Urbanization & associated Issues
Urban Floods, Solid Waste Mgmt,
Pollution, Urban Governance, Urban
Infra, AMRUT mission, RURBAN mission,
Urban sprawl etc
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Pattern of Urbanization
• India passed through a phase of rapid
urbanization in the 20th C.
• Modern urban centres perform diversified
functions in terms of economic,
administrative, political, cultural etc. Hence it
is difficult to classify town/cities in terms of
single activity.
• Generally they are classified on basis of some
prominent socio-economic & political features
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Classification
• Historical cities: Delhi, Kolkata, Ahmedabad,
Jaipur, Hyderabad, Lucknow etc
• Industrial cities: Ghaziabad, Kanpur,
Jamshedpur, Bhilai, Bokaro, Ranchi etc.
• Religious cities: Mathura, Allahabad, Hardwar,
Madurai, Kedarnath, Bodh Gaya, Amritsar etc
• Tourist cities: Shimla, Mussoorie, Ranikhet,
Puri, Gangtok, Darjeeling, Goa etc.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Definition
• Definition has undergone changes.
• Definition of town from 1901 to 1961:
– Every municipality, cantonment and civil lines (not
included in a municipality)
– Every other continuous collection of houses
permanently inhabited by more than 5000
persons, which provincial superintendent of
census may decide to treat as a town
• The main criteria was administrative set-up &
size and not economic characteristics.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
1961
• ‘Urban area’ was redefined in Census 1961 taking
into account economic characteristic in addition
to administrative & demographic features.
• The definition has remained unchanged till date.
– A slight change took place in this definition since
1981: workers in the occupation of forestry, fishing,
livestock, hunting, logging, plantations and orchards,
etc. which were earlier treated as industrial activity
came to be recognized as agricultural activity in 1981
to be counted as agricultural occupation
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
New definition
• Two ways to define urban areas:
– Census definition
– Statutory definition
• Census definition has 3 criteria:
– Population (minimum population must be 5000)
– Density (must be 400 person/km2)
– 75% of male working population must be engaged
in non-agricultural activities
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Statutory towns
• Statutory definition
– Must be made through law.
– Any area having municipality, municipal
corporation, cantonment board or Town Area
Committee
– Municipality: it is created for those areas where
population is less than 5 lakhs.
– Municipal Corporation: is for those areas where
population is more than 5 lakh
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Statutory towns
• Both Municipality & M. Corporation are created by State
govt. through a law. It is called statutory town.
• Cantonment Board: those areas where military
personnel live with civilians. Life style of civilians are
different and to avoid conflict of interest b/w the 2,
cantonment board is created by Ministry of Defense.
• The administration of C.B. is done by the Defense
Ministry.
• There are 64 Cantonment Boards in India. Eg. Ramgarh
(Jharkhand), Secunderabad (Telangana), Ajmer,
Nasirabad (Rajasthan).
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Cantonment Board
• Cantonments are divided into four categories:
– Category I – population >50,000
– Category II – population >10,000 & <50,000.
– Category III – population >2,500 & <10,000
– Category IV – population <2,500
• A cantonment board consists of eight elected
members.
• The term of office of a member of a board is
five years.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Cantonment Board
• The cantonment board takes care of
mandatory duties such as provision of public
health, water supply, sanitation, primary
education, and street lighting etc.
• As the resources are owned by government of
India, it can't levy any tax.
• Government of India provides the financial
assistance.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Town Area Committee
• An area which doesn’t qualify the criteria of
town (Census defn.) but is an emerging town -
> It is declared under administrative control of
TAC through a notification published in State
Gazette.
• We go for master planning in such towns.
• So TAC are also called planned towns.
• Ex.: Greater Noida, New Raipur, Amravati
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Town group & Urban agglomeration
• At the 1961 census, the concept of ‘town
group’ was adopted to obtain a broad picture
relating to urban spread.
• This was refined in 1971 with the concept of
urban agglomeration to obtain better feed
back in regard to urban continuity, process
and trends of urbanisation and other related
matters.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
History of Urbanization
• 1st – Indus Valley Civilization
– Planned cities- Grids
– West- Citadel, East: Lower Town
– Administrative area separated from Residential
area -> reduces congestion in residential area.
