Which City Is Called California of India? The Real Story Behind Prayagraj’s Nickname
Ask anyone in India which city is called the California of India, and you’ll hear two answers: one is right, the other is a myth that won’t die. The truth? It’s Prayagraj - not Mumbai, not Bengaluru, not even Hyderabad. But why? And how did a city known for its ancient ghats and spiritual gatherings earn a nickname tied to America’s tech and dream-chasing frontier?
Why Prayagraj Got the California of India Label
It’s not about beaches or vineyards. It’s about ambition. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, Prayagraj - then still widely called Allahabad - became a hotspot for IT startups, engineering colleges, and young professionals chasing opportunity. The city had something rare in North India: a dense cluster of technical institutes, including the Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT), the University of Allahabad’s engineering faculty, and over 30 private engineering colleges. These schools churned out thousands of graduates every year, many of whom stayed local to build software firms, call centers, and digital startups.
By 2005, Prayagraj had more IT professionals per capita than most Tier-2 cities in India. The local government pushed tech parks like the Allahabad IT Park, and by 2010, over 120 tech companies were operating in the city. That’s when the nickname started popping up in newspapers and business magazines: “California of India.” Not because it was sunny or had Silicon Valley vibes - but because it felt like a place where people came to build something new, even if they had no money, no connections, just grit.
The Myth of Other Cities
You’ll hear people say Bengaluru is the California of India. That’s true - but only if you’re talking about today. Bengaluru exploded into a global tech hub after 2010, thanks to global giants like Infosys, Wipro, and Google setting up campuses. But Prayagraj was doing it first, and without foreign investment. In 2003, when Bengaluru was still mostly known for its gardens and coffee, Prayagraj had already built its own ecosystem of homegrown tech startups.
Some also point to Hyderabad. But Hyderabad’s rise came from government-backed IT parks like HITEC City, funded by Telangana’s state policies. Prayagraj’s tech growth was organic - driven by students, local entrepreneurs, and small investors. That’s the real parallel to California’s early startup culture: no handouts, just hustle.
Even Mumbai, India’s financial capital, doesn’t fit. Mumbai has banks, Bollywood, and billionaires. Prayagraj had coders in garage offices, interns sleeping on office floors, and founders selling their bikes to fund server rentals. That’s California in the 1970s - not the 2020s.
What Changed After the Nickname Stuck
The label didn’t last. By 2015, the shine began to fade. Many top graduates left for Bengaluru, Pune, or Gurgaon. Funding dried up. The local government shifted focus to tourism and religious infrastructure. The IT Park became underused. The city’s identity slipped back toward its spiritual roots - the Kumbh Mela, the Sangam, the ghats.
But the legacy remains. Prayagraj still has one of the highest ratios of engineering graduates to population in India. It still produces more software engineers than Jaipur, Lucknow, or Patna. And every year, dozens of small tech firms still launch from rented flats in Civil Lines or the outskirts of Kankarbagh. The spirit didn’t die - it just went quiet.
Why the Name Still Matters
Calling Prayagraj the California of India isn’t just about history. It’s about identity. For a city often seen as old-fashioned or stuck in tradition, the nickname reminds people that it’s also a place of reinvention. A student from a small town in Uttar Pradesh can sit in a cramped room with a laptop and build an app that reaches users in the U.S. or Germany. That’s not just tech - that’s the American dream, Indian style.
When you walk through the campus of IIIT Prayagraj, you’ll see students coding in Hindi-English mix, debating startups over chai, and pitching ideas to local investors. No one’s wearing hoodies or driving Teslas. But the energy is the same. The same hunger. The same belief that you can start from nothing and build something real.
Prayagraj Today: Between Ghats and Code
Today, Prayagraj is a city of contrasts. In the morning, thousands gather at Sangam to bathe in the confluence of the Ganges, Yamuna, and Saraswati. By noon, the same streets fill with young engineers heading to co-working spaces in the new business district near the airport.
The city government has started reviving its tech push. In 2023, the Uttar Pradesh state government announced a ₹500 crore fund for startups in Prayagraj. The new Digital Prayagraj Initiative aims to train 10,000 youth in AI, cybersecurity, and cloud computing by 2027. Local colleges now partner with companies like TCS and Tech Mahindra for internships.
And it’s working. In 2024, Prayagraj recorded 47 new tech startups - more than any other city in eastern Uttar Pradesh. One of them, a health-tech app called Darpan, now serves over 2 million users across rural India. Its founders? Two brothers who graduated from the local engineering college in 2020. No venture capital. No incubator. Just a laptop and a dream.
Who Still Uses the Nickname?
Old-timers in the tech scene still call it that. Alumni from IIIT and the University of Allahabad’s CS department use it on LinkedIn. Local bloggers and YouTubers who cover Indian startups still tag their videos with #CaliforniaOfIndia. But outsiders? Most don’t know.
That’s okay. The nickname doesn’t need to be popular. It just needs to be true. And for those who lived through it - the late-night coding sessions, the failed pitches, the first paycheck from a client in the U.S. - it’s more than a label. It’s a badge of pride.
Is Prayagraj Still the California of India?
Not in the way Bengaluru is. But maybe that’s the point. California didn’t stay the same. Neither did Prayagraj. It didn’t become a global tech capital. But it didn’t have to. It became something quieter, deeper - a place where ordinary people dared to build extraordinary things, even when no one was watching.
If you’re looking for the real California of India, don’t go to the glittering towers of Bengaluru. Go to Prayagraj. Walk into a small office in Kalyanpur where a 22-year-old is fixing a bug in her app. Listen to her talk about her parents’ expectations, her student loan, and how she wants to hire five more people by next year. That’s not just tech. That’s the dream.
Why is Prayagraj called the California of India?
Prayagraj earned the nickname in the early 2000s because it became a hub for self-made tech startups and engineering talent without heavy government or foreign investment. Its numerous engineering colleges produced a flood of graduates who built software companies locally, mirroring the grassroots innovation of California’s early tech scene.
Is Allahabad the same as Prayagraj?
Yes. Allahabad was officially renamed Prayagraj in 2018 by the Uttar Pradesh government. The city has been known as Prayag since ancient times, and the name Allahabad was given during Mughal rule. Locals still use both names, but official documents and government services now use Prayagraj.
Does Prayagraj still have a strong tech scene today?
Yes. Though it’s quieter than Bengaluru or Hyderabad, Prayagraj still has over 120 active tech firms and is seeing a revival. The state government launched a ₹500 crore startup fund in 2023, and new initiatives like Digital Prayagraj aim to train 10,000 youth in tech skills by 2027. Local startups are growing, especially in health tech, agritech, and education software.
What are the top tech institutions in Prayagraj?
The Indian Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Prayagraj is the most prominent. Others include the University of Allahabad’s Department of Computer Science, the Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET), and private colleges like Rama University and Integral University. These institutions produce over 5,000 engineering graduates annually.
Why didn’t Prayagraj become another Bengaluru?
Bengaluru attracted global companies and venture capital early on. Prayagraj’s growth was local and organic. When funding and infrastructure shifted to other cities after 2010, many young professionals left for better opportunities. Without sustained investment and policy support, its momentum slowed - but not its spirit.
If you want to see the real California of India, don’t just look at the skyline. Look at the people. In Prayagraj, they’re still coding, still dreaming, still building - one line of code at a time.