[Type text]

RESEARCH REPORT
ON

“IMPACT OF SLUM TOURISM ON PEOPLE LIVING IN : CASE

OF SANJAY COLONY SLUM”

BACHELOR OF ARCHITECTURE
2018-2019

SUBMITTED BY
HIMANSHU TANWAR
B. ARCH (7th SEMESTER)

GUIDED BY
Ar. SUPRIYA SINHA
(Associate Professor)

Ar. ………….
(Assistant Professor)

BHAGWAN MAHAVEER SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE,

JAGDISHPUR SONEPAT, HARYANA 131028

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BHAGWAN MAHAVEER SCHOOL OF ARCHITECTURE,

JAGDISHPUR SONEPAT,
HARYANA 131028
2018-2019

CERTIFICATE
This is to certify that Mr. HIMANSHU TANWAR has worked on the Research
entitled “ IMPACT OF SLUM TOURISM ON PEOPLE LIVING IN : CASE OF
SANJAY COLONY SLUM ” under our guidance and supervision in B .Arch. 7th
Semester.

Ar. Madhur Varshney External Examiner

(Guide)

Ar. Madhur Varshney Prof . Bandana Jain

Head (Principal)

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AIM
To study the impact of slum tourism on people living in Sanjay Colony

OBJECTIVE
 To study about the slums
 To study about slum tourism , its history and condition of slum tourism in india
 To study about the execution of tourism in sanjay colony , Delhi
 To study about the impact of slum tourism on people living in sanjay colony

SCOPE
 Slum tourism
 Evolution of slum tourism
 Slum tourism in india

HYPOTHESIS
There is no impact over the community of Sanjay Colony Slum due to Slum Tourism

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TABLE OF CONTENT
Chapter 1 : Introduction
1.1. Slum
1.2. Attributes of Slums
1.3. Area and Population of Delhi
1.4. Urban Slums in Delhi
1.5. Population statistics of slums in Delhi

Chapter 2 : Slum Tourism

2.1 Tourism
2.2 Slum Tourism

Chapter 3 : Sanjay Colony

3.1 Introduction to Sanjay Colony
3.2 Education
3.3 Finance
3.4 Reality Tours and Travels
3.5 Prithak (NGO)

Chapter 4: Case study 1, Dharavi

4.1 Introduction to Dharavi
4.2 Present Condition of Dharavi
4.3 Conclusion
4.4 The Impacts of slum tourism on the Dharavi community
4.5 Recommendations

Chpater 6: Analysis & Conclusion

5.1 Education
5.2 Occupation
5.3 Living conditions in the Community
5.4 Perception of Sanjay Colony’s residents on slum tours
5.5 The impact of slum tourism on the community on sanjay colony slum

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ABSTRACT
Slums refer to an informal settlements in urban areas that are usually densely populated. The slums are often
characterized by substandard housing as well as squalor. Such residences range from shanty houses to some
professionally built housing that have turned out to be slums, sometimes this is because of poor construction efforts
or corruption. Nowadays a fast growing niche tourism segment called as ‘Slum Tourism’ is being practiced in
various countries.
Slum tourism, also referred to as "ghetto tourism," involves the tour to impoverished area,. The main purpose of
slum tourism is to provide tourists the opportunity to see the areas of a city that people usually don’t prefer to go
to. Nowadays people are looking for something different than the usual dose of museums , beaches and
restaurants, many foreign tourists are now turning to places that may at first seem to be antithesis of the typical
vacation destination i.e. slums. Far from being viewed as off-limits, no-go-zones that outsiders would be wise to
avoid, some slum-like areas in cities like Mumbai, Johannesburg, Delhi and Rio de Janeiro have now become
popular tourist attractions, bringing in tens and even hundreds of thousands of curious visitors each year.
This research paper focuses on a small slum called ‘Sanjay Colony’ built on 18 acres of land located in the
south Delhi near the Bahai Lotus Temple and Iskcon Temple. The purpose of the research is to highlight the
impact of Slum Tourism on the people living in Sanjay Colony.

Keywords : Slums | Tourism | Delhi Slums | Slum Tourism | Sanjay Colony Slum

Slums : The word “slum” is often used to describe informal settlements within cities that have inadequate housing
and miserable living conditions.
Slum Tourism : Slum tourism is a kind of tourism which involves the visit of slums in the city.
Sanjay Colony : Sanjay Colony is a small slum located in Southeast region of New Delhi , Oklha Industrial area.

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Chapter 1
INTRODUCTION

1.1. Slum
1.2. Attributes of Slums
1.3. Area and Population of Delhi
1.4. Urban Slums in Delhi
1.5. Population statistics of slums in Delhi

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1.1 SLUM
The word “slum” is often used to describe informal settlements within cities that have inadequate
housing and miserable living conditions. They are often overcrowded, with many people
crammed into very small living spaces. Slums are not a new phenomenon. They have been a part
of the history of almost all cities, particularly during the phase of urbanization and
industrialization. Slums are generally the only type of settlement affordable and accessible to the
poor in cities, where competition for land and profits is intense. The main reason for slum
Proliferation is rapid and non inclusive patterns of Urbanization catalyzed by increasing rural
migration to urban areas.

1.2 ATTRIBUTES OF SLUMS1

A. Lack Of Basic Services

Lack of basic services is one of the most frequently mentioned characteristics of slum definitions
worldwide. Lack of access to improved sanitation facilities and improved water sources is the
most important feature, sometimes supplemented by absence of waste collection systems,
electricity supply, surfaced roads and footpaths, street lighting and rainwater drainage.

B. Substandard Housing Or Illegal And Inadequate Building Structures

Many cities have building standards that set minimum requirements for residential buildings.
Slum areas are associated with a high number of substandard housing structures, often built with
non-permanent materials unsuitable for housing given local conditions of climate and location.
Factors contributing to a structure being considered substandard are, for example, earthen floors,
mud-and-wattle walls or straw roofs. Various space and dwelling placement bylaws may also be
extensively violated.

C. Overcrowding And High Density

Overcrowding is associated with a low space per person, high occupancy rates, cohabitation by
different families and a high number of single-room units. Many slum dwelling units are
overcrowded, with five and more persons sharinga one-room unit used for cooking, sleeping and
living. Bangkok requires at least 15 dwelling units per rai (1600 squaremetres).

D. Unhealthy Living Conditions And Hazardous Locations

Unhealthy living conditions are the result of a lack of basic services, with visible, open sewers,
lack of pathways, uncontrolled dumping of waste, polluted environments, etc. Houses may be
built on hazardous locations or land unsuitable for settlement, such as floodplains, in proximity
to industrial plants with toxic emissions or waste disposal sites, and on areas subject to landslip.
The layout of the settlement may be hazardous because of a lack of access ways and high
densities of dilapidated structures.

