Challenges of Urbanization and Environmental Degradation in India J. P.

Singh
The author is Professor of Sociology at the Postgraduate Department of Sociology, Patna University, Patna-800 00 , !"D!# # study of the process of ur$ani%ation and ur$an gro&th in !ndia since the $eginning of the t&entieth century reveals a steady increase in the si%e of ur$an population, the num$er of to&ns and the degree of ur$ani%ation. 'ut the tempo of increase $ecame faster from () ( on&ard. *rom () ( to ())(, !ndia+s ur$an population more than three times from 8 million to ,(million. The num$er of to&ns of different si%e-classes s&elled from ,,, . in () ( to /,-). in ())(, an increase of a$out /) percent. The proportion of the population living in ur$an areas increased from (- percent in () ( to ,- percent in ())(. The annual rate of gro&th of the ur$an population during ()8(-)( &as /.( percent-- slightly less than that in the previous t&o decades, ()-(-.( 0/., percent1 and ().(-8( 0/.8 percent1. Thus it appears that the pace of ur$ani%ation has $een some&hat slo&er, al$eit impercepti$ly so, in recent years. Trends in the gro&th of population $y different classes of to&ns reveal that the lion+s share of the increase in population since ()-( has $een in 2lass ! to&ns 0i. e., to&ns &ith a population of (,00,000 or more1. The proportion of population living in 2lass ! to&ns is steadily constituting t&o-thirds of the total ur$an population. To&ns of 2lasses 3 and 3! 0i.e., $elo& (0,000 population1 have actually recorded decline in their share of population during the decade ()8(-)(. !n ()8(, !ndia had (, 4million plus+ cities 0henceforth metropolises1 &ith a total population of a$out 5, million, accounting for -., percent of the country+s population. 'y ())(, the num$er of metropolises had nearly dou$led 0,/1, &ith a total population of .( million, constituting 8.5 percent of !ndia+s total population. Thus, ur$ani%ation in !ndia has essentially $een the gro&th of large to&ns and metropolitan cities, at the cost of small and tiny to&ns. !ndia is &itnessing an unprecedented rise in ur$ani%ation and cities li6e Delhi, 7um$ai and 2alcutta are over-cro&ded &ith people. "o& nearly one-third of the population lives in to&ns and cities. The ur$an population, ho&ever, is economically very important and contri$utes 0 to percent to the total 8"P. !t also means that the hu$ of all modern activity is concentrated in ma9or cities, &hich continuously attract migrant &or6ers in search of their livelihood. :o&ever, unli6e the $ig cities in rich countries, !ndian cities are not a$le to ta6e in more and more people $ecause of poor ur$an management and resource constraints. The people continuously confront pro$lems of safe drin6ing &ater, po&er, se&erage and gar$age disposal. ;ith rapid natural increase and inflo& of rural population, cities are gro&ing rapidly and there is an urgent need for $etter governance, transport and $asic amenities for the gro&ing population. :ere it is &orth&hile to point out that most people including many social scientists and 9ournalists $elieve that rural to ur$an migration is the prime factor of ur$ani%ation. This myth has already $een e<ploded $y demographers. Studies have clearly esta$lished that natural increase has $een the most potent factor $ehind rapid rise in ur$an population not only in !ndia $ut also in most developing countries of the &orld. Rural Backwardness and Cityward Migration =apid ur$an gro&th can $e slo&ed do&n only if family &elfare programs are vigorously pursued. !n addition, rural development programs should also $e augmented to create employment opportunities in the villages themselves. The village economy has to $e made more

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vi$rant $y focusing on increasing non-farm employment. :o&ever, this can happen only if villages have ade>uate facilities for transportation and communication as &ell as po&er. ?nly then some small scale manufacturing units and service industries can $e esta$lished. :o&ever, since the rural economy has $een neglected for years and pu$lic investment has $een declining in agriculture for the last ( years, most !ndian villages do not possess $asic minimum infrastructure for civic amenities, transportation and communication. 2onse>uently the prospective investors are put off and thus the unemployed rural youth are pushed to&ards cities to e6e out their living. Drastic reforms can su$stantially transform the scene for &hich a hefty increase in pu$lic spending &ould $e essential. People themselves &ould then come for&ard and ta6e the initiative of supplying services to $ig cities. This had already happened in 2hina &here the economic reforms &ere started in agricultural sector. *armers &ere free to sell their surplus produce in the open mar6et and they $ecame so enthusiastic a$out ta6ing their &ares to near$y to&ns in order to get $etter prices that they developed the re>uired service industries themselves. @ntrepreneurs sprang up ta6ing advantage of the trade li$erali%ation in the villages and 9o$s &ere created in the non-farm sector. This su$se>uently $rought do&n the overall