Solution for the Urban Poor

Submitted by:
Shreya Bhargava
A. Aim:
The research paper aims to the study the demands of a growing city, with respect to the
`urban poor, what leads to the growth of squatter settlements and bridges the gap between
the demand and supply that lacks in the present framework of a functioning city.

B. Keywords:
Urban Poor, Alternative Frameworks, Providing opportunities, Rehabilitation, Housing
Solutions.

C. Intent Statement:
Slums have been in existence since the time of cities and their presence has long been
documented in the literature. The intent of this paper is to recognize the areas that undergo
this development and enlist the measures that could curb the growth of slums in the
developing urban areas, where the development of slums has become an inevitable part of
Urban Growth. The paper further focuses on the driving factors like economic opportunities
that lead to the growth of slums in the different parts of the cities. The most important steps
in preventing the growth of slums in developing areas are providing affordable housing
solutions to the habitants of slums, monitoring and checking the growth of slums and
understanding the various factors that influence the development of slums in urban areas.
The paper will aim at listing down some solutions towards the monitoring of areas in terms of
proper utilization, design specific on the urban scale, and provide for the rapid urbanization
that at present leads to the growth of slums in developing cities.
1. Need for the study:

a. Slum – an urban phenomenon

Under Section-3 of the Slum Area Improvement and Clearance Act-1956, slums have been
defined as mainly those residential areas where dwelling are in any respect unfit for human
habitation by reasons of dilapidation, overcrowding, faulty arrangement and design of such
buildings, narrowness or faulty arrangement of streets, lack of ventilation, light, sanitation
facilities or any combination of these factors which are detrimental to safety, health and
morals.1

The slums are a very ugly but realistic aspect of urban areas. They punctuate almost every
city of the world. Any piece of land vacant or outside the boundary walls is prone to
unauthorized developments. There is an urgent need to treat these edges to limit these
growths. The last few decades have seen them grow rapidly, although they have been in
existence since historical times.

With industrialization, high rates of migration to urban areas for better economic
opportunities, and with the aim of achieving better living conditions, there has been a
constant rise in the number of informal settlements in urban areas. The difference in the per-
capita incomes of the population in low-income areas compared to the high-income areas
also is a factor promoting migration. According to the census of 2011, 32% of the total
population of the country resides in the urban areas and there has been a steep rise in the
urban population since the census of 2001. 18% of the urban population reside as informal
dwellers as the government constantly fails to provide formal affordable housing options to
the high inflow of population to the urban areas.

The emergence of slum is essentially the product of three forces:

 Demographic dynamism of a city.

 The city’s incapacity to meet the rising demand for housing.
 Existing urban land policies which prohibit the access of the poor to the urban land
market.

The poor are left with no choice but to make or take shelter illegally on any available piece of
land. A need to solve this issue has become of prior importance.

b. Solution: Resettlement or In-situ development?

Most planners and government bodies prefer the option of resettlement of slums as to in-situ
upgrading of slums while addressing the issue of slums; despite the fact shown by previous
studies that there is a decreased per capita income and asset holding in resettlement of
slum population, leaving them poorer and more vulnerable. The earlier process is more
economically viable as well as convenient as compared to the latter option. The biggest loss
is of the jobs and livelihoods, and then follows the social disorganization; loss of personal
and community resources makes it even more challenging to adjust to the situation. Usually,
resettlement happens from inner core city area to the outer periphery of the city. This takes
people very far away from their work places. Being on the city fringe, there are fewer

1
The Slum Areas (Improvement and Clearance) Act, 1956 , SRA – Maharashtra Government
opportunities of livelihoods. The area lack basic services such as roads and transport
connectivity, water supply, sewerage, sanitation, facility of schools and health care. These
infra facilities are absolutely important for people to be able to live in any area.

Identification of JJ Clusters and Slums in Delhi

In 2002, communities from Yamuna Pusta, Nagla Machi, Khan Market and Airport were
resettled 30KMs west to Savda Ghevra, a peri-urban area just short of Rohtak in Haryana.
By 2010, almost 8000 families has been resettled there but people still find it difficult to
commute from Savda as there’s no Bus connectivity, no piped supply of water, no sewerage
network, choked drains and brick roads.2

2. Research question:
Slums have become an inevitable part of the city’s growth. The various social, economic and
political aspects become the driving force in the growth and development of slums.

 Do slums exhibit patterns in their location in a city and how ill-designed policies, poor
urban governance and rural-to-urban migration have become a driving force for the
growth of slums?
 How could the edges and voids be treated to avoid the encroachment of public land?
 How can changes in policies and developmental framework and different methods of
rehabilitation help in providing for the growth of Urban Poor?

2
‘Resettlement of Slum Dwellers’, Centre for Urban and Regional Excellence, 2012, 2.