E. Insecure Tenure; Irregular Or Informal Settlements

A number of definitions consider lack of security of tenure as a central characteristic of slums,
and regard lack of any formal document entitling the occupant to occupy the land or structure as
prima facie evidence of illegality and slum occupation. Informal or unplanned settlements are
often regarded as synonymous with slums. Many definitions emphasize both informality of

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occupation and the non-compliance of settlements with land-use plans. The main factors
contributing to non-compliance are settlements built on land reserved for non residential
purposes, or which are invasions of non-urban land.

F. Poverty And Social Exclusion

Income or capability poverty is considered, with some exceptions, as a central characteristic of
slum areas. It is not seen as an inherent characteristic of slums, but as a cause (and, to a large
extent, a consequence) of slum conditions. Slum conditions are physical and statutory
manifestations that create barriers to human and social development. Furthermore, slums are
areas of social exclusion that are often perceived to have high levels of crime and other measures
of social dislocation. In some definitions, such areas are associated with certain vulnerable
groups of population, such as recent immigrants, internally displaced persons or ethnic
minorities.

G. Minimum Settlement Size

Many slum definitions also require some minimum settlement size for an area to be considered a
slum, so that the slum constitutes a distinct precinct and is not a single dwelling. Examples are
the municipal slum definition of Kolkata that requires a minimum of 700 square meters to be
occupied by huts, or the Indian census definition, which requires at least 300 population or 60
households living in a settlement cluster.

1.2.1 PRADHAN MANTRI AWAS YOJANA - HOUSING FOR ALL

(URBAN)-MISSION

Salient Features with respect to emphasis on Slums :

 “Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Housing for All (Urban)” Mission for urban area will be
implemented during 2015-2022 and this Mission will provide central assistance to
implementing agencies through States and UTs for providing houses to all eligible
families/ beneficiaries by 2022.
 A beneficiary family will comprise husband, wife, unmarried sons and/or unmarried
daughters. The beneficiary family should not own a pucca house either in his/her name or
in the name of any member of his/her family in any part of India to be eligible to receive
central assistance under the mission.
 States/UTs, at their discretion, may decide a cut-off date on which beneficiaries need to
be resident of that urban area for being eligible to take benefits under the scheme.
 All statutory towns as per Census 2011 and towns notified subsequently would be
eligible for coverage under the Mission. States/UTs will have the flexibility to include in
the Mission the Planning area as notified with respect to the Statutory town and which
surrounds the concerned municipal area.
 The mission will support construction of houses upto 30 square meter carpet area with
basic civic infrastructure. States/UTs will have flexibility in terms of determining the
size of house and other facilities at the state level in consultation with the Ministry but
without any enhanced financial assistance from Centre. Slum redevelopment projects
and Affordable Housing projects in partnership should have basic civic infrastructure
like water, sanitation, sewerage, road, electricity etc. ULB should ensure that individual

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housesunder credit linked interest subsidy and beneficiary led construction should have
provision for these basic civic services.
 The minimum size of houses constructed under the mission under each component
should conform to the standards provided in National Building Code (NBC). All houses
built or expanded under the Mission should essentially have toilet facility.
 The houses under the mission should be designed and constructed to meet the
requirements of structural safety against earthquake, flood, cyclone, landslides etc.
conforming to the National Building Code and other relevant Bureau of Indian Standards
(BIS) codes.

1.3 AREA AND POPLUATION OF DELHI

In context of Delhi, the literal meaning of population is “The whole number of people or
Inhabitants in the state”. Populations are affected by many factors, the main natural ones being
birth rates and death rates which affect the level of natural change (increase or decrease) within
the population. Other factors that affect the change in a population's growth include the impact of
urbanization, emancipation of women, agricultural changes and education.

1.3.1 POPULATION OF DELHI

After independence Seventh Population Census
was undertaken in the entire area of NCT
Of Delhi between 9th February to 28th
February 2011 with a provisional round from
1st to 5th March, 2011. As such, the population
of Delhi, as on 1st March, 2011, has been
worked out at 16.79 millions as against 13.85
millions as on 1st March, 2001. This reflects
decennial growth of 21.2% of population after
2001 census. The corresponding percentage at
All-India level has been worked out at 17.7%.
The total population of Delhi is 1.39% of the
All-India Population. Figures at a glance –
Population characteristics 2011 are given in
Table 1.1. Decennial Population Growth Rate in
Delhi is given in Table 1.2.

“1 in every 5 of Delhi’s residents lives in a slum colony”2

1.3.2 AREA OF NCT OF DELHI3

The total area of NCT of Delhi is 1483 Sq. Kms. As per Population Census 1991, its rural
and urban composition is given below:
Rural Area : 797.66 Sq. Kms.
Urban Area : 685.34 Sq. Kms.
------------------------
1483.00 Sq. Kms.
------------------------

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During Population Census 2001, the area of NCT of Delhi has remained the same at 1483
Sq. Kms. However, its rural-urban composition has undergone change due to urbanisation of
villages. According to the estimates of Directorate of Census Operations, Delhi, its rural-urban
break-up of NCT of Delhi is given below:
Rural Area : 558.32 Sq. Kms.
Urban Area : 924.68 Sq. Kms.
-----------------------
1483.00Sq. Kms.
According to Population Census 2011, the area of NCT of Delhi has remained the same at
1483 Sq. Kms. However, its rural-urban composition has undergone change due to urbanization
of villages. According to the provisional estimates of Directorate of Census Operations, Delhi, its
rural-urban break-up of NCT of Delhi is given below:
Rural Area : 369.35 Sq. Kms.
Urban Area : 1113.65 Sq. Kms.
-----------------------
1483.00Sq. Kms.
-----------------------
TABLE 1 : Population Characteristics – Delhi

Source : Population Census 1981 to 2011, Dte. Of Census Operations, Delhi.

The annual average exponential growth rate of population of Delhi was the highest (6.42%)
during 1941-1951 due to large scale migration from Pakistan to India after partition in 1947.
Since then the annual growth has been recorded 4.22 % during 1951-1961, 4.25% during 1961-

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1971, 4.25% during 1971-1981, 4.15% during 1981-1991 and 3.85% during 1991-2001. The
annual average exponential growth rate of population of Delhi during 2001-2011 has been
recorded as 1.94% .

1.4 URBAN SLUMS IN DELHI4

In urban Delhi, “A slum is a compact settlement of at least 20 households with a collection of

poorly built tenements, mostly of temporary nature, crowded together usually with inadequate
sanitary and drinking water facilities in unhygienic conditions”.

