Bangalore among World’s Top 20 Tech-Rich cities.

Bangalore has been ranked 12th in a list of top twenty “technology-rich” cities in the world, according to a survey conducted by global property consultant Jones Lang LaSalle (JLL).

“Bangalore has helped India debut on the ‘City Momentum Index’ Top 20 list – an annual survey carried out by JLL globally. Reinforcing the city’s status of being one of India’s premier technology centres, Bangalore figures at No. 12 in the Top 20 technology-rich cities globally,” JLL India chairman and country head Anuj Puri said in a statement.

London, San Jose and Beijing are top three cities on the list. Good economic growth, investments in infrastructure, presence of start-ups and a significant supply of prime office space are some of the factors that contributed to Bangalore’s strong performance in the survey. The economic as well as real estate momentum in Bangalore has gained pace as tech-industry majors line up to enter the market or expand in the city. A survey done this year included new variables that reflect the importance of innovation to cities’ competitiveness and dynamism.

Bangalore performs strongly on these measures, with its capacity for innovation leading to the largest number of international patent applications in India. An increase in the number of high-tech start-ups registered in the city over the past year has also helped boost Bangalore’s score, reflecting its strengths in innovation and depth of venture capital funding.

Infrastructure investments such as the Bangalore metro and a bus rapid transport system on the outer ring road, together with a rise in FDI (foreign direct investment) projects, have contributed to strong economic growth, which is expected to reach 8 per cent this year and place Bangalore among the fastest growing major cities in the world.

Bangalore’s strong performance has also been boosted by some of world’s highest levels of prime office space construction, absorption and rental increases.

Interestingly, Bangalore pipped other Asia Pacific cities in demand for office spaces. Robust demand for commercial space from the IT sector and associated IT-enabled services is helping boost absorption levels - highest in the Asia Pacific region.

Outside the top 20, Delhi and Mumbai are beginning to see an increase in momentum as economic growth picks up and demand for prime office space strengthens.