poverty level and pressure of population on to&ns. The development of the rural sector thus $ecame critical for the success of economic reforms in 2hina. !f similar developments are to ta6e place in !ndian villages, many potential migrants may $e a$le to find 9o$s in their o&n villages. !t can also reverse the flo& of migration and lessen the strain on the city+s $asic infrastructure. There &ill also $e a decline in $oth ur$an and rural poverty. :o&ever, the tas6 is not so easy. roblems of !lum "ormation #s a result of $urgeoning population in cities, the pro$lems of space and housing for all have intensified. Slums have $ecome an inevita$le part of the ma9or !ndian metropolises. The proportion of the population in to&ns and cities living in slums has $een increasing over the years, and has risen from (8.8 percent of the ur$an population in ()8( to ,(. percent in ())(. !n a$solute terms, the population living in slums in !ndian cities has increased from /0 million to 5. million. The State of 7aharashtra is one of the most glaring e<amples of this state of affairs. "early . million people lived in slums in ())(, although as a proportion of the total ur$an population of the state-- the percentage &or6s out to $e only ,, percent, close to the national average. This is e<plained $y the fact that the state+s ur$an population is a very high proportion of the total. The second highest slum population is in the state of Uttar Pradesh, &hich has .8 million, follo&ed $y ;est 'engal &ith 5.- million. Slums of Delhi comprise ,.5 million people, accounting for ,8.- percent of the city+s population. The proportion of people living in slums appears to $e smaller than the actual, as the "ational 'uilding ?rgani%ation and the "ational Sample Survey 0()88-8)1 have operationali%ed very li$eral criteria of identifying slums in the country. The "SS has defined slum as a compact area &ith a collection of poorly $uilt tenements cro&ding together, usually &ith inade>uate sanitary and toilet facilities. !f an effort is made to identify slums in !ndia on the $asis of a universal definition, the proportion of slum population &ould comprise more than 0 percent of the total ur$an population in the country and from &estern standard the proportion &ould $e still higherA may$e around 80 percent of the total ur$an population. Since most of the ne& migrants to cities are poor and homeless, slums and shantyto&ns spring up to accommodate them. Thus, the contrast $et&een the rich and the poor $ecomes >uite conspicuous. !n fact, it is more visi$le in !ndian cities than those in the ;est $ecause the proportion of the population living in slums is much $igger and their living conditions far &orse. The visi$le s>ualor of the shantyto&ns in $ig cities put off foreign visitors and many may decide never to return again, &hich is a loss to the tourism sector.

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The people in slums live under the most deplora$le conditions, &ith little access to effective social and health care services, pota$le &ater, or sanitation facilities and are therefore more vulnera$le to epidemics and developmental challenges. Their lo& socio-economic status, lo& level of education and high fertility and mortality all indicate that they need special attention in terms of pu$lic health, family planning and reproductive health programs. 'ut unfortunately reverse is the case &ith such segments of ur$an population. The plight of the ur$an poor is no dou$t real and // percent of a $ig city+s population lives $elo& the poverty line, &hich often means living in su$-human conditions. #$out () percent of the population in cities still do not have access to running &ater. Poverty or the misery is so transparent in the life of slum d&ellers that there is no need of any criteria, measurement, or pro$ing analysis to recogni%e ra& poverty and to understand its antecedents. @fforts have $een on to remove the scourge of poverty since !ndependence. @ver since then the government has $een trying hard through various developmental programs to raise the average standard of living of people. "evertheless, our performances or achievements in the field of poverty alleviation have $een >uite dismal and disheartening. !n a recent survey of ,. $ig #sian cities &ith over a million population, !ndia+s four largest cities have $een ran6ed among the five &orst &ith respect to availa$ility of &ater per day. Physical losses due to &ater &astage in these cities are high despite lo& pressure and intermittent supplies. Bo& pressure can lead to 4$ac6 syphonage+ and contamination, responsi$le for many &ater-$orne diseases affecting the ur$an population. The lac6 of sufficient &ater affects the ur$an poor still more. !n Delhi, &hen the official supply per capita is supposed to $e ,00 liters a day, around nine million people 0a third of the population1 get less than , liters a day. #lso, /- percent of the ur$an population does not have access to proper sanitation and most slum-d&ellers do not have a toilet of their o&n. Despite such dismal statistics, according to the latest "ational Sample Survey, poverty in $ig cities has decreased slightly as compared to rural poverty, &hich has increased during the last fe& years. :o&ever, unli6e the rural poor, &ho can hide $ehind a pictures>ue countryside, ur$an poverty is depressing and visi$le. @<treme poverty and unemployment in $ig cities is giving rise to higher crime rates and social tension. !n order to cope &ith an increasing population, the municipal corporations could invite greater private sector participation in the ur$an infrastructure so that critical services are $etter managed. 