1.4.1 CHARACTERISTICS OF SLUMS IN DELHI

 About 6343 slums with approximately 10.20 lakhs households were estimated to be in
existence in urban Delhi in 2012.
 Average 161 households per slum were found to be in these slums.
 About 90% of slums were built on public land, owned mostly by local bodies (46%),
railways (28%) and state government (16%), etc.
 16.19% of the slums have cropped up along nallah/drain, around 27.64% along railway
lines, approximately 27.73% at open places/parks and the remaining 28% of the slums at
other places.
 About 74.46% slums are surrounded by residential areas, 3.36% by industrial areas,
0.66% by commercial areas and rest by other type of areas.
 54.91% of slums are composed of pucca structure, 29.47% semi pucca and only 15.62%
of slums were having unserviceable katcha structure.
 For 86.50% of slums, the major source of drinking water was either tap or hand pump.
 The most of the residents of about 30% of the slums are using septic tank/flush type of
latrine facility. At the other extreme, 22% slums did not have any latrine facility at all.
 Underground sewerage existed in only about 16.30% slums.
 About 98.38% of the slums were having underground/covered pucca/open pucca open
katcha drainage system. Only 1.62% of the slums were having no drainage system.
 Local bodies were collecting garbage from 31.45% of slums. Out of the slums in which
garbage collection is done by local bodies, the frequency of the collection was 37% on
daily basis, while in 32% of slums garbage was collected atleast once in two days, once
in 3 to 7 days in 29% slums and once in 8 days to 15 days in 0.68% of slums and
remaining 2% falls in other category having no regular mechanism for garbage disposal.
 About 48% of the slums had a motorable (Pucca/Kutcha) approach road.
 About 77% of slums were having pucca road/lane/path within the slum.
 About 16.76% of slums were electrified with both street light and household use, 23.90%
for household use only, 58.96% for street light only, while in 0.38% of slums there was
no electricity.
 About 86.74% of the slums were having primary schools in the proximity of less than 0.5
km.
 About 19.28% of the slum clusters were having the government hospital within a distance
of 0.5 km, 28.33% in the distance 0.5-1 km, 36.31% in the distance 1-2 km, 14.27% in
the range of 2-5 km and 1.81% slum clusters are covered by government hospitals in the
distance of 5 km and above.

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 About 9.30% of the slums were usually affected by water logging (inside of slum as well
as approach road also) during monsoon.
 About 4% of the slums in Delhi were having associations either formal/informal for
improving the condition of the slums formed by the slum dwellers themselves.

1.5 POPULATION OF SLUMS IN DELHI4

There is an estimation of total number of slums as 6343 and the total number of households
therein was estimated as 10.20 lakhs. About 29% of slums were having 20-60 households, while
rest 71% of slums were having more than 60 households each. Average 161 households per slum
were found to be in these slums.

Table 2 Est. No. of Slums & Households

Source : Urban Slums in Delhi, Based on NSS 69th Round Survey , Govt of NCT of Delhi, February 2015
The approximate area of the slum in hectares is mentioned in Table 3. The NSS survey revealed
that about 39% of the slums were on the plot area of approximately less than 0.5 hectares another
58% on plot area of 0.5 - 1 hectares, 0.24% of them on 1-2 hectares. And the remaining slums
were found to be having around 2 hectare or more area.

Table 3 Distribution of Slums by approx area of slum

Source : Urban Slums in Delhi, Based on NSS 69th Round Survey , Govt of NCT of Delhi, February 2015

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The survey estimated that 90.24% of the slums

are on the public land which constitutes
45.83% are on the land owned by local bodies,
28.24% on the land owned by Railways and
remaining 16.18% are on the land of other 17
government agencies. About 2% of the slums
are on the private land and about 8% of the
slums were on the land whose ownership was
not known to the knowledgeable persons of the
locality.
Distribution of slum by type of land ownership

Table 3 SLUM POPULATION (As per Census 2011)

Source : Population Census 1981 to 2011, Dte. Of Census Operations, Delhi.

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Chapter 2
Slum Tourism

2.1 Tourism
2.1.1 Tourism Restructuring in India
2.2 slum Tourism
2.2.1 Concept of Slumming
2.2.2 History of Slum Tourism

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2.1 TOURISM

Tourism is an ever-expanding service industry with vast growth potential and has therefore
become one of the crucial concerns of the not only nations but also of the international
community as a whole. Infact, it has come up as a decisive link in gearing up the pace of the
socio-economic development world over. It is believed that the word tour in the context of
tourism became established in the English language by the eighteen century. On the other hand,
according to oxford dictionary, the word tourism first came to light in the English in the nineteen
century (1811) from a Greek word 'tomus' meaning a round shaped tool.' Tourism as a
phenomenon means the movement of people (both within and across the national
borders).Tourism means different things to different people because it is an abstraction of a wide
range of consumption activities which demand products and services from a wide range of
industries in the economy.

2.1.1 TOURISM RESTRUCTURING IN INDIA

Tourism is not a new phenomenon to India. The mehmaan-nawaji (Welcoming the guests) or
‘Atithiti Devo Bhava’ (The Guest is the God) is in the blood of Indians since ancient times.
History tells about India’s first foreign tourists were Huen-T-Sang and Fi-Huan during 700 B.C.
India has lost its independence when it has welcomed Portuguese during 1498, Dutch in 1600
and the English in 1612 as guests only. After independence in 1947, the Indian government gave
special focus on tourism industry as it was one of the major sources of foreign exchange
earnings. Major attention has been given in ninth year plan (1997-2002) when Indian
government has categorised the tourism in form of business tourism, incentive tourism,
indigenous and natural health tourism, eco-friendly tourism/back to nature, wildlife tourism,
spiritual tourism / pilgrimage tourism, heritage tourism, rural tourism / village tourism, sports
tourism, social tourism, shopping tourism, regional circuit tourism, and adventure tourism (Gour,
2005). Also some traces are found about new trends in tourism in India in the form of agri-
tourism (Sznajder, 2009), mass tourism (Bedding, 1997), educational tourism (Quezeda, 2004),
indigenous terrorism (Smith, 1996), movie induced tourism (Gjorgievski, 2012), beach tourism
(Calderon, 2004), cuisine/culinary tourism (Duttagupta,2013), medical / healthcare/drug Tourism
(Singh, 2014), disaster tourism (Athukorala, 2005), fashion tourism (Bernama, 2008), halal
Tourism (Battour, 2010; Mukherjee 2014), honeymoon (Rao, 2001), jihadi tourism (Wynne,
2002), kosher tourism (Merz, 2008), sacred / ashram tourism (Sharpley, 2005) and reality
tourism (Meschkank, 2011).

2.3 SLUM TOURISM

Slum tourism, also sometimes referred to as "ghetto tourism," involves tourism to impoverished
areas, the purpose of which is to provide tourists the opportunity to see the “non-touristy” areas
of a country or city.Looking for something different than the usually dose of museums, beach
resorts, and restaurants, many tourists are now turning to places that may at first seem to be the
antithesis of the typical vacation destination: slums. Far from being viewed as off-limits, no-go-
zones that outsiders would be wise to avoid, some slum-like areas in cities like Mumbai,
Johannesburg, and Rio de Janeiro have now become bonafide tourist attractions, bringing in tens
and even hundreds of thousands of curious visitors each year.

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2.2.1 THE CONCEPT OF SLUMMING

This section conceptualizes the term, slumming.

Slumming is in academia discussed as the early form of
the contemporary slum tourism. The term, slumming,
has its roots from the leisure activities by the upper and
uppermiddle classes touring the poor quarters of London
in the nineteenth-century (Koven, 2006). Although the
slumming in London consisted of elements of tourism
(domestic tourism), it was however in New York that
one could speak of international ‘touristification’ of
slumming, as the occurrence of slumming in the USA
was directly linked to the development of international
(urban) tourism (Steinbrink, 2012).
Figure 1 ‘Slumming’ Source: The New York
Times (Sept. 14th, 1884).

2.2.2 HISTORY OF SLUM TOURISM

In the mid-1800s, rich Londoners would travel to the squalid tenements of the East End. Early
visits began under the guise of “charity,” but over the next few decades, the practice spread to
the tenements of U.S. cities like New York and Chicago. With demand, tour operators developed
guides to tour these impoverished neighborhoods.
There are records of middle and upper class Londoners heading over to the East End to gawk at
the poor in the 19th century, which grew in such popularity that the colloquial term for this
endeavor — “slumming” — was included in the 1884 edition of the Oxford English Dictionary.
This form of entertainment (slumming) spilled over to the United States, where underprivileged
neighbourhoods of New York and Chicago were visited and exposed to the city’s upper and
middle classes. However, around the turn of the century the practice went out of style.
Although slum tourism originated in the West, the more recent manifestations have appeared
primarily in countries of the Global South. Slum tourism re-emerged first in South Africa. As
early as the 1980s, NGO’s and local residents organized township tours to make white policy
makers aware of the poor living conditions of black people in the segregated and marginalized
neighbourhoods. These tours soon became popular with what Dondolo (2002) called “struggle
junkies”, political tourists who were interested in the fight against Apartheid. Since the end of
Apartheid, with South Africa no longer isolated and mainstream tourism growing exponentially,
so too has township tourism grown dramatically in all its major cities, up to an estimated 800,000
visitors annually (Frenzel, Koens & Steinbrink 2012: 4). Nowadays a visit to the townships is
one of the main attractions offered by several of South Africa’s major tour operators. The sector
receives government support and is seen by policy makers as an important potential source of
economic income (Frenzel & Koens 2012: 208-209). The second important destination of slum
tourism are the favelas of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil. Tourism emerged here after the 1992 Earth
Summit, when due to the massive interest of UN-delegates tour operators began offering favela
tours. Estimates now speak of more than 50,000 tourists per annum, most of which visit the
Rocinha district. More recently slum tourism has spread through various local initiatives to other
locations in the Global South: Mumbai in India, Nairobi in Kenya, Cairo in Egypt (Ashwa’iyyatt

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tourism), Mazatlán in Mexico, Jakarta in Indonesia, Kingston in Jamaica, Bangkok in Thailand,

multiple Chinese cities (urban villages) and some ghettos in the United States.
Modern tourists want an authentic experience, not the white-washed tourist zones that were so
popular in the 1980s. Slum tourism meets this desire — offering a look into the world beyond
their personal experience.

2.2.3 SLUM TOURISM IN THE GLOBAL SOUTH

Figure 2 favorite destinations of tourists during slumming

Figure 3 beginning of slum tourism and estimated no. of tourists per year (2012) , Source: Malte Steinbrink (2014)

The map is developed to reflect the ‘favorite destinations of slum tourists’; where the indication
of ‘favorite’ is reflected by the amount of tourists visiting per year.

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2.3 SLUM TOURISM IN INDIA

Delic (2011) discusses the historical development of slum tourism in India; it gained momentum
after the release of the Oscar-winning movie “Slumdog Millionaire”. The paper further looks
into the controversies that slum tourism faced in the global scenario. Some argue that one of the
reasons poverty still exists is because people are too far away from it geographically and
mentally. However, on looking into the brighter side of affairs slum tourism can be used as a
means of educating people and creating awareness of the less fortunate, it does not depict
poverty as entertaining, but showcases the truth and thus can be considered as reality tourism.

The article by Shah (2006) describes slum tourism or 'poorism' quickly becoming 'incredible'
India's newest crowd-puller. There are various slum tours conducted in India, the Reality Tours
and Travels of Mumbai conducts a four-and-half-hour tour through Asia‟s largest slum Dharavi.
It was inspired by the popular walking tours of Brazil's infamous favelas and bus tours of South
Africa's black shanty towns. Other than this there are tours conducted in Delhi by Salaam Baalak
Trust, a charitable organization which conducts tours into the life of street children at New Delhi
railway station. Other tours conducted by Semester-at-Sea, a Chennai-based company that holds
'reality-based' education programme tour of the Nampet Choolaimedu slum. The tourists who
usually undertake these tours belong to the upper-middle class, and consist of western students,
researchers, academics and church-groups these tourists are bored of standard Mughal
architecture-and-sand dunes India tour. They want to experience the so-called „real‟ India and
see in person the adverse conditions that people live in. There are several monetary benefits that
the slum community derives off these tours as Reality Tours and Travels contributes eighty
percent of their profits to the into MESCO, an NGO that works with slum-dwellers. Salaam
Baalak Trust puts the entire Rs 200 earned per tourist towards the rehabilitation of street
children. Surprisingly, those being 'toured' the slum dwellers and the street children seem to have
few issues about the tours.

In a field study conducted by Yarmuch (2010) in Dharavi slum Mumbaiit was proved that slum
tourism could contribute toward poverty alleviation by funding schools and other projects.

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Chapter 3
Sanjay Colony

3.1 Introduction to Sanjay Colony

3.2 Education
3.2.1 Some Education Centres In Sanjay Colony
3.3 Finance
3.4 Reality Tours and Travels
3.5 Prithak (NGO)

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3.1 SANJAY COLONY

Despite being located in the country’s capital city, slums in Delhi are often relegated to the
periphery when it is a question of access to basic services. Saddled with usually inefficient and
largely inadequate government provision of services, these slums do not even have the option of
organised private alternatives since the corporate sector presumes that they do not possess
enough purchasing power. As a consequence, these slums are pushed to the edge as far as
efficient government/private provision of basic services is concerned. Faced with inadequate and
inefficient government provision of certain services (like water), and in the midst of illegality
and surrounding issues, residents in Sanjay Colony are paying a premium – either qualitative or
quantitative or both – for most basic services.
Sanjay Colony is a small notified slum located to the southeast of New Delhi in Okhla phase II
industrial area near Kalkaji. The slum is situated on elevated land and has a hilly topography
with the outer areas situated on a slightly higher level than the interior areas. People started
coming to the area in 1979 when it was still a forest. The Colony came into existence nearly 30
years ago when the migrants (primarily from Bihar and Uttar Pradesh) started occupying vacant
plots of land here. Today, this unauthorised settlement has the status of a ‘notified slum’ which
entitles it to electrification and an official water distribution system.

