Urbanization in India

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Urbanization in India began to accelerate after independence, due to the country's adoption of a mixed economy, which gave rise to the development of the private sector. The population residing in urban areas in India, according to the 1901 census, was 11.4%,[1] increasing to 28.53% by the 2001 census, and is now currently 34% in 2017 according to The World Bank.[2] According to a survey by UN, in 2030 40.76% of country's population is expected to reside in urban areas.[3] As per World Bank, India, along with China, Indonesia, Nigeria, and the United States, will lead the world's urban population surge by 2050.[4]

Mumbai saw large-scale rural-urban migration in the 20th century.[see main] Mumbai, in 2018, accommodates 22.1 million people, and is the second-largest metropolis by population in India. Delhi has 28 million inhabitants and witnessed the fastest rate of urbanisation in the world, with a 4.1% rise in population as per the 2011 census.

History

Post-independence, India faced high rates of poverty, unemployment, and a stagnant economy. The first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, focused on the domain of science and technology.[5] The mixed economy system was adopted, resulting in the growth of the Public sector in India crippling down the development of Indian economy leading to what is popularly known as Hindu rate of growth.[6] The South Asian region though predominantly rural (accounted for 69.9% rural population as of 2010), has recorded much higher annual growth of urban population. India, the leading country in South Asia has shown an unprecedented increase in the urban population in the last few decades and its urban population has increased about 14 fold from 1901 to 2011. This growth is mainly uneven but not skewed and not concentrated to a single city of the country. India shares most characteristic features of urbanization in the developing countries where the rate of urbanization is faster than the developed countries. For instance, in 1971 there were only about 150 cities whose population was more than one lakh, now this figure has reached to 500. The urban population of India has increased from 25.85 million in 1901 to 377.11 million in 2011.[7]

Modern India

The contribution of the agricultural sector to the GDP of India started to decline and the percentage contribution from secondary sector increased. The period after 1941, witnessed rapid growth of four metropolitan cities in India, which were Kolkata, Delhi, Mumbai, and Chennai.[8] The nation's economy saw a rise due to industrial revolution and the invention of new technologies increased the standard of living of people living in urban areas.[9] The growth of public sector resulted in development of public transport, roads, water supply, electricity, and hence the infrastructure of urban areas. Some of the cities like Three tier also increasing population.

Map of the urban/total population ratio of Indian states, as per the 2011 census

Maharashtra was the most urbanized major state in India till 1991, stood behind Tamil Nadu in 2001 and third after it in 2011, with Kerala being second,[10] with the urban-total state population ratio. However, Maharashtra's urban population of 41 million, far exceeds that of Tamil Nadu which is at 27 million, as per the 2001 census.[11] The spatial distribution of large cities in India is uneven as out of 100 most populous cities in the country more than 50 are confined to only 5 states namely, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Andhra Pradesh. Other than state capitals and major industrial centre, large cities are mainly concentrated in the national capital region (NCR), the western and southern part of India.[7]

Causes of urbanization in India

The main causes of urbanisation in India are:

  • Expansion in government services, as a result of the Second World War
  • Migration of people during the partition of India[12][13][14]
  • The Industrial Revolution[citation needed]
  • Eleventh five-year plan that aimed at urbanisation for the economic development of India[15]
  • Economic opportunities are just one reason people move into cities
  • Infrastructure facilities in the urban areas[16]
  • Growth of private sector after 1990 .[17]
  • Growth of employment in cities is attracting people from rural areas as well as smaller cities to large towns. According to Mckinsey India's urban population will grow from 340 million in 2008 to 590 million in 2030.
  • Therefore, it is being driven by economic compulsions where people move out for economic advancements to areas offering better job opportunities.
  • It is also driven by land fragmentations, villages being erased due to roads and highway constructions, dam constructions and other activities.
  • Agriculture is the primary source of livelihood, but it's no more profitable: Indian rural economy is primarily based on agriculture. Indian agriculture sector accounts for 18 percent [18] of India's gross domestic product (GDP) and it is estimated that it provides employment to 50% of the countries workforce, but ground reality differs. Many farmers in different states of India are leaving farming, primarily because of high input cost and low income from agriculture. Also on the other hand with usage of fertilizers, chemicals and hybrid seeds, land fertility is declining.  This encourages many farmers to commit suicide. In 2014, the National Crime Records Bureau of India reported 5,650 farmer suicides. As per the figures given by central government in 2015, there were 12602 farmer suicides. This includes 8,007 farmers-cultivators and 4,595 agricultural labourers.[19] The farmer's suicide rate in India has ranged between 1.4 and 1.8 per 100,000 total populations, over a 10-year period through 2005. Thus people (including farmers) are migrating to cities.  
Giving children a better future by educating them in a great educational institute is now an alarming reason of urbanization.
  1. ↑ Kamaldeo Narain Singh (1 January 1978). Urban Development In India. Abhinav Publications. ISBN 978-81-7017-080-8. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  2. ↑ "Urban population (% of total) | Data". data.worldbank.org. Retrieved 17 January 2019.
  3. ↑ "Urbanization in India faster than rest of the world". Hindustan Times. 27 June 2007. Archived from the original on 26 November 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  4. ↑ Business Standard (15 June 2012). "Victims of urbanization: India, Indonesia and China". Rediff.com. Retrieved 15 June 2012. {{cite web}}: |author= has generic name (help)
  5. ↑ N. M. Khilnani (1993). Socio-Political Dimensions of Modern India. M.D. Publications Pvt. Ltd. pp. 96–. ISBN 978-81-85880-06-8. Retrieved 15 June 2012.
  6. ↑ TR Jain; Mukesh Trehan; Ranju Trehan. Indian Economy and Business Environment (for BBA). FK Publications. pp. 250=. ISBN 978-81-87344-71-1. Retrieved 15 June 2012.
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 Nandy, S. N. "URBANIZATION IN INDIA – