Mysuru, formerly known as Mysore is the second largest city, with a estimated population of 8 lakh people in the state of Karnataka, India. It is the headquarters of the Mysore district and the Mysore division and lies about 146 km (91 mi) southwest of Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka. The name Mysore is an anglicised version of Mahishūru, which means the abode of Mahisha. The city is spread across an area of 128.42 km² (50 sq mi) and is situated at the base of the famous Chamundi Hills. More >>

After the Indian independence, Mysore city remained as a part of the Mysore State under India. Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar, the then king of Mysore, was allowed to retain his titles and was nominated as the Rajapramukh of the state. He died in September 1974 and was cremated in Mysore city. Over the years, Mysore has become well known as a centre for tourism and the city has remained largely peaceful. Some of the events that took place in Mysore and made national headlines were the fire at Premier Studios that claimed the lives of many people, the sudden deaths of many animals at the Mysore Zoo and the National Anthem controversy that happened on the campus at Infosys.

While tourism is the major industry in Mysore, the growth of information technology related industry in the first decade of the 21st century has resulted in the city emerging as the third largest software exporter in the state of Karnataka, next to Bangalore and Mangalore. Although lacking an airport, Mysore is connected to other parts of India by railways and road transport. Mysore is also the location of Mysore University. The All India Radio, the premier radio broadcasting arm of the Government of India had its beginnings here.

Traditionally, Mysore has been home to industries such as weaving, sandalwood carving, bronze work, and the production of lime and salt. The planned industrial growth of the city and the state was first envisaged in the Mysore economic conference, held in 1911. This led to the establishment of industries such as the Mysore Sandalwood Oil Factory in 1917 and the Sri Krishnarajendra Mills in 1920.

Today, Mysore is ranked as the 5th best city in India in which to conduct business. Mysore has emerged as the hub of the tourism industry in Karnataka, attracting about 3.5 million tourists in 2008.

For the industrial development of the city, the Karnataka Industrial Areas Development Board (KIADB) has established four industrial areas in and around Mysore and are located in Belagola, Belawadi, Hebbal (Electronic City) and Hootagalli areas. The major industries in Mysore include BEML, J. K. Tyres, Wipro, SPI, Falcon Tyres, L & T and Infosys.

Since 2003, information technology companies have been creating bases in Mysore, with the city contributing Rs. 1100 crores (US$220 million) to Karnataka's IT exports in the financial year 2007–2008. Infosys has established one of the largest technical training centers in the world and Wipro has established its Global Service Management Center (GSMC) at Mysore. Non-IT related services have been outsourced from other countries to companies in Mysore.

The industrial sector in the city experienced setbacks when the automobile manufacturer Ideal Jawa and the Sri Krishnarajendra Mills closed their operations. Revival efforts, such as the takeover of the Krishnarajendra Mills by the Atlantic Spinning and Weaving Mills Ltd. have been made, but these attempts have run into other problems.

As the divisional headquarters of Mysore Division and as the Railway Junction, administrative and railways are other major employers in Mysore.

Improvements in progress, like doubling of Railway tracks, and building of the four lane expressway, between Mysore and Bangalore will bring significant growth to the economy of Mysore. In recent years the software industry has grown and could expand further to become the most significant contributor.

Before the advent of the English system of education in Mysore, agraharas imparted the Vedic system of education to Hindus and madrasas served as centers of learning for Muslims. Modern education saw its beginning in Mysore when a free English school was established in 1833. In 1854, the East India Company promulgated the Halifax Dispatch which looked at organizing education based on the Western model within the princely state of Mysore. The first college to be set up for higher education in Mysore was the Maharajas College, which was founded in 1864. In 1868, the Mysore state decided to establish hobli schools to extend free education to the masses. In 1881, a high school exclusively for girls was established and this was later converted into the Maharanis Women's College. In 1892, the Industrial School, the first institute to impart technical education in the city was started and this was followed by the Chamarajendra Technical Institute in 1913. While the modern system of education was making inroads in the city, colleges such as the Mysore Sanskrit college, which was established in 1876, continued to provide Vedic education.

The education system in Mysore received further impetus when the University of Mysore was established in 1916. This was the sixth university to be established in India and first in Karnataka. It was named Manasagangotri (which means "fountainhead of the Ganges of the mind") by the famous poet laureate, Kuvempu. The university caters to the districts of Mysore, Mandya, Hassan and Chamarajanagar in Karnataka. About 127 colleges (having a total student population of 53,000) are affiliated with the university. Mysore University is the only university in the state of Karnataka to get a grade of A+ from the National Assessment and Accreditation Council of India.

Education in the field of engineering was started in Mysore with the establishment of the National Institute of engineering in 1946 the Second Oldest Engineering College in the State. Medical education started in 1930 when the Mysore Medical College was transferred from Bangalore to Mysore. Other institutes in the city include the Central Food and Technological Research Institute, the Central Institute of Indian Languages and the All India Institute of Speech and Hearing.

The summer season in Mysore is from March to June, followed by the monsoon season from July to November and the winter season from December to February. The highest temperature recorded in Mysore was 38.5 °C (101 °F) on May 4, 2006 and in winter, temperatures as low as 9.6 °C (49 °F) have been recorded. The average annual rainfall received by the city is 798.2 mm (31 in).