The sanjay colony slum occupies an area of about 18 acres approximately. At present there are
more than 5,000 houses in Sanjay Colony, with a total population of nearly 45,0005 residents.
The slum is roughly divided into nine blocks – A to H and S. Some blocks have distinct
occupational characteristics; for instance, block A is the hub of the export‐line business and rag
picking work, block C has a large number of tailor shops and block F mainly comprises of
‘gujjars5’. The most common lines of occupation among the earning population are contracted
export jobs, scrap dealing, shop keeping, tailoring and factory labour. The Oklha industrial area
had about 3,000 industrial factories and is one of the largest industrial areas in India.
Everything from electronics to automotive parts to garments are produced in this area. In Sanjay
Colony slum the garment industry is most common to be seen .For travelers, visiting a slum like
Sanjay Colony can give you a much better sense of what life is like for many Delhi residents
compared to visiting tourist hot-spots like Old Delhi Tomb. or Humayan’s .

3.2 EDUCATION
Various schools cater to the residents of
Sanjay Colony. Among government
aided schools, there is a primary school
(till standard V) run by the Municipal
Corporation of Delhi (MCD) within the
Colony, and two government‐run
Sarvodaya schools in nearby areas.
Within the Colony there’s also a school
run by the non‐profit organization
Deepalaya that imparts education up to
standard VIII. Some residents send their
kids to private schools close by. Figure 4 School going pattern in Sanjay Colony

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The choice of schools in Sanjay Colony is severely hampered by constraints of finance and
access. While financial limitations might be expected, what demands attention is the huge role
played by distance‐to‐school issues in determining which school a child goes to. This is true
especially of younger children and girls. Most government schools are more than half an hour
away on foot, and en route children have to cross at least three busy intersections. This explains
why most children under 10 years of age go to the MCD school despite lamenting its poor
standards. In the case of girls, there is another kind of parental anxiety – many respondents
recounted incidents where female students were harassed on their way to school. This is why
many parents insist on chaperoning their daughters to school, and when that is not possible, quite
a few girls drop out of school in their higher classes. We also came across an unexpectedly high
number of households where girls, once they reached the stage of secondary education, were sent
back to the family’s native village to pursue higher studies in schools there. When we asked
respondents that if there were no financial and accessibility constraints, to what kind of school
would they prefer to send their kids, a vast majority opted for private schools17, as can be seen
in figure 5. The tuition scene is Sanjay Colony is quite active, especially before exam time in
schools.Many of these tuition classes are taken by elder school students or by students who are
studying in (or have graduated from) college, but there also exist more ‘professional’ tuition
centres. The fee ranges from Rs 20 per month (at a tuition centre run by the NGO Prayatna) to a
figure as high as Rs 400‐500 per month per student, especially for those studying in higher
classes.

3.2.1 SOME EDUCATION CENTRES IN SANJAY COLONY

Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) School

The school was found lacking in even the most basic
infrastructure. It has no provision for drinking water, no electricity in classrooms and
hardly enough benches for students. There is also a paucity of classrooms – for close to
450 students enrolled in each shift, there are only 5 classrooms and hence many students
have to sit outside the room. Due to lack of permanent staff, often two or three classes of
the same grade are clubbed together which makes the student to teacher ratio as high as
70:1 per class. Midday meals are served to students, but all our student respondents
made it a point to mention that the quantity they are served is too little. Added to this lack of
basic infrastructure is the fact that students complain about the
standard of teaching. We were told that almost every day, half their scheduled classes –
that is four out of eight periods – get wasted because teachers are either absent or skip
taking classes. One respondent told us that he dropped out of the MCD school because
of the corporal punishment meted out to students there.

Deepalaya School
The quality of education here is well appreciated by residents. The only thing working
against this school is the fact that it is not recognized by the government. So after class
VIII, students face problems in getting admission to government schools. Many of them
have to get made a certificate stating that they’ve been home‐schooled so far. Some
others simply get diverted to the open schooling track which does not find many takers
since residents feel that such schooling is not regarded highly. We also came across
instances where young kids are enrolled into both a government school as well as the

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Deepalaya school, so that problems of school‐transfer can be circumvented later. In such

cases, the kid attends the morning shift of the government school and then the afternoon
shift of Deepalaya, or vice versa.

Sarvodaya Schools
The quality of these schools seems to be much better than the MCD school. However, the
location of these schools poses a major problem for residents. Students have to walk for a
minimum of 20 minutes through busy main roads to reach their school. Walking is the only
option availed of by these students; out of the 45 households we spoke to, only 3 had kids who
travelled by bus/rickshaw to school.

Private Schools
Their fee structure, predictably, is the highest among all available alternatives. Bal Vaishali
Public School in Harkesh Nagar, for example, charges Rs 300 per month. A great incentive for
residents to send their kids to these schools, in spite of comparatively high fees, is that the
medium of education here is English.

3.3 FINANCE
The income levels of households in
Sanjay Colony vary according to the
number of earning members and the
nature of work. Some of the common
occupations here are:
Work in export companies, own export
business (contract basis), cloth picking,
shopkeeping, kabadi24 business, labour in
factories, driving auto/rickshaws, tailoring
and working as government employees.
The average monthly household income
in Sanjay Colony is Rs. 6,856.25
However, this figure is skewed because Figure 5
of blocks A and C. Only these two
blocks have monthly incomes much above the average, at Rs 11,333 and Rs 8,353 respectively.
The other six blocks are below the Colony average, with block E placed the lowest at Rs. 4,089.

3.4 REALITY TOURS AND TRAVELS

Reality Tours and Travel (RTT) is a tour company based in Mumbai founded by Krishna Pujari
and Christopher Way in 2004 . Since 2006 it has offered 2-4 hour tours of slums in Mumbai,
Rajasthan and Delhi. Today it is still the dominant tour company in Mumbai and Delhi although
since its emergence and success, other slum tour companies and individuals have started in the
area. Slum tourism can provide a way of challenging the stigmatic representations of the ‘slum’
by educating tourists about its reality. RTT are trying to dismantle and dispel the stereotypical

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representations and myths associated with some of the major Slums in India and its residents
through guided tours. They are also trying to raise awareness of the prevailing issues which the
settlement does have, such as, education and empowerment. They do this by providing what is
known as authentic cultural or reality tours. They attempt to prove that the life in the settlement
goes beyond what the tourist may have seen or heard in TV, books, news or other forms of
media; it attempts to “make the incomprehensible accessible”. Through the slum tour of Sanjay
Colony, the poverty is transformed for the tourist because they get to see the enterprises,
entrepreneurship and diligence which is occurring there .
Also, unlike most typical tour companies, 80% of the profits from RTT goes to its sister
organisation Reality Gives (RG) to help the community in Sanjay Colony, which runs
English and computer classes in a small rented building to run the classes in the slum, which is a
house made of bricks and has a roof of big rock tiles supported by the iron beam. . The company
believes that “tourism can and should be a force for local development” . They run many
educational projects and empowerment programmes for those who are underprivileged in the
community (see fig. 4 and fig.5). This exemplifies a form of tourism that goes beyond the
traditional practices of ‘business for profit’. It goes beyond to provide humanitarian help.

