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Are slums the manifestations of industrialisation and urbanisation in India? Explain. 10 Marks (UPSC CSE Mains 2024 - Sociology, Paper 2)
The process of industrialisation and urbanisation go hand in hand. When industrialisation started in the 19th Century, Cities developed and expanded around mining and other industrial areas. Along with industries, various other economic activities flourished, and the people migrated to the newly grown industrial areas in search of a better life. Thus, industrialisation and urbanisation together expanded.
The UN operationally defines a ‘slum’ as one or a set of people living in the same house in an urban area who lack one or more facilities i.e., secure tenure, durable housing, sufficient living space, access to improved water and sanitation facilities.
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There is an acute shortage of housing in urban areas, and much of the available accommodation is qualitative of sub-standard variety. This problem has worsened over the years due to the rapid increase in population, fast urbanisation, and inadequate addition to the housing stock. With large scale migration to urban areas, many find that the only option they have is to settle in slums.
Slums are characterized by sub-standard housing, overcrowding, lack of electrification, ventilation, sanitation, roads and drinking water facilities. They have been the breeding ground of diseases, environmental pollution and many anti-social activities. India’s slum population stands at approximately 40% slum dwellers and are reported to be maximum in Mumbai, Calcutta, Delhi, and Chennai.
Maharashtra state has the highest proportion of slum population (18.1%) followed by Andhra Pradesh (15.6%), West Bengal (9.8%), Uttar Pradesh (9.5%), Tamil Nadu (8.9%), Madhya Pradesh (8.7%) and Karnataka (5.0%). The exact reason for the large proportion of the slum population in these states is that many people move to these states; mainly because of jobs opportunity, better schools for poor''s children, and varied income sources.
Slums represent the worst type of environmental degradation that has become concomitant to urbanisation and industrialisation.
Urban sociologists like Ramkrishna Mukherjee have noted that rapid urban growth without corresponding socio-economic planning leads to informal settlements. From a structural-functional perspective, slums serve as an adaptation to structural constraints in urban areas, providing shelter albeit with inadequate facilities.
Slums are thus by-products of urbanisation and industrialisation born out of imbalanced outcomes.
POSTED ON 16-02-2025 BY ADMIN
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