Problems of urban growth. Land use, Town planning, slums and urban housing

Urbanization is the growth in population residing in urban areas, due to both growth in population of current residents and net migration into urban areas. It also encompasses a transformation of the erstwhile rural areas into ‘urban’ areas through changes in population density and the employment profile from a primarily agrarian and agro-based employment to non-agriculture based employment. In terms of all the basic human development parameters, urban areas stand out as significantly different from rural belts, both in the provisioning of services essential for human development, and in the basic capabilities that citizens can, and do, acquire while living and growing in an urban area as compared to that in a rural area.

Investment in infrastructure, as all other investments, reflects social choices, in terms of both public policy and private investment, that can be influenced by relative power positions in society. For example, even in expanding a road network, the need for which is universally acknowledged in Madhya Pradesh (MP), there may be excessive concentration on certain types of infrastructure creation. Obviously, the importance of a basic transport network, particularly in, what are known as, relatively less developed or inaccessible areas, cannot be overemphasized in terms of the effects on health and life conditions of ordinary people. However, this means not just that major highways and transport systems need to be developed, but also that there should be a lot of emphasis on minor transport networks, for example, paved roads extending to every village. The emphasis on major roads, combined with the effort to ensure private sector participation, sometimes presents the possibility that investment in this area may remain largely confined to major roads that effectively become toll highways with restricted access.

Madhya Pradesh has a literacy rate of 70.6 per cent according to the provisional data of Census 2011; the male literacy rate is 80.5 per cent and the female literacy rate is 60.0 per cent. The state has 208 engineering & architecture colleges, 208 management institutes and 12 medical colleges. In 2009-10, the state has 105,592 primary schools, 6,352 high schools and 5,161 higher secondary schools.

As of March 2011, the healthcare services network of Madhya Pradesh comprises 50 District Hospitals, 333 Community Health Centres, 1,157 Primary Health Centres and 8,867 Sub-centres. The state also has 28 Ayurvedic, 4 Homoeopathic and one Unani Hospitals as of March 2011.

Madhya Pradesh State Industrial Development Corporation Limited (MPSIDC) is the nodal agency for industrial growth in the state. For balanced and sustainable growth of industry across the state, MPSIDC has set up Madhya Pradesh Audyogik Kendra Vikas Nigam Limited (AKVN) at Bhopal, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Indore, Rewa and Ujjain.

MP has a large and growing urban population, with nearly 27 per cent of the state’s population, approximately 16 million people, living in towns of over 100000 people (Class I towns). A significant proportion of this population lives in the six major cities of Bhopal (1433875), Indore (1597441), Jabalpur (951469), Gwalior (826919), Ujjain (429933), and Ratlam (221267). The high growth rate is expected to continue, with the urban population rising by a further 50 per cent to over 25 million people living in the towns having more than 1 lakh population by 2021.

Urban Housing

There were nearly 24 lakh persons residing in slums in MP. This is almost 15 per cent of the total urban population of the state, and 4 per cent of that of the entire state. The maximum slum population is found in the cities of Indore, Bhopal, Jabalpur, and Gwalior. There is clear evidence from the in-migrating pattern that the population residing in slums is increasing. This population will increase, if the current rate of urbanization remains the same or increases, and very little is happening by way of provision of low cost housing or solutions to look after the migrating population which has no recourse except slums at the given income levels.

Urban Housing In terms of shelter, in the undivided state of MP, the proportion of pucca houses in urban areas was lagging behind the national average. Only Morena (85.13 per cent pucca houses), Gwalior (84.11 per cent), Shivpuri (80.01 per cent), Hoshangabad (77.50 per cent), Sagar (76.69 per cent), and Bhind (73.93 per cent) were the districts above the national average (72.75 per cent). The Working Group on Housing for the Ninth Plan, Government of India had estimated a shortage of the order of 0.32 million in urban areas and 0.38 million in rural areas of MP for 2001. The Census 2001 also estimated that of the total houses used for residence, 36.5 per cent in urban areas in MP were either just livable or in a dilapidated condition.

Trends in Income, Poverty, and Gender in Urban MP

According to the last major national estimation of poverty , it has been assessed that 38.5 per cent of urban residents in MP were BPL. This amounted to nearly 81 lakh persons, and was the highest amongst all states except Orissa. The national poverty ratio was 24.1 per cent at the same time. The low economic growth in the state, particularly in agriculture, forestry, and non-farm rural activities, is responsible for high poverty, both in urban and rural areas of the state, way above the national average. Urban poverty was below rural poverty during the seventies, as was the pattern at national level. It is in the early eighties that urban poverty overtook rural poverty in the state and this continues to be the case at present.

This is because rural poverty declined significantly during 1977–83 and 1983–87. Urban poverty, on the other hand, came down only marginally. It may be hypothesized that urban growth in the eighties and nineties was induced by poverty as this was very high in less developed regions. Urban centres seem to have absorbed a segment of rural poor through the window of migration or emergence of new towns, relieving the pressure of poverty in rural areas. This opportunity, however, seems to be drying up in the nineties, reflected in much slower reduction in rural poverty. Correspondingly, cities and towns in the state are experiencing a much lower rate of immigration and urban growth. The capacity of the towns and cities to provide livelihood and basic infrastructure has been severely constrained due to low economic growth in the state. As a result, poverty levels in urban areas have been very high in the nineties, significantly higher than those in rural areas. Understandably, employment growth in MP during the eighties was low—2.2 per cent per annum. During the nineties, the growth rate for the state fell to 1.2 per cent which was similar to the national figure. Importantly, inequality among casual workers in both rural as well as urban areas turns out to be low here compared to the national average which has to some extent ameliorated the conditions of the poor. It is no surprise that, in terms of calorie consumption, MP presents an alarming picture. It is the only state reporting as high as 90 per cent calorie deficient population in 1999–2000 by NSS, if 2400 KCL is taken as the requirement. As per the data from NFHS III, malnourished children in urban areas of MP were 52.8 per cent, much higher than the national average of 36.4 per cent. The pace of reduction in child malnutrition during 1992–98 in the state has been much slower than that at the national level. After the previous survey of NFHS in 1998, the rate of malnutrition has actually increased in MP, which is a major concern for the state.

The state experienced modest population growth during the pre-independence period in the last century. The growth has, however, picked up since independence, the rate being much above the national average. In case of demographic growth in urban areas, the rate has always been above the national average during the past five Census decades, and is a subject of policy debate. It would indeed be important to probe into the dynamics of urban growth in the context of macro and micro level changes in the state economy. The most significant demographic phenomenon in the state was a slump in the urban growth rate during the nineties. The decline was much more than that noted at the national level so much so that the national and state growth rates have become equal viz., 2.7 per cent per annum. Furthermore, the final population count for 2001 brings down the provisional figures of urban population by about one (0.85) per cent, giving the revised urban growth rate as 2.6 per cent, which is below the national average. It may be pointed out that for all municipal corporations in the state except for Indore, Jabalpur, and Rewa, the decennial growth rates of population have declined during 1991–2001 compared to the previous decade. Even in the projected population estimation by the Census of India, urban population growth is at a modest 2.2 per cent per annum. The urban structure in MP is not top heavy, as urban population in towns with less than 20000 population was as high as 24 per cent compared to the figure of 13 per cent for the country in 1981. The figure has gone down to 16 per cent which is still much above the national figure of 8 per cent in 2001. The growth rates of population in lower order towns in the state during the first four decades since independence were similar to, or higher than, those in class I cities. The growth rates for class II towns during the seventies and that of class III towns in the eighties are higher than those in class I cities. This led to the urban structure not becoming top heavy.

A growing urban population in MP, increasing rates of urban poverty, and the economic leadership of urban centres is fast making our cities and towns the most crucial areas of focus in the coming decades. Not only is urban MP housing a quarter of the population, the cities and towns are also the gateways to the state and its principal economic engines. Urban areas have to be a focus area not only to ensure good living conditions for the middle class but also to ensure that cities and towns have fewer slums and remain basically clean with adequate water supply and roads. In terms of their economic impact, it is currently being estimated that the contribution of urban areas to India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) was about 60 to 65 per cent in 2005. However, our cities and towns, by and large, have not received their due share of attention and public investment. If the current rate of growth of urban population continues, MP would have approximately 2 crore urban dwellers by 2011 and 2.4 crore by 2021.

The share of urban population would also have reached the near 30 per cent mark and then onto the nearly 40 per cent mark by the end of the fourth decade of this century. This would also mean that we should have around 550 towns and cities by that time. These numbers exhibit the pressures that are going to emerge for urban civic and basic amenities. This shall also suddenly bring into focus the challenges of sanitation, drinking water, garbage disposal, law and order, and the most critical of all, housing for the poor on the one hand and maintaining and preserving the current green belts, green cover, and open public and required spaces for common facilities and uses in urban locations on the other.

