Living in a small town no longer means having to compromise on salary or career progression. A Randstad salary trends report, published earlier this year, listed Chandigarh as the tier-2 city in which junior and mid-level corporate employees earned the most.

Sunil Kumar Tripathy, 33, who works with Delhi-based tech company TO THE NEW and lives in Balagir, Odisha. He gets to spend time with his young son, parents, and time to catch up with childhood friends every evening. “In Delhi, I would often think whether it was worth missing out on special family occasions for our quest to earn money. I yearned to be close to my family. So, work from home has been a blessing,” says Tripathy, an engineer.

While most agree that options for socialising or entertainment are comparatively limited in smaller cities, they don’t mind. Plus, many restaurant chains, brands and shopping centres are expanding in tier-II and tier-III cities, to tap more consumers with disposable income.

Read the full coverage here.

worklife