– Granary was separated- it was nucleus of admin
area.
– Roads 33 feet wide. Streets cut across at 90o
– Drains- covered- sanitation-both sides of roads
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
1st Urbanization
• Efficient utilization of space
– Double storey buildings with ventilations
– Bathrooms with ceramic tubs
– Main door: opened to streets & not main road
– No encroachments
– All the dwelling alike- akin to quarters.
• 2nd Urbanization: during the Mauryan period
– Trade- rise
– Peace, connectivity, communication (edicts)
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Modern times
• Britishers introduced the idea of LSG (Local
Self Governance)
• 3 tier system:
– Centre
– State
– LSG
• Finally, we had PRI & ULB introduced in 1992
– PRI (73rd CA)
– ULB (74th CA)
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
1. Urban Agglomeration (UA)
• Where 2 or more cities are growing in close
vicinity to each other & expanding very fast.
• Soon they will encroach upon each others
jurisdiction.
• Eg.: (1) Gurgaon, Delhi, Noida, Faridabad,
Ghaziabad.
• (2) Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Kalyan, Badlapur,
Thane.
• (3) Chandigarh, Panchkula & Mohali
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Urban Agglomeration (UA)
• Census definition: 2 or more physically
contiguous towns with or without their
outgrowth fulfilling conditions:
– At least 1 town shall be statutory town.
– Population must be higher than 20,000 as per
2001 Census.
– Outgrowth.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
2. OUTGROWTH
• An outgrowth is an area of high-density,
arguably urban settlement that is spatially
adjacent to a statutory town, and which would
thus seem to be poised on the threshold of
becoming legally urban.
• However, outgrowths are in fact governed by
rural authorities. Eg.: Hauz Khas village.
• Sometimes, railway colonies are also declared
as outgrowth.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
OUTGROWTH
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
3. Satellite Towns
• Similar to outgrowths, but are urban areas.
• They are partially dependent on main city for
commercial activity.
• Well connected roads & public transport.
• Satellite town is separated from main city by a
geographical barrier or a rural area.
• Ex.: Noida, separated by Yamuna. Gurgaon,
separated by Mahipalpur area, which is rural
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
4. Suburbs
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Central Business District (CBD)
• CBD becomes overcrowded & dearer.
• People living in CBD sell their property &
settle in outside peripheral areas called as
suburbs.
• Suburbs are totally dependent on CBD for
commercial activity.
• The process of settlement in suburbs is
studied through a concept called urban sprawl
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Classification of cities
Type Population
Class I 1,00,000+
Class II 50,000 to 99,999
Class III 20,000 to 49,999
Class IV 10,000 to 19,999
Class V 5,000 to 9,999
Class VI Upto 5,000
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Town, Cities & Metros
• Towns: urban places with less than 1,00,000
population.
• Cities: urban places with more than 1,00,000
population.
• Metropolitan cities: urban places with more
than 1 million population.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Urban population
• 1901: 10.8% urban
• 1981: 23.3%
• 2001: 27.8%
• 2011: 31.1%
• 2021: 35%
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Rate of Urbanization
It has declined over the past 2 decades
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Regional variation
• Maharashtra, UP, TN, WB & AP: altogether
accounted for 55% (1971) of the total urban
population of India.
• In contrast, 6 states of Odisha, Haryana,
Assam (including Meghalaya), J&K, HP &
Nagaland account for 5.5% (1971) of the total
urban population of India.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
State-wise urbanization (2011)
• Mizoram: 52.11%
• Tamil Nadu: 48.4%
• Kerala: 47.7%
• Maharashtra: 45.2%
• Gujarat: 42.6%
• Karnataka: 38.6%
• Andhra Pradesh: 33.5%
• Rajasthan: 24.9%
• UP: 22.3%
• Orissa: 16.7%
• Bihar: 11.3%
• H.P.: 10%
• All India: 31.1%
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Migration
• Push factors: increase of unemployment in the
rural areas, surplus rural labour.
