Editing Thiruvananthapuram (section)

===Modern Period===
With the end of British rule in 1947, Travancore chose to join the Indian union. The first popularly elected ministry, headed by [[Pattom Thanu Pillai]], was installed in office on 24 March 1948. In 1949, Thiruvananthapuram became the capital of [[Travancore-Cochin|Thiru-Kochi]], the state formed by the integration of Travancore with its northern neighbour, the [[Kingdom of Cochin|Kochi]].<ref>{{cite book |title=Criminal Justice India Series: Kerala, 2001 |author=West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences |year=2002 |publisher=Allied Publishers |isbn=978-81-7764-391-6 |page=5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_2r8cLTkmA8C&pg=PA5}}</ref> The king of [[Travancore]], [[Chitra Thirunal Bala Rama Varma]], became the [[Rajpramukh]] of the [[Travancore-Cochin|Travancore-Cochin Union]] from 1 July 1949 until 31 October 1956. When the state of [[Kerala]] was formed on 1 November 1956, Thiruvananthapuram became its capital.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Movement for a United (Aikya) Kerala |url=https://kerala.gov.in/web/guest/united-kerala |website=State Portal of Kerala |publisher=Information & Public Relations Department, Kerala State IT Mission (KSITM), Government of Kerala |access-date=19 July 2018}}</ref>

With the establishment of [[Thumba Equatorial Rocket Launching Station]] (TERLS) in 1962, Thiruvananthapuram became the cradle of India's ambitious space programme. The first Indian space rocket was developed and launched from the [[Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre]] (VSSC) in the outskirts of the city in 1963. Several establishments of the [[Indian Space Research Organisation]] (ISRO) were later established in Thiruvananthapuram.<ref name="VSSC Thiruvananthapuram">{{cite web |publisher=Indian Space Research Organisation |url=http://www.isro.org/centers/cen_vssc.htm |title=VSSC Thiruvananthapuram |access-date=23 May 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060426233653/http://www.isro.org/centers/cen_vssc.htm |archive-date=26 April 2006 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

A significant milestone in the city's recent history was the establishment of [[Technopark Kerala|Technopark]]—India's first IT park—in 1995.<ref name="Technopark Thiruvananthapuram">{{cite web |publisher=Kerala State IT Mission |url=http://www.keralaitmission.org |title=First IT Park in Kerala |access-date=25 August 2006 |archive-date=3 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210103110342/http://www.keralaitmission.org/ |url-status=dead}}</ref> Technopark has developed into the largest IT park in the geographical area,<ref>{{cite book |title=The digital challenge: information technology in the development context |year=2003 |publisher=S. Krishna, Shirin Madon by Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. |page=350 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GVhMzNSMsLYC&pg=PA350 |isbn=9780754634454}}</ref> employing around 62,000 people in 450 companies.<ref>{{Cite news  |date=2020-07-29 |title=Technopark bags high CRISIL rating |language=en-IN |work=The Hindu |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/technopark-bags-high-crisil-rating/article32225885.ece |access-date=2020-09-07 |issn=0971-751X}}</ref>