3.5 PRITHAK (NGO)

PRITHAK is a Non-Profitable and Non-
Governmental Organization started by a group of
motivated youth from the marginalized sections of
society, who wanted to give back to their
community for the opportunities that they received
for their education and all-round development.
The NGO believes that education is the most
powerful tool to break the cycle of poverty and are
committed to providing young people from
underserved communities with access to quality
education programs and resources to help them
achieve their true potential. PRITHAK works in
the communities of Sanjay Colony and Manav
Kalyan Camp slum in South Delhi. Majority of
the students come from economic and
underprivileged background. The NGO is striving
for providing good infrastructure, hygiene
facilities and other facilities to groom the
personality of kids .

Figure 6 classes organised by the NGO, source: PRITHAK

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Chapter 4
Case Study 1: Dharavi

4.1 Introduction to Dharavi

4.2 Present Condition of Dharavi
4.2.1 Education
4.2.2 Occupation
4.3 Conclusion
4.3.1 The perceptions of the Dharavi community on
Slum Tours
4.3.2 The perceptions of the Dharavi community on
Reality Gives
4.4 The Impacts of slum tourism on the Dharavi community
4.5 Recommendations
4.5.1 Wider advertising to the community
4.5.2 Interaction with the community
4.5.3 Limiting photographs

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4.1 INTRODUCTION TO DHARAVI

Before discussing the perception of the community in Dharavi regarding slum tourism, it is
important to understand the historical development of this settlement and its importance as a
geographical site in Mumbai, India. Dharavi originated as a small fishing village which was
“born in a legal limbo, without any consistent government investment or planning support”
(Brugmann, 2013: p. 42). Located on Parel Island, one of 7 Islands, it was originally just a
swamp area and only a small number of people lived there. Made from a mixture of formal and
informal buildings, it was originally located at the edge of Bombay on a creek which led to the
Arabian Sea. As it was situated at the edge of Bombay, Dharavi was not so central to
development.
During the 19th century the British implemented a large-scale engineering project, which merged
the 7 islands together to make more land. This lead to the drying up of the creek and the
establishment of one island. The emergence of new land served as a hotspot for incoming
migration. People entered Mumbai looking for jobs but the development and rising living prices
of south Mumbai meant that many migrants were forced to live in the outskirts such as Dharavi.
Here it was cheaper and more affordable. Now Dharavi is filled with a mosaic of migrants,
religions and cultures and states that this has defined the history of Dharavi. Industries grew
inside Dharavi and over time it has developed into a large industrial hub.As the population
proliferated and Mumbai globalised, developers leapfrogged over the settlement and continued to
build around it. This meant that Dharavi was no longer at the edge of the city, but instead it
became the heart of the city; it was engulfed inside the modern metropolis. Now many
commonly describe it as ‘a City within a City’ (Perara, 2016).

4.2 PRESENT CONDITION OF DHARAVI

Today, Dharavi is located near Mumbai’s international airport, neighbour to Mumbai’s

commercial complex (Bandra Kurla Complex) and between three main railway lines (Perara,
2016). For this reason, despite originally being low in demand, its centrality has caused the land
to become extremely valuable (see fig. 1). In fact, the government and developers are attempting
to redevelop Dharavi through the Slum Redevelopment Project (SRP). This is an attempt to
“transform Dharavi into a middle class residential enclave and commercial area” (Weinstein,
2009: p.vii). However, due to several reasons implementing this throughout Dharavi has been
extremely difficult and only a handful of projects have taken place so far.
Mumbai, India’s ‘modern megacity’ (Mahapatra, 2015), currently has an urban population of
approximately 22 million, making it one of the most populous cities on the globe (World
Population Review, 2016). Along with the high population it has often been dubbed as ‘slumbai’
because ‘slums’ are said to make up a considerable part of its urban landscape. It is impossible to
know the exact population of Dharavi, however various accounts are now estimating that it is
approximately 1 million (Rolfes in Sharpley and Stone, 2010). It has an estimated 18,000 people
per acre (Sharma, 2000) and is approximately 551. For this reason it is often dubbed as one of
Asia’s largest Slum’s (Dyson, 2012; Patel, 2007).

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Dharavi is a big settlement and living conditions

vary significantly. In some areas, there are large courtyards, whilst other areas have narrow lanes
where one can barely walk through. When conducting the research, it was evident that some
families also had large spaces to live in whilst others simply had one tiny room. These rooms
would have everything in them; the bed, the sitting area, storage and the kitchen. Other houses
had ladders or stairs going to a separate upstairs room. Many of the families also live together or
nearby. In some cases, the families lived together in large buildings which had many rooms
which were generally ancestral. One respondent highlighted this when they explained:
“The whole building is very big and in it there are three families (.) so they have not divided the
house but they have split the house so they can live” (Female, Housewife, Dharavi)

Furthermore, these buildings were not always made of ‘metal scraps’ but instead they were made
of concrete and bricks. While the living conditions varied, all respondents were asked what they
believed needed the biggest improvements. Interestingly, most respondents had explained that
they thought their living situation was ‘normal’ and they were ‘used’ to it. When asked for an
explanation, they said it is because they could not compare Dharavi to other areas or elsewhere
in Mumbai because they had not left or tended not to leave Dharavi. One respondent, for
example explained that Dharavi was their birthplace and they had lived there since childhood.
When asked about the challenges, most of the respondents explained that the biggest challenge
they faced was sanitation. Disease and hygiene is a big problem in Dharavi especially during the
monsoon season. The typical response for this included:

“Sanitation is the biggest problem (.) so we need better sanitation facilities” (Male, Recycling,
Dharavi)
“Sanitation (.) we have a shared toilet outside but of course having a personal toilet is always
better (.) but till now I feel we do not have nothing” (Female, Housewife, Dharavi)

Other challenges expressed included water, education and electricity. Respondents explained
how water came on at specific times of the day making laundry, work and cooking quite
difficult. A few respondents had voiced the need for more education. In terms of electricity,
respondents had explained that there was an issue with it being cut from time to time and in

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many areas of Dharavi electricity wires hang dangerously and need improvement. However,
most respondents explained that they felt there were no serious problems in the immediate term
and in fact they were ‘ok’ with their current living situation. Only a small number of respondents
said that there were no challenges at all.

4.2.1 EDUCATION

It is obvious that a large percentage of the

respondents did not explain what form of
education they had completed (38%) (see fig. 9).
It was unknown why some respondents did not
want to explain this, but on occasions some
interviews ended very quickly due to the
respondent’s lack of interest or shyness. However,
from the 62% of responses which were received,
only 10% had no education while 52% had an
education of some sort. Those who had an
education had completed or were completing it at
varying levels. The largest grade which the
respondents had completed was the 10th grade,
while the percentage who had completed college
was very small (6%). Alternatively, 4% of
respondents simply said ‘yes’, which was
probably due to misunderstanding of the question, shyness or lack of interest to answer the
question.

4.2.2 OCCUPATION

The occupation of respondents was very varied

(see fig. 10). The occupants ranged from
working in different sectors, students and
housewives. When many of the respondents
had talked about their occupation, it seemed
that many were involved in businesses which
they had inherited from their family and passed
down through generations. This however, was
mostly the case with respondents who worked
in the pottery and leather business.

