This article is about Mysore City. For information about Mysore District and Division, see Mysore District.

Mysore is a city in the Indian state of Karnataka. Mysore is the administrative seat of Mysore District and Mysore Division, and is the former capital of the Kingdom of Mysore. Mysore is known as the Cultural Capital of Karnataka.

Mysore is located at 770 m above sea level and 135 km from Bangalore at . Mysore is known for its palaces and proximity to several attractions. One of the best (some would say worst) times to visit Mysore is during the annual nine-night, ten-day Dussera or Dasara or Navaratri festival, which usually occurs in early October.

Contents

1 Etymology of 'Mysore' 2 History 3 Attractions 3.1 Palaces 3.2 Other Attractions 3.3 Festivals 4 Nearby places 5 Educational and research institutions 6 Economy 7 Transport 7.1 Highways 7.2 Inter-city 7.3 Rail 7.4 Air 8 Noted People 8.1 Noted people who have worked in Mysore 8.2 Noted people who were born in Mysore 9 External links

Etymology of 'Mysore'

Mysore is supposed to be derived from Mahisuru which is a mangling of name of the demon Mahisha Asura (Buffalo Demon), who according to mythology was killed by Goddess Chamundeshwari at Mysore. Several monuments including a statue of Mahisha Asura and temple of Goddess Chamundeshwari exist on Chamundi Hills in Mysore.

History

Mysore (Hadinadu at that time) is believed to have been established sometime in the eleventh century, becoming the capital of a small kingdom founded by Yaduraya (A chandravamshi kshatriya kinsman) from Dwaraka who rescued a local princess from the clutches of a local chieftan Maranayaka, after the unitimely death of her father around the year 1399. Most of such small kingdoms around Mysore were tributaries of the Vijayanagara empire and were under the control of the viceroy of the Vijayanagar Empire who was based at Srirangapattana (Seringapatam). After the fall of the Vijayanagara Empire in 1565, Raja Wodeyar taking advantage of resulting power vacuum, procalimed his independence and shifted the capital to Sriranagapattana in 1610. From 1610 to 1704 The Kingdom of Mysore flourished and expanded from strength to strength, growing to include most of the southern sections of modern-day Karnataka. After the death of Chikka Devaraja Woyedar, the Dynasty came under the influence of the traditional Army commanders known as Dalvoys and ultimately came to be usurped by their one time soldier Hyder Ali and his son Tippu Sultan. After the death of Tippu Sultan in the famous Mysore War IV in 1799, Wodeyars regained power of a re-organised Mysore Kingdom and the capital was shifted back to Mysore. With the four year old (Mummudi) Krishna Raja wodeyar III on the throne, Mysore became a Princely State of British India. The British took over the administration of Mysore in 1831, with the administrative center at Bangalore. In 1881 "Rendition of Power" took place, with Wodeyars under Chamaraja Wodeyar IX regaining control of the kingdom. When India gained Independence in 1947 kingdom acceded to the newly formed Dominion of India . In 1950 Mysore became Mysore State on the eve of India becoming a Republic. Mysore State was later enlarged in 1956 with the merger of other Kannada speaking areas in neighboring States of Madras (present day Tamil Nadu), Bombay (present day Maharashtra), Hyderabad (present day Andhra Pradesh) and Coorg. Mysore state was renamed as Karnataka in 1973.

Attractions

Palaces

Mysore is called the City of Palaces as a result of the number of palaces situated in the city, some of them are:

Palaces in Mysore
Prominent	Amba Vilas (Main Mysore Palace), Rajendra Vilas (also called the summer palace, situated on top of the Chamundi hills), Jaganmohana Palace , Jayalakshmi Vilas (now in the University of Mysore premises), Lalitha Mahal (now converted to a hotel).
Other	Chittaranjan Palace (now the Green Hotel, was also the Premier Studios), Cheluvamba Mansion (now in the CFTRI premises), Karanji Mansion (now the Postal Training Institute), Lokaranjan Mahal (next to the Mysore Zoo), Crawford Hall ( University Administrative Building).

Even though the Government of Karnataka now maintains the Mysore palace, a small portion of the palace has been allocated for the erstwhile Royal family to live in.

Other Attractions

Other Attractions
Commerce and Industry	Mysore Silk Factory .
Lakes and Gardens	Kukkarahalli Lake, Pushpakaashi (Flower garden), Karanji Lake , Lingambudhi Lake , Bogadi Lake .
Locations and Theaters	Manasagangotri (Mysore University Campus), Kalamandira , Rangayana (Adjoins Kalamandira).
Museums and Zoos	Railway Museum , Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens known popularly as Mysore Zoo, Natural History Museum (adjoins Karanji Lake).
Religious	The Chamundeswari Temple , Nandi the Bull (on the Chamundi Hills), St. Philomena's Church.

