Government of Tamilnadu

Department of Employment and Training

Course : TNPSC Group I Mains Material

Subject : Social Issues in India and Tamil Nadu
Topic : Urbanization and its impact on the society

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 URBANIZATION AND ITS IMPACT ON THE SOCIETY

Introduction:
Urbanization is the gradual shift of population from rural to urban areas and the
resulting increasing proportion of a population that resides in urban rather than rural
places.

Urban areas have been recognized as “engines of inclusive economic growth”. Of the
121 crore Indians, 83.3 crore live in rural areas while 37.7 crore stay in urban areas, i.e
approx. 32 % of the population.

The census of India, 2011 defines urban settlement as

1. All the places which have municipality, corporation, cantonment board or

notified town area committee
2. All the other places which satisfy following criteria.
3. A minimum population of 5000 persons.
4. At least 75 % of male main working population engaged in non-agricultural
pursuits.
5. A density of population of at least 400 persons per square kilometre.

Statutory town - The first category of urban units. These town are notified under law by
respective State/UT government and have local bodies like municipal corporation,
municipality, etc. irrespective of demographic characteristics.
For example- Vadodara (Municipal corporation), Shimla (Municipal corporation)

Census Town - The second category of towns. These were identified on the basis of
census 2001 data. Cities are urban areas with more than 100,000 population. Urban
areas below 100,000 are called towns in India

Migration:
Migration is the key process underlying growth of urbanization; and the process of
urbanization is closely related with rural to urban migration of people. In most

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developing countries of the world where rate of urban growth is relatively higher the
urban-ward migration is usually high.

Rural to urban migration is by far the major component of urbanization and is the chief
mechanism by which urbanization trends all the world-over has been accomplished

Urbanization and Family

Urbanization has affected family structure; intra and interfamily relations as well as
functions of the family. The urban joint families are being gradually replaced by
nuclear families. Sizes of the families are shirking and kinship relationships are getting
confided to two or three generations only.

Despite of changes in the family structure, the spirit of individualism is not growing.
Further, the husband dominated family is being replaced by equalitarian family where
wife is given a share in decision making process. Parents no longer impose their
authority over children and children no longer blindly obey the commands of their
parents. Even in joint families, the eldest male consults with children and this
consultation is not formal.

Urbanization and Caste

With urbanization and education development, the cast identity and caste pride has
diminished. The networks of urbanites comprise people from all castes. Instead, class
ties are more important than caste ties. At the same time, educated members of some
of the caste groups come in together to make some kinds of pressure groups in urban
areas. However, such pressure groups work like a social organization instead of caste
structures in villages. Such groups also bring several sub-castes together.

The caste norms are not followed strictly in urban areas. There is a remarkable change
in commensal, marital, social and occupational relations. More and more people are in
favour of inter-caste marriage. Jajmani system is weakening and inter-caste and inter-
class relations are changing.

Urbanization and Status of Women

The status of women in urban areas is higher in comparison to rural areas; and they are
comparatively more educated and liberal. They are not only aware of their economic,
social and political rights but also are able to exercise those rights.
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Average age of marriage of girls is higher in cities.

There is a change observed in the working patterns of individuals in the urban set up.
The participation rate in the labour market has increased among married women and
they no longer are housewives.

Some peculiar problems faced by urban women include – difficulty to remain single;
expected to subordinate career to that of husbands etc. Higher frequency of divorce and
remarriage.

More women are socially and politically active, hold important political positions and
possess independent political ideologies.

Urbanization and Village Life

Urban development has led to the centrifugal movement of village people to urban
areas. Most people migrate to cities for employment and business. At the same time,
rural residence and urban employment has resulted in a new type of lifestyle in rural-
urban fringe areas. It has resulted in modifications of social patterns as well as
adjustments to a new way of life. The rural people are influenced by urban life and
don’t lay undue emphasis on caste, creed, etc. Thus, more and more liberal approach is
seen in village people.

Urbanization as an agent of transformation and innovation

Cities are nodes of new ideas, communication and innovation. It spreads in immediate
hinterlands as well as in the whole country, through sustained urban-rural links.

In Asia, cities have been termed the "centre of change". This is largely due to migrants
returning home for short while from urban areas and spreading awareness among rural
villages, encouraging them to adopt some innovations already witnessed in urban
areas. This also helps in improved health and housing, positive changes of attitudes,
aspirations, behavior and personal relationships.

All these transmissions and innovations have a lot to contribute. Firstly, improving the
quality of life of urban populations and, secondly to enhancing the catalytic role of
urban centers in rural transformation and development. The sustained urban-rural
links is an important pipeline for development of rural areas.

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Role of urbanization in expansion of communication mechanisms
The most important role of major cities is their linking of different parts of the world
through transport and communications. Air routes, road and rail networks, telephone,
and E-mail networks are the main transport and communication mechanisms that
have revolutionized the concepts of time and distance throughout the world.

Improved facilities help to expand international trade, enhanced international travel

and communication, and contributed significantly to national and regional
development. Cities as fountains of scientific and technical knowledge

Cities are considered to be fountain of scientific and technological knowledge which

produces innovations intended for modernization and development of cities as well as
the I whole nation State.

Cities are "engines of development'", which have attracted human resources, unskilled
labour and raw materials which ultimately leads to industrialization,
commercialization and all forms of desirable elements of development.

Problems of Urbanization
The main problems associated with urbanization include urban sprawl; housing &
slums: crowding & depersonalization; water-supply & drainage, urban floods,
transportation & traffic; power shortage; sanitation, pollution, urban heat island etc.
Further. the other social problems associated with urbanization include crimes;
juvenile delinquency; begging. alcoholism and drugs problem: corruption; urban
ghettoes etc.

Planning is mainly centralized and till now the state planning boards and commissions
have not come out with any specific planning strategies an depend on Planning
commission for it.

Housing provision for the growing urban population will be the biggest challenge
before the government. The growing cost of houses comparison to the income of the
urban middle class, has made it impossible for majority of lower income groups and are
residing in congested accommodation and many of those are devoid of proper
ventilation, lighting, water supply, sewage system, etc. For instance, in Delhi, the
current estimate is of a shortage of 5,00,000 dwelling units the coming decades.
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The safe drinking water sources are also found to be contaminated because of water in
the cities are inadequate and, in the future, the expected population cannot be
accommodated without a drastic improvement in the availability of water. The
expenses on water treatment and reuse will grow manifold.

The poor sanitation condition is another gloomy feature in urban areas and particularly
in slums and unauthorized colonies of urban areas. The drainage system in many
unorganized colonies and slums are either not existing and if existing are in a bad
shape and in bits resulting in blockage of waste water.

The important indicators of human development are education and health. The health
condition of urban poor in some areas are even more adverse compared to rural areas.
As many as 20 million children in the developing countries are dying consequent to
drinking water.

As high-income individual is buying more private vehicle and use less public transport.
Such huge number of vehicles in cities is causing more traffic jam, which in turn
decreases the efficiency of public transport. Also, the penetration of public transport is
less, which make people use private vehicle. Public transport
is less disabled friendly. There is also lack of infrastructure and poor maintenance of
existing public transport infrastructure

Prevention of urban crime is another challenge before the government of States having
more number of urban areas and particularly metropolitan cities. The mega cities are
facing increased criminal activities on account of unchecked migration, illegal
settlements and diverse socio-cultural disparities, organized groups, gangsters,
professional criminals for wishing a lavish life in metropolis.

Roughly a third of the urban population today lives below the poverty line. There are
glaring disparities between haves and have-nots in urban areas. The most demanding
of the urban challenges, unquestionably is the challenge posed by poverty; the
challenge of reducing exploitation, relieving misery and creating more human
condition for urban poor.

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Steps Taken by Government to improve urban Development
The Constitution (74th Amendment) Act came into effect in 1993, emphasizes to
strengthen urban planning, regulation of land use, roads and bridges and providing
urban amenities.

National Urban Transport Policy,2006:

Its main purpose is to provide affordable, comfortable, safe and rapid, reliable and
sustainable urban transport system, for the growing number of city resident to jobs,
education and recreation and such other needs with in our cities.