• Pull factors: expectation of a variety of
glamorous jobs, good housing, medical,
educational and communication facilities.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Causes of urbanization
• Expansion in government services, post 2nd World War
• Migration of people from Pakistan after partition of
India
• The Industrial Revolution (2nd FYP)
• 11th FYP (2007-12): aimed at urbanization for economic
development of India
• Employment opportunities are very important reasons
for people moving towards cities
• Infrastructure facilities in the urban areas.
• Growth of private sector after 1990.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Urban Sprawl
• Types:
– Ribbon Sprawl
– Rural Urban Fringe Sprawl
– Leap Frog Sprawl
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Ribbon Sprawl
• Suburbs around highways
• Dependent upon cars.
• Eg. Gurgaon
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Types of Sprawl
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Types of Sprawl
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Rural Urban Fringe Sprawl
• By Joint families and High class.
• Joint families: due to space crunch in CBD.
• High class: farm houses.
• Eg. Chattarpur (near Delhi)- famous for farm
houses.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Leap Frog Sprawl
• Joint families who have commercial interest in
rural and CBD also.
• Urban sprawl is a natural process of
urbanization where people from CBD occupy
peripheral landscape around CBD.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Leap Frog Sprawl
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Sprawling
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Causes of Urban Sprawl
• Cheaper land & housing costs in suburbs as
compared to CBD which lured many to settle
in CBD earlier.
• CBD- Overcrowded & overpopulated
• Growth of CBD in stages:
– Stage I: Migration
– Stage II: Settlement
– Stage III: Reproduction/ Natural growth.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Causes of Urban Sprawl
• Higher property & commercial taxes in cities
push businesses to suburbs where rentals &
taxes are generally low.
• Increase in public spending for development
of infrastructure, like roads, water & electricity
in suburbs than in existing urban centres
• Willingness of growing number of people to
live in sprawls where they find life more calm
& peaceful than in cities.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Push factors
• Traffic congestion
• Air pollution
• Overload on social infrastructure (schools &
hospitals).
• Cost of living is very high
• Rental income is very high
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Pull factors
• Good space- bigger houses to stay
• Less congestion
• Peaceful environment
• Cost of living is low
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Pros of Urban Sprawl
• Less expensive land
• Low rent housings.
• Lifestyle preference
• Better School system- less of overcrowding &
good TPR
• Life is bit more calm & peaceful in suburbs
• Lower crime rate
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Cons of Urban Sprawl
• Automobile dependent
– Increased traffic congestion & commutes
– Increased level of accidents
– High pollution- air, water & hazardous waste
– Health issues- obesity, diabetes, respiratory disease.
• Loss of undeveloped land
– Roads & buildings destroy farmland & wildlife habitat.
– Water supply affected.
• Expansion of urban heat island effect.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Problems with urban sprawl
• They are unplanned
• In ribbon sprawl, when you are dependent
upon cars, congestion on highways. Highways
are prone to fatal accidents.
• SUVs demand is high -> air pollution (diesel)
• Back pain and obesity leading to diabetes.
• No proper drainage facilities & waste
management.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Approaches to managing growth
• Two approaches towards managing urban
growth:
– Land acquisition method: Public planning authorities
(PPA) and development agencies (DA) acquire large
portions of land and re-plan them in a desirable
manner
– Land readjustment and pooling: PPA and DA instead
of acquiring land, bring together or “pool together” a
group of owners & then re-plan the area by
readjusting/reshaping every land parcel in such a
manner so as to provide space for roads,
infrastructure & public amenities
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Land Acquisition method
• PPA and DA acquire land from farmers under
Land acquisition Act (1984).
• Compensation paid to farmers on prevailing land
prices.
• Master plan is prepared, laying out roads, plots
for social amenities and plots for sale.
• Roads & infrastructure are built using govt funds
or loans.
• Serviced plots are then sold for urban uses at
market rates.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Advantages of Land Acquisition
method
• Adequate amount of land for urban uses can
be rapidly generated.
• To expedite acquisition, some states allow
private developers to assemble land, who use
extra-legal means (incentives/non formal
offers) to secure farmers’ consent for land.