4.3 CONCLUSION

To conclude this report, it can be argued that the community’s perception in the ‘slum’ provides
a valuable contribution to the slum tourism debate in the 21st century. Much media and
scholarship has assumed and claimed that slum tourism is unethical and voyeuristic (Frenzel and
Koens, 2012; Frenzel, 2012 in: Steinbrink et al, 2012, Basu, 2012 in: Steinbrink et al, 2012).

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While this could be the case with the perceptions of many community members, what in fact was
revealed from the respondents in this study was a very different set of responses. Slum tourism
has gained significant momentum in Dharavi, Mumbai, even since Niek Slikker conducted his
research in 2014 on this topic. This is said to be fuelled by the stigmas and representations
around the ‘slum’ which has stimulated people’s interest to visit (Urry, 2002; Ma, 2010; Dyson,
2011; Melik, 2012; Meschkank, 2012). RTT are still the dominant tour company in Dharavi, but
of course its popularity has prompted many other slum tour companies to start up in the area.

4.3.1 THE PERCEPTIONS OF THE DHARAVI COMMUNITY ON SLUM

TOURS

Most of the respondents had explained that they saw the tourists on a daily basis which
demonstrates just how prominent the tourists have become in Dharavi. In the past before the
influx of the tourists, much of the community said they were confused and curious as to why
they were there, compared with now where the sight of tourists has become very normalized.
With this, a majority of the respondents had a positive perception towards slum tours and the
tourists. Respondents explained that it made them feel good and proud that the tourists got to see
the reality of the settlement. While there were only a few, the negative perceptions were
associated with photography and the idea that tourists simply come, go and do not help the
community. However, it was very evident that these respondents could have had confusion with
other tourists and tour companies in Dharavi. This is because RTT do in fact use the profits
inside Dharavi to help the community and they have a no photo policy during their tours.
Correspondingly, the respondents could not even identify the company’s blue shirts which may
have added to the confusion.

4.3.2 THE PERCEPTIONS OF THE DHARAVI COMMUNITY ON REALITY

GIVES

It was extremely surprising to find out that most of the respondents had not heard of RG.
Subsequently, it was difficult to assess how the RG projects are perceived by the community.
This lack of knowledge of RG meant that whether or not many of the respondents had heard of
RTT, they had no idea that it was doing more for the community than just showing the tourists
around. Thus, community members who had not heard of the charity were extremely
surprised and positive when told about the operations of RTT and RG and its motivations. Even
respondents who originally had a more negative perception towards the tourists changed to being
more positive with this knowledge. Almost all respondents showed signs of more respect for the
charity. As stated before, this lack of knowledge evidently had the power to shape peoples’
perceptions to being more negative.

4.4 THE IMPACTS OF SLUM TOURISM ON THE DHARAVI COMMUNITY

This study has revealed that slum tour practice has a variety of impacts on the Dharavi
community, of which most are beneficial. Firstly, while only a few of the respondents
interviewed had attended or were attending the projects run by RG, they all stated that the
projects had brought many benefits ranging from education to fun/social interaction.

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Alternatively, and interestingly, a large amount of the respondents had explained that the tourists
had increased their personal confidence levels. On the other hand, a few respondents who were
working, had stated that the tourists were benefiting their businesses because they could buy
products made from them. Only a few respondents had issues with the photography and tourists
who misbehaved, however this did not appear to be the case all the time. Also, as stated earlier,
this negative perception may not be associated with RTT. What seemed to be prominent, was the
sense of reciprocal education between the community and the tourists. Respondents highlighted
that while the tourists were coming to learn about their community, in fact the community also
has a chance to learn about the tourist’s cultures. A good example of this is simply the effect of
English on the community members; many people and children have now picked up English
words.

4.5 RECOMMENDATIONS
From the responses of this study, a few recommendations have been made to help Reality Tours
and Travel and Reality Gives improve their operations and benefit the community. The following
recommendations are a mixture of what the respondents wanted to improve on and results which
had emerged during the research.

4.5.1 WIDER ADVERTISING TO THE COMMUNITY

Based on the results of the interviews, it was evident that many of the respondents had little or no
knowledge of RG and its operations despite their presence in the settlement. For this reason, I
recommend that the Reality Group do more to try and promote their motives and projects to the
community and residents in Dharavi. By doing this the community will be more aware of the
principle and incentive behind slum tourism conducted by the organisation and will be more
motivated to attend the projects. All respondents who had never heard of RG were then asked if
they would attend or send their children to the projects if they had more information. 65% said
they potentially would, 5% said they wouldn’t and 30% said they didn’t know. This is important
because as the results have shown, having limited or no knowledge of the charity side of the
company influenced the negative perceptions. Suggestions from the respondents included:
“It is good and it should spread (.) it is better you tell four people instead of one (.) then people
will know about you more (.) and it will be good for you” (Male, Shopkeeper, Dharavi)
“Yes (.) they should do more advertisement like about the school (.) they should make like some
small piece of paper and give it to the people” (Male, Pottery, Gujarat)
“If the kids have benefits everyone should come to know (.) there should be advertisement”
(Female, Housewife, Dharavi)
Additionally, many of the respondents could not identify the RTT team in their blue shirts. This
may have further influenced the respondents’ opinions because if they have heard about the
company they may associate it with the more negative practices which are perhaps a part of other
tour companies and tourists. Thus, I recommend finding ways which make the community more
familiar with the company shirts.

4.5.2 INTERACTION WITH THE COMMUNITY

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Secondly, some of the residents said they wanted more interaction with the tourists during the
tours. A few respondents had stated that during the slum tours the tourists did not really interact
with the community or ask questions. If the tourists were encouraged to ask more questions to
the residents themselves, then the residents would be able to learn more about the tourists’
backgrounds, increase their language skills such as English, and become more engaged. Many of
the residents on the tour route had expressed that they would be happy with providing the tourists
with more information about their daily lives provided they ask more questions. One respondent
demonstrated this feeling when stating:
“But it can be better if they talk to the people (.) direct interaction (.) if we say the problem there
can be a better solution” (Female, Housewife, Dharavi)

4.5.3 LIMITING PHOTOGRAPHS

Lastly, some of the residents had explained that the one thing they felt intrusive from the slum
tours, were the photographs taken by the tourists. This was due to the intrusion of the privacy of
the residents but also because the residents feared that the photographs would expose some of the
conditions the products were made in and thus stop the buyers from buying from them. One
interviewee, for example, stated:
“Other companies allow people to take photos (.) and we are scared of exposing bad photos of
like food which will stop the orders” (Male, Leather factory, Uttar Pradesh)
Although these residents had expressed that they had seen this happen, it would not have been
with Reality Group according to the RTT. This is because RTT have a no photo policy, where
the tourists are only allowed to take one photograph during the whole tour. I would recommend
to continue with this policy to ensure the privacy of the residents.1 - Slums In India , A
Statistical Compendium, 2015, Govt. of India

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Chapter 5
Conclusion

5.6 Education
5.7 Occupation
5.8 Living conditions in the Community
5.9 Perception of Sanjay Colony’s residents on slum tours
5.9.1 Positive impression
5.9.2 Negative impression
5.9.3 Neutral impression
5.5 The impact of slum tourism on the community on sanjay
colony slum

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5.0 CONCLUSION
This chapter will explore the results of the whole study and interviews to gain a better
understanding of the whole practice of Slum Tourism in Sanjay Colony Slum. Where available,
each response to the interview will be accompanied by the name, gender, occupation, and the
responses will be explained using some graphical representation in a categorised form.