Festivals

Dasara festival celebrations are held in Mysore in great pomp and splendour, The festival is marked by religious and cultural events including a procession, music concerts (classical), lighting of the palace lights, lights on Chamundi hills and an exhibition (fair).

Nearby places

Nearby places
Locations and Cities	Srirangapattana (Seringapatam), an island fortress-city that also served as the capital of the Kingdom of Mysore, Melukote Kabini River Resort , rated among the top five wildlife resorts in the world by Tatler's Travel Guide.
Hills	Biligirirangan Hills, Himavad Gopalaswamy, Karigatta , Kunthi hill, Nilgiri Hills.
National Parks, Forests, Sanctuaries	Bandipur National Park, Madumalai Forest, Nagarhole National Park , Rangantittu Bird Sanctuary.
Historical Monuments	Somnathpur an ancient temple town having a temple of historical & archeological importance.
Water Bodies and Dams	Balamuri and Edamuri (backwaters of the Kaveri River), Krishna Raja Sagar (KRS) dam across the Kaveri river and the adjoining Brindavan Gardens.

Educational and research institutions

List of Education and Research Institutions in and around Mysore
Universities	University of Mysore, Karnataka Open University
Research Institutes	Central Food Technological Research Institute, Central Institute of Indian Languages , Defence Food Research Laboratory , Rare Materials Project
Engineering Colleges	National Institute of Engineering, Sri Jayachamarajendra College of Engineering, Vidya Vikas Institute of Engineering and Technology , Vidyavardhaka College of Engineering
Medical Colleges	Mysore Medical College, JSS Medical College
Dental Colleges	JSS Dental College , Farooquia Dental College
Pharmacy Colleges	JSS College of Pharmacy , Farooquia College of Pharmacy
Law Colleges	JSS Law College , Vidyavardhaka Law College , Sharada Vilas Law College
Arts, Commerce and Science Colleges	Maharaja's College , Maharani's College , Yuvaraja's College , Mahajana College , Marimallappa's College , JSS College , Regional College of Education

Economy

Industries including those manufacturing Tyres (Vikrant Tyres), Textiles (K. R. Mills, now Atlantic Mills), Electronic Systems (L & T), Silk Factories (KSFC) and those producing software (Infosys, Wipro) along with Education, Tourism are significant contributors to the economy of Mysore.

Education and research at the University of Mysore, Defense Food Research Laboratories, Central Food Technology and Research Institute, Central Institute of Indian Languages, Sericulture Institute, various medical engineering and science colleges, Tourism centered around numerous attractions and the Dushera Festival, contribute to the economy and fame of Mysore.

Articles made of silk and Sandalwood are some of the most famous products of Mysore, which contribute towards the commerce in Mysore.

The economy experienced reverses during the last few decades, as some of the major industries like Ideal Jawa (Automobiles), K. R. Mills (Textiles) closed down and several people became unemployed. However some revival efforts, like those of K. R. Mills (Atlantic Mills) helped improve the situation. In recent years the software industry has grown and could expand further to become the most significant contributor.

Improvements like doubling of Railway tracks, and building of the a four lane expressway, between Mysore and Bangalore will bring significant growth to the economy of Mysore.

Transport

Highways

An expressway is being constructed linking Mysore to the state capital Bangalore. State Highway's 17, 33, 86, 88 pass through Mysore connecting it to nearby cities.

Inter-city

Mysore has inter city and sub-urban public bus transportation. The system run by KSRTC operates from the 'City Bus Stand' connecting to most major sections of the city. Traditional means of transport available in other Indian cities like Autorickshaws and Taxis are also available. Tonga's (horse drawn carriages) are also available, but are slowly going out of vogue.

Rail

Mysore is the railway junction for the district, and rail lines connect Mysore city to Bangalore to the northeast via Mandya, to Tamil Nadu to the east, and to the rail junction at Hassan to the northwest, to Chamarajanagar via Nanjangud to the south east.

Air

Now defunct, the Mandkalli Airport is situated at around 4 miles from the city. The nearest accessible airport is thus at Bangalore. However para gliding and sometimes, aeroplane rides are offered occasionally.

Noted People

Noted people who have worked in Mysore

• Mokshagundam Vishweshwaraiah (He was the chief architect of the Krishna Raja Sagar dam),
• Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan,
• R. K. Narayan,
• K. V. Puttappa (popularly known as Kuvempu),
• C. D. Narasimhaiah ,
• Javagal Srinath,
• Sri K. Pattabhi Jois.
• Sir John Malcom (Began writing History of Persia in Mysore).

Noted people who were born in Mysore

• Kamala Markandaya, novelist.
• J. Jayalalithaa (born 1948), Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu
• R. K. Laxman, Cartoonist (The Common Man in the Times of India newspaper)

External links

• Mysore City Corporation
• Mysore Dasara
• University of Mysore
• Star of Mysore, an English evening newspaper.
• BSNL, Mysore
• Mysore Samachar
• The Wodeyar Dynasty
• Mysore Palace
• The Mysore page on Kamat