Encouraging integrated land use and transport planning in all cities so that travel
distances are minimized and access to livelihoods, education, and other social needs,
especially for the marginal segments of the urban population is improved

National Urban Renewable Mission,2005

The primary objective of the JnNURM is to create economically productive, efficient,
equitable and responsive cities. The JnNURM consists of two sub-missions Urban
Infrastructure and Governance (UIG) and Basic Services for Urban Poor (BSUP).

Introduction to Metro trains

In Delhi, Kolkata, Bangalore etc. are part of above-mentioned initiatives. Recently

cabinet has also passed proposal for second phase of Bangalore Metro (Namma Metro).
In addition to this government has done many feasibility studies in Tier-II & III cities.
Now one million plus cities can go for metro project according to new urban policy.

India’s first monorail

It will be thrown open to the public, eight years after it was first proposed, with the
Maharashtra government. With this, India will join countries like the U.S., Germany,
China, Japan, Australia and Malaysia that run monorails.
Smart city concept
In the budget, 2014, it was projected for ‘one hundred Smart cities’, as satellite towns of
larger cities and modernizing the existing mid- sized cities. Though there is no clear
definition of smart cities, but it may include creative, cyber, digital, e-governed,
entrepreneurial, intelligent, knowledge, harnessing the power of Information and

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communication technology (ICT). Smartness has to be there with respect to governance
and service delivery.
Its feature can be:
1. e-governance (through Digital India initiative, National e-governance plan,
National Optical fibre network, e- panchayat project of MRD)
2. Continuous improvements in design and management
3. Climate oriented development
4. Mass transit-oriented development
5. People centric technological applications (m-health, e- learning)
6. Planning can be bottom up for future urbanization
7. Smart PDS rationing
8. Social inclusive and economically diverse.

Swachh Bharat
Clean urban areas will attract tourists and can increase the economic diversity of the
urban dwellers and it will be also source for revenue generation for ULB.

Suggestions
There should be focused attention to integrated development of infrastructure services
in cities covered under the Mission and there should be establishment of linkages
between asset-creation and asset-management through a slew of reforms for long-term
project sustainability; Green building concepts should be implemented.

Along the lines suggested by the administrative reforms commission over seven years
ago, states should undertake “activity mapping” for municipal governments to be clear
about which activities are essentially for them to manage, which require them to act as
agents for higher tiers of government, and which involve sharing responsibility with
other tiers of government. There is no “one size fits all here” – the answer will vary
across municipalities.

The office of an empowered mayor (instead of the municipal commissioner) must take
responsibility for administrative co-ordination internally between municipal
departments, and externally with state and central government agencies.

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Chhattisgarh PDS model
State government has started managing information systems. It began
with computerization of Fair Prices Shops (FPS) and data related with stocks and sales
to enable swift allocation of grains. Mobile based applications including SMS alerts for
interested beneficiaries were offered which improved the access to information about
food grains lifted from godowns and their delivery at ration shops.

In Raipur, individuals are given the choice of the fair price shop of his/her liking,
flexibility of buying in smaller quantities rather than in only on transaction, etc.
Portability of ration card across the shops helped to improve customer satisfaction.

Solid waste management in OKHLA

Waste management is the concern for any urban city with respect to its safe disposal,
recycling of waste products and also generating energy from wastes.

Timarpur Okhla Municipal Solid Waste Management project is the first commercial
waste-to-energy facility in India that aims to convert one-third of the Delhi garbage
into the much-needed electricity, enough to serving 6 lakh homes. It has become the
first to get carbon credits from United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change in the country in 2013.

Delhi metro
It is one of the world-class metros. To ensure reliability and safety in train operations,
it is equipped with the most modern communication and train control system. For its
energy efficient practises, it has earned carbon credit points from UN

Urbanization has undermined old forms of political mobilization based on caste and
religious identities and favors local issues to be resolved on right based approach.
Urbanisation has its impact on all aspects of day-to-day life. Family structure has also
been influenced by urbanisation. In the rural society the concept of family living is
different from that in the urban society.

Questions:
1. What is the impact of urbanisation in the caste system driven society of India?
2. What are the Steps taken by Government to improve Urban Development?
3. Mention some impacts on the society regarding urbanization. Explain it.
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