5.1 EDUCATION

Almost every resident (80 % of the

interviewed people from the community) of
elderly age (50 and above) when asked
about their educational qualifications or
whether they had completed any of the
formal education, they responded with a
“No”. Some of the elderly respondents did
not respond well and abruptly ended the
interview after being asked about the
educational qualification (reason being
unknown). Almost 90% of the respondents
who had children said that they send them to school and encourage their education. Most
government schools are almost an hour away from the Sanjay Colony Slum and children even
have to cross at least three busy intersections, this is the reason why most of the children under
the age of 10 years of age are sent to the MCD school despite the poor infrastructure and
amenities. Only two teenage respondents said that their elder siblings had completed their
graduation or diploma and are working in their respective field.

“We are a family of 10 people out of which 4 are children, 2 boys and one girl going to
Sarvodaya School and an infant child (girl).”
- Noorjahan, Female, housewife, Sanjay Colony

5.2 OCCUPATION

The residents of Sanjay Colony Slum show a

distinct occupational characteristic. One
could easily conclude that a major
population of this community does scrap
dealing, tailoring and factory labour as there
are a large number of shops occupied by
such businesses on one of the widest road of
the slum which many inherited from their
family and passed down through
generations. Figure x shows the different
occupations adopted by the members of the
Sanjay Colony Slum.

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5.3 LIVING CONDITIONS IN COMMUNITY

Slum colonies are usually known to have very poor

living conditions due to cleanliness issues because of
certain persistent drainage issues and lack of the basic
facilities that the governing body should provide them
with. Sanitation is one of the biggest issues in Sanjay
Colony. Under‐utilisation of public toilet complexes,
filthy galis and filthier drains, and non‐existent
garbage disposal mechanism are only a few of the
visible issues. All this translates to an extremely low
standard of cleanliness and sanitation. The main
streets are flooded with all the waste from the nearby
textile shops, scraps, waste water from such small
scale industy like spaces and garbage from the house
along the same street. On the other hand there are a
very few internal streets that are comparatively clean.
Open drain runs along all the streets of the slum
making it a breeding plae for the mosquitoes.
Approximately 65 % of the structures are Pucca
structures, 25 % are semi-pucca and the remaining 10 % are kachha structures which are majorly
the shops that occupies a portion of the streets that were wide.

5.4 PERCEPTION OF SANJAY COLONY’S RESIDENTS ON SLUM TOURS

With the growth of more and more slum tour companies in Sanjay Colony , the number of
tourists visiting has proliferated over the time. Thus, it would naturally be expected that the
community would be aware of the tourists and have an impression. When the respondents were
asked how often they see the tourists, the biggest response accounting for 76% said they saw the
tourist’s everyday (see fig.6). With such a large percentage, it is evident that the tourist presence
has gained a rather permanent place in Sanjay Colony slum. As such, every respondent was
asked how they felt about the tourists during the present moment of the interview (see fig.7).

Figure 7 How often the Respondents see Tourists Figure 8 Respondent's perception on Slum Tours

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5.4.1 POSITIVE IMPRESSION

The research indicates that a majority of about 36% of the respondents from the community
think that the Slum Tours being organized in their locality is a good idea as it makes them feel
somewhat good and special as most of the visitors who come for such tours are foreigners. Some
of the respondents say that this makes them feel good as they never get a chance to visit overseas
and would probably never get one.
“people around the world would know about us and we get a smile on our faces when we see the
visitors, especially the ones coming from outside the country”
- Rahul, Male, Student, Sanjay Colony
-

5.4.2 NEGATIVE IMPRESSION

About 55% of the interviewed during the whole research had an impression that NGO’s
organizing these tours does false claims as they don’t see any kind of major noticeable
development inside the Slum. After being told that one of the organization claims that they give
80% of their earning through such tours to the Sanjay Colony Slum, they seemed surprised and
added that the members of such organizations contact them certain times to talk about the job
opportunities, free tuition classes, free schooling and extra activities for the development of the
children of the community but nothing further happens after those discussions, in fact they
charge some amount for the tuition fee which the respondent wasn’t sure whether it was cheaper
than the tuition that children take from somewhere outside.
“I don’t think they will ever work for our community and its development after so much of false
claims.i just see some members of these organizations bringing along some foreign visitor and
sometimes locals as well. They just show them some streets , a small temple, a mosque, and to a
terrace of one of the houses near mosque ”
- Noor, Female, Student, Sanjay Colony

5.4.2 NEUTRAL IMPRESSION

Only a handful number of people had a neutral impression of the perception of slum Tourism.
All the respondents who dont know what they feel about the whole idea of slum tourism also fall
under this category.some respondents don't get why the visitors come here to see the slum
instead of going to some fancy places in the South Delhi and what they gain or learn from such
visits.

5.5 THE IMPACT OF SLUM TOURISM ON THE COMMUNITY On SANJAY COLONY

SLUM

The whole research helped me come to the conclusion that Slum tourism has no noticeable
impact over the community of Sanjay Colony Slum. After a number of interactions and
interviews of the people from the community and analyzing their thoughts and their experience,
this conclusion was made. Almost every respondent interviewed couldn't come up with any firm

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example of any kind of development that might have helped in the growth of the community or
the improvement of the current situation or the issues that are being faced by them on daily basis.
The cause for no such noticeable improvements or developments in this community despite the
various never ending efforts of some organizations could be the lesser profits that they must be
earning because of lesser number of visitors coming for such visits. Other reason for no major
development or positive impact over the whole community could be due to the reason that slum
tourism is a new concept to the Slums in India, especially in Delhi. The organizations running
such tours need more time as with time people might start adapting and get attracted to the idea
of Slum tourism, Resulting in more people visiting the Sanjay Colony Slum through such
organizations increasing their profits and so increasing the whole amount that can be used in the
development of the community.

2- “THE STATE OF URBAN HEALTH IN DELHI” – Dr. Siddharth Agarwal, Mr. Anuj Srivastava, Dr. Biplove Choudhary and Dr. S. Kaushik
for the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, 2007
3- Statistical Abstract Of Delhi , 2016 , Govt. of NCT of Delhi
4- Urban Slums in Delhi, Based on NSS 69th Round Survey , Govt of NCT of Delhi, February 2015
5-local Area councillor

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