7ore money &ould also $e needed $y municipal corporations to loo6 after the gro&ing population. 2orporati%ation of municipal finances is one &ay of raising additional funds. *or e<ample, the #hmeda$ad 7unicipal 2orporation has raised money through $ond issues. # demand for greater accounta$ility from municipal corporations &ill prevent corruption and cost over runs. This &ill need the involvement of local self-help and civil society groups. 'ut providing ade>uate education, po&er, &ater and pu$lic transport to its poorest inha$itants &ill continue to remain a ma9or challenge for any municipal governments &hen faced &ith continuous increase in ur$an population through natural increase as &ell as city&ard migration. Urbanization and Environmental Degradation =apid ur$ani%ation has caused &ide spread environmental degradation in the country. The government has conceded that despite imposition of regulatory measures, the magnitude of pollution from industrial sources in the country has not sho&n any apprecia$le decrease during the last t&o decades. !ncrease in pollution levels in ur$an areas is also fuelled $y ever-gro&ing traffic. The num$er of registered automo$iles in the country, mostly concentrated in the cities, has increased from (.8. million in ().( to ./) million in ()8( and , .,8 million in ())/. These figures sho& an e<traordinary high annual 0e<ponential1 gro&th rate of (0.- percent during ().(-8( and (,.) percent during ()8(-)/, &hile the ur$an population gre& only $y a$out four percent annually during this period. Thus, the gro&th in the num$er of vehicles per capita in the past (, years has $een very high in the country. The highest gro&th rate has $een recorded

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in the num$er of t&o-&heelers, at ( .( percent during ().(-8( and ( .- percent during ()8(-)/. These vehicles contri$ute the most to air pollution levels. Poor maintenance of vehicles and traffic congestion have $een found to $e critical factors of air pollution pro$lems in ur$an areas. 7ost vehicles do not confirm to permissi$le emission limits. !t has $een revealed $y a survey of ten ma9or cities of !ndia $y the "ational @nvironmental @ngineering =esearch !nstitute 0"@@=!1, "agpur that there has $een a su$stantial increase of the suspended particulate matter 0SP71 in the air, &hich suggests the presence of dust and car$on particles coated &ith to<ic gases. The highest level of SP7 is reported to $e in Delhi and 2alcutta. !t is as high as 5-0. The other metropolises, &hich cross the ma<imum, prescri$ed for SP7 $y ;:? 0,00 micrograms per cu$ic meter of air1 are Canpur, "agpur, Jaipur, 7um$ai and #hmeda$ad. The high levels of air pollution in these cities are largely attri$uta$le to incomplete com$ustion of diesel and leaded petrol, particularly in case of t&o- and three-&heelers, &hich use inefficient t&o-stro6e engines and indirect fuel in9ection. The study has revealed that the SP7 levels in the residential areas of all industrial cities have reached a critical level. =apid ur$ani%ation together &ith other associated pro$lems of shelter and provision of infrastructural facilities has caused a pernicious effect on the eco-sta$ility of the country. Det, another serious pro$lem is related to treatment of se&age collection and disposal of &aste materials. :ardly any city in !ndia has (00 percent se&age collection treatment and &aste disposal facilities. !ncidentally, of all the capital cities of different states and union territories Patna 0the capital city of the State of 'ihar1 is considered to $e the &orst of all. The untreated and partially treated &aste&ater ultimately contaminates rivers, la6es and reservoirs causing manifold pollution pro$lems. =ivers passing through cities such as 8anga, Damuna, Crishna, Caveri, 8odavari, :oogly, Damodar, Cshipra, 8omti, 7ahanadi, "armada, Tapti, 'et&a, etc. are reported to $e heavily polluted. Ur$ani%ation had also enhanced the solid &aste pro$lem in the country. ;ith the present culture of use and thro& and increasing use of $iodegrada$le pac6ing material, the >uantity and composition of &aste is li6ely to change in the coming decades. !ndian cities also have serious pro$lem of noise pollution. !t is considered to $e a very $ig health ha%ard. "oise affects man physically, psychologically and socially. !ntense noise or long stay in a noisy environment can cause permanent reduction of hearing sensitivity $y damaging sensory organs of the inner ear. !t can also influence $lood circulation, cause stress and other psychological effects and could also $e an accident ris6 $y dro&ning &arning signals.