Basic Amenities and Housing Conditions Way back in 1991, according to the Census, basic amenities available to urban citizens in MP were rather abysmal. Only 44.7 per cent of urban households had access to all the three facilities of electricity, potable water supply, and sanitation while 8.1 per cent had none of the three facilities. Chhatarpur, Panna, Rewa, and Satna were the most backward districts with less than 30 per cent of the urban households having access to any of these facilities. The percentage of urban households with all the three amenities of safe drinking water, electricity, and sanitation went up to 62.2 per cent by 2001. Though this increase is significant it is still a very long way from universal access to basic urban amenities. About 12 per cent households in 2001 did not have access to safe drinking water. 20 per cent households did not get sufficient water in urban MP, and this is, particularly, true for people dwelling in slums and squatter settlements where this figure goes up to 38 per cent. 16 per cent urban households in MP reported getting insufficient drinking water. This shows that in a period of 4–5 years, quantity of water supply and its availability for households had in fact deteriorated. Regarding the quality of water, while there is little direct evidence of household access and quality of water, only 36.5 per cent households filtered drinking water before drinking it. Very few precautions are taken by households to treat the water in some manner before consumption. With fairly poor drainage systems, wells and hand pumps providing most of the drinking water, and no use of latrines, water quality cannot be assumed to be satisfactory directly from its source.

The basic amenity, for which the state’s performance can be commended, is electrification. The state reports the percentage of households having electricity connection as 70 per cent, and 92 per cent for urban MP, well above the national average of 55 per cent in 2001. Per capita power consumption, however, falls short of the national per capita figure of 355 KwH. From Census 2001, it is also assessed that about 76 per cent households did not have access to sanitation/latrines. The percentage of households without latrine facility is also corroborated by NSS 58th round survey on housing conditions in India, 2002, where it was found that 71 per cent urban households had no bathroom, and 77 per cent had no latrine facility. The state government has since initiated several schemes for the supply of water and sanitation in 100 towns of MP during the Eighth Plan, many of which are continuing into the Ninth Plan period as well. Drinking water, however, continues to be a critical area for the state as demonstrated in recurring droughts in some part of the state over the last four years. The state government, in its submission to the Vidhan Sabha, stated that water supply crisis was apprehended in 279 urban areas in 37 drought affected districts of the state. The problem was also envisaged in the remaining 55 towns of the state where the existing water schemes had become obsolete. In addition to water, sewerage, drainage, and solid waste disposal facilities are the most critical problems in urban settlements of MP as they are grievously affecting the environment, apart from emerging as urban eyesores.

Development of Urban Infrastructure The major factor responsible for low economic growth and high regional disparity in the state is deficiency in infrastructure. Transport and communication facilities in the state are not as well developed as in most other states. The road network is much below the national average. In case of railway lines also, the state’s position vis-à-vis most states, especially keeping in mind that it is centrally located and hence must naturally benefit from rail lines that connect India, is poor. In urban MP, the Census estimated that 18.5 per cent urban residents had a telephone compared to 23 per cent nationally. Despite a five-fold increase in the figure during 1995–2004, the gap with the national figure has gone up significantly due to faster rate of expansion in most other states. The urban IMR was as high as 56 per 1000 in 2004, against the national average of 40.10 Undoubtedly, the state has to accord far greater attention to improving the health delivery system if it has to ensure a minimum quality of life to its population and improve its ranking among the states in terms of human development. One area, where the achievement of MP seems to be satisfactory, is in the field of primary education and amelioration of illiteracy. The state has allocated significant resources to the education sector. This has resulted in high growth in the number of educational institutions and school-going children, and also literacy rate. It has almost caught up with the national literacy figure of 80.3 per cent in 2001, despite being 2.41 percentage points behind the national figure of 73.08 per cent in 1991.

Issues and scenario of present Urban infrastructure development

Madhya Pradesh government needs to take significant steps to improve social infrastructure for equitable development and social empowerment for sustainable economic growth.

Madhya Pradesh has proved to be a laggard amid top 20 industrial states in terms of education and health services development. The state is grappling with highest infant mortality rate of 54 per 1,000 live births and recorded a negative compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 1% in terms of student enrolment in recent years (2007-08 to 2013-14).

Clocking a CAGR of 1.7% during 2007-08 and 2013-14, MP is ranked 11th in terms of growth in number of schools and the state is ranked behind other BIMARU states of Uttar Pradesh (3.6%), Rajasthan (2.5%) and Bihar (2%) in this regard, the study said.

Punjab (6.5%) is on top in terms of growth in number of schools. Nationally, number of schools grew at a CAGR of 2.5% during the period.

MP is ranked 19th in terms of growth in student enrolment and stayed ahead of Himachal Pradesh (-1.9 per cent) in this regard between 2007-08 and 2013-14. Punjab has emerged as leader with a CAGR of about 8%.

MP has ranked 16th amid top 20 states in terms of number of students per teacher ratio and performance has improved slightly from 36 students per teacher in 2007-08 to 29 students per teacher in 2013-14.

Himachal Pradesh has ranked on top with students per teacher ratio of 11 while in India, there were about 26 students per teacher as of 2013-14 as against 33 students per teacher in 2007-08.

MP has ranked 13th with just over 13% of schools having computer facility, a slight improvement from 12.4% in 2007-08 while Kerala (93%) is on top. In India about 23% of schools had computer facility as of 2013-14.

MP is also ranked 11th in terms of expenditure incurred by the state on education sector as per cent of its gross state domestic product (GSDP). However, the expenditure incurred by the state on education as per cent of its GSDP had almost doubled from about 3% in 2007-08 to about 6% n 2014-14, further highlighted the study.

Assam (10.8%) is leading on this front while nationally 1.3% of the GDP is being incurred on education sector-related expenditures.

MP is at last rung in infant mortality while Kerala has best rate of 12. India’s infant mortality rate is 40 and there are 12 states lower than all-India level, the study said.

MP is ranked 10th in terms of expenditure incurred by the state on health sector as per cent of its GSDP. Interestingly, state’s expenditure in this regard has fallen from 1.6% in 2007-08 to 1.5% in 2013-14. J&K (4.2%) is leading in this area.

While nationally 0.5% of GDP is spent on health sector-related expenditures.

AMRUT Scheme

Madhya Pradesh selects 34 cities for AMRUT, 16 for housing scheme

In all, 34 cities of Madhya Pradesh have been chosen for AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation) scheme while, state is the first among others who has included 39 cities for `Housing for all 2022′ scheme.

The state government has earmarked Rs890.25 crore for 19241 housing units in 16 cities. The state government will provide subsidy of 6.5% on interest for the housing loan.

Prominent cities included namely Indore, Bhopal Jabalpur, Gwalior, Sagar, Katni, Ratlam, Singrauli, Rewa, Satna, Chhindwara, Morena, Burhanpur, Chhatarpur, Hoshangabad, Birsa, Dindori, Damoh, Khurai, Chandla, Patharia, Rampur Baghelan, Budni, Harda, Bhind, Guna, Mandsaur, Betul, Seoni, Datia, Sarni, balaghat, Tikamgarh, Khajuraho, Nasarullaganj, Anuppur and Shahganj.

In Madhya Pradesh, the much-hyped housing programme, Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana (PMAY), has been converted into a project for developing housing for women.

The state government took the step in a move to empower women.

Under the PMAY or the housing for all scheme, half a million houses are going to be constructed by December 2018.

Budget scenario and Target for Urban Development 2018-19

Allocations for transportation and housing sectors formed the crux of urban developmentin the state budget that could in turn provide a much-needed impetus to kick-start state’s economy.

Public transportation will get a major boost in 20 major cities of the state. Under this project, process has initiated based on ‘hub and spoke’ model cluster bus service for these urban areas.

Besides this, work for the first phase of metro rail projects in Bhopal and Indore is expected to be initiated in the 2018-19 fiscal.

As compared to last year, allocation for urban renewal has been hiked 22% for the fiscal 2019. Finance minister Jayant Malaiyahiked urban development spend by about Rs 500 crore.

In percentage terms, urban development share has dropped to 5.85% of the gross budget expenditure, but the cross benefit from infrastructure investment would boost the economy, said experts.

Much of the focus was on about 10 lakh houses planned to be constructed in urban and rural areas of the state for the homeless people under the ambitious housing for all project. Under Pradhanmantri Awaas Yojana, Rs 6,600 crore has been proposed for the rural housing projects and Rs 1,700 crore for the urban area projects.

In the urban areas, Rs 30 crore has been sanctioned for constructing 5.11 lakh housing units in association with the Central government. Of these, two lakh houses are under construction and 75,000 houses have been completed, said the finance minister.

Swach Bharat Mission (SBM) has got a total provision of Rs 2,549 crore this year with rural area given major chunk of the budgetary provision. Accordingly, rural areas got Rs 2,234 crore under the Swachch Bharat Mission while the urban areas got only Rs 315 crore for the next financial year.

Under the scheme, 60.50 lakh domestic toilets have been completed so far against the set target of 81.55 lakh units and the target will be achieved by October 2, 2018. As many as 21,791 villages have been declared open defecation free.

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