• Benefits of appreciation of land value on being
converted to urban use accrues to
development authorities.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Disadvantages of Land Acquisition
method
• Builders and authorities profit more. Farmers
don’t share this profit. They become landless.
• Farmers, deprived of their means of livelihood,
join the pool of urban labour. This gives rise to
slums, increase in crime rates, increased informal
sector activities.
• Development process is slow. The development
authorities end up becoming a bottle neck for
development as any person who needs land for
urban use has to approach the urban
development authority.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Disadvantages of Land Acquisition
method
• DA using method of bulk land acquisition end
up being powerful large scale land developers,
controlling vast urban resources.
• This breeds corruption and the govt. plays a
facilitator’s role.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Land Pooling & Readjustment Method
(LPRM)
• The PPA or DA temporarily brings together a
group of landowners for purpose of planning.
• There is no acquisition or transfer of
ownership involved & thus no compensation.
• A master plan is prepared, laying out the
roads & plots for social amenities.
• Remaining land is reconstituted into final plots
for the original owner.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Land Pooling & Readjustment Method
(LPRM)
• The size of final plot is in proportion to the
size of original plot & its location is as close as
possible to the original plot.
• A betterment charge based on the cost of
infrastructure proposed is levied to
landowners. Infrastructure is then provided
utilizing these funds.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Original Plot
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Original Plot – Final Plot combine
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Final Plot
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Advantages of LPRM
• All land, except whatever is needed for
infrastructure development and social
amenities, remains with the original owner.
• The DA plays a limited role in ensuring
planned urban growth.
• The increment in land value resulting from
development accrues to original owner of land
• Thus, benefits of development goes to original
owner instead of DA.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Advantages of LPRM
• The original owner is not displaced in the
process of development. Thus negative impact
of the process of urbanization on farmers
(original owners) is minimized.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Disadvantages of LPRM
• Time consuming: the method is unduly
complicated & cumbersome.
• Betterment charges (BC) are levied at the
time of Plan passing: due to delays in
finalizing schemes, the BC levied do not meet
the cost of infrastructure provided.
• Cost of inflation is not taken into account.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Problems of Urbanization
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Urban Floods- reasons
• Unregulated construction
• Overburdened drainage. Eg. Cities like
Hyderabad & Mumbai have century old
drainage system.
• As cities grow beyond original limits, drainage
system is neglected/ignored.
• Altering natural topography- the terrains have
been flattened by construction and natural
drainage routes have been altered.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Urban Floods- reasons
• Reducing seepage- concrete jungles.
• Lax implementation by civic authorities-
Environmental Impact Assesment (EIA)
remains weak.
• Encroachment of natural spaces. Green cover
has been reduced beyond the resilence of the
ecosystem.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Urban Floods- Solutions
• Constructing a policy map and Coordination
between Metropolitan Development Authorities,
National Disaster Management Authorities, State
Irrigation Department and Municipal
Corporations- work together.
• Active participation of civil society organizations.
• Developing sponge cities- which absorb rain
water, get filtered by soil and finally reach urban
acquifers. This water can be treated & used for
city supply.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Urban Floods- Solutions
• Wetland policy
• Terrain alteration to be strictly regulated. Ban
on any further alteration if city is getting
choked.
• Porous materials and technologies should be
used in construction of roads, pavements,
paths.
• Green roofs, water harvesting.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Urban Floods- Solutions
• Bioswales construction- which are made along
roadside, so that rain water can be
channelized and allowed to percolate in soil.
• Govt. initiatives-
– Atal Mission for rejuvenation & Urban
Transformation (AMRUT)
– National Heritage City Development &
Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY)
– Smart Cities mission.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Bioswales
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Other problems
• 1. Overcrowding/urban implosion
• Housing: congested accommodation, devoid of proper
ventilation, sanitation, water, electricity etc.
• The United Nations Centre for Human Settlements
(UNCHS) introduced the concept of “Housing Poverty”
which includes “Individuals and households who lack
safe, secure and healthy shelter, with basic
infrastructure such as piped water and adequate
provision for sanitation, drainage and the removal of
household waste”.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
2. Sanitation
• Drainage system in many unorganized colonies &
slums either do not exist or are in a bad shape
• Unsanitary conditions leads to many sanitation
related diseases such as diahorrea and malaria.
