule. The post-independence era saw Pune emerging as a major manufacturing center.
  The post-independence period has also seen further growth in the higher education sector in the city. The Panshet flood of 1961 resulted in a huge loss of housing on the river bank and spurred the growth of new suburbs. In the 1990s, the city emerged as a major information technology hub.
context_section_description: The period between 1947 and the present day saw Pune turning from a mid-size city to a large metropolis. This period saw a huge influx of people to the city due to opportunities offered by the boom in the manufacturing industry, and lately in the software field. The influx has been from other areas of Maharashtra as well as from outside the state. The Indian Government embarked on a period of economic liberalization in 1991 that had a tremendous influence on the growth of the city, and therefore the post-independence period can be divided into two periods of 1947–1991 and 1991–present.
  After gaining independence from British rule in 1947, Pune became part of the Bombay state. Just after a year of independence, Mahatma Gandhi was assassinated in 1948. Gandhi's assassin, Nathuram Godse and most of his fellow conspirators were from Pune. In 1950s, Pune came at the forefront of the struggle for a unified state of Maharashtra for the Marathi speakers. Many leaders of the Samyukta Maharashtra Samiti, such as Keshavrao Jedhe, S.M. Joshi, Shripad Amrit Dange, Nanasaheb Gore and Prahlad Keshav Atre, were based in Pune. After the spectacular success of the Samiti in Marathi speaking areas, the Congress party government at the center agreed to merge Marathi speaking areas into the newly created state of Maharashtra in 1960, with Pune as one of its leading cities. The city has been part of the Pune Lok sabha constituency since independence. Since independence, the city has more often than not, elected candidates from the Congress party such as Vithalrao Gadgil, and in recent past, Suresh Kalmadi who was charged with corruption. The city elected opposition candidates in times of crisis, such as Nanasaheb Gore during the struggle for united Maharashtra in 1957, or Mohan Dharia after the lifting of Emergency in 1977. The city and its surrounding areas have six single-member constituencies for Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha. The Congress party or its breakaway factions such as NCP, have historically dominated elections to this body.
caption: The Mutha river between Onkareshwar temple and Shivaji bridge in the 1980s
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