• Unsafe garbage disposal is one of the critical
problems in urban areas and garbage
management always remained a major challenge.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
3. Squatter settlements
• Squatter settlements contain makeshift dwellings
constructed without official permission (i.e., on
unauthorized land).
• No clear-cut distinction can be drawn between
slums & squatter settlements in practice except
that slums are relatively more stable and are
located in older, inner parts of cities.
• Squatter settlements are relatively temporary
and are often scattered in all parts of the city,
especially outer zones where urban areas merge
with their rural hinterland.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
4. Environmental concerns
• Vulnerability to risk posed by the increasing man-
made and natural disasters.
• According to UNDP 70% of Indian population is at
risk to floods and 60% susceptible to
earthquakes.
• The risk is higher in urban areas owing to density
and overcrowding.
• Urban areas are becoming heat islands, ground
water is not being recharged and water crisis is
persistent.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
5. Poverty
• Roughly one third of the urban population lives
below poverty line.
• There is rise in urban inequality
• As per UN habitat report, 2010, urban inequality
in India rose from 34 to 38 % based on
consumption in period of 1995 to 2005.
• Urban unemployment in India is estimated at 15
to 25 per cent of the labour force. This
percentage is even higher among the educated
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
AMRUT Mission
• Atal Mission for Rejuvenation & Urban Transformation
• It is a new avatar of JNNURM (Jawaharlal Nehru
National Urban Renewal Mission)
• 500 cities selected under Amrut mission
– Cities & Towns with population > 1 lakh (Census 2011)
including Cantonment Boards & all capitals
– Cities/Towns classified as heritage cities.
– 13 town/cities on the stem of main rivers with population
b/w 75K- 100K
– 10 cities from hill states, islands & tourist destinations (not
more than 1 from each state)
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
AMRUT Mission
• Project approach to ensure water supply, sewerage,
transportation & development of green spaces/parks.
• 10% of budget allocation to be given to states & UTs as
incentive based on achievement of reforms during
previous year.
• State to submit state annual action plans to centre, on
which funds will be released.
• Central assistance
– will be 50% of the project for cities/towns with a
population < 10 lakh
– 1/3rd of project cost if population >10 lakh
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
AMRUT Mission
• States to transfer funds to ULBs within 7 days
of getting fund from Centre.
• No diversion of funds to be made, otherwise
penal interest would be charged beside other
adverse action by Centre.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
HRIDAY Mission
• It is national city development &
augmentation programme.
• Launched in 2015
• Aim is to conserve heritage & increase
economic growth of heritage cities.
• Implemented by Ministry of Housing & Urban
Affairs.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
RURBAN Mission
• Development of cluster of villages that preserve
& nurture essence of rural community life with
focus on equity & inclusiveness without
compromising with facilities perceived to be
essentially urban in nature, thus creating a cluster
of ‘Rurban villages’.
• Launched in 2016
• Rurban cluster: a cluster of geographically
contiguous viallges with a population of
– 25K to 50K in plain & coastal areas or
– 5K to 15K in desert, hilly or tribal areas.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
RURBAN Mission
• 2 categories of cluster:
– Non tribal
– Tribal
• Non-tribal cluster: would be identified by
1. Decadal growth
2. Rise in land values
3. Decadal growth in non-farm workforce participation.
4. Percentage of enrollment of girls in schools
5. Percentage of households with bank accounts under PM Jan
Dhan Yojana
6. Performance in Swachh Bharat Mission
7. Good governance initiatives by Gram Panchayats.
First four parameters would carry 80% weight.
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
RURBAN Mission
• Tribal cluster:
1. Decadal growth in Tribal population
2. Growth in Tribal literacy rate
3. Decadal growth in non-farm workforce
participation.
4. Decadal growth in rural population
5. Presence of economic clusters.
First 3 parameters will carry 80% weight
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
Aim of RURBAN Mission
• To create 300 rural growth clusters across the
country
• Strengthening rural areas by provisioning of
economic, social & physical infrastructure
facilities
• Details
By: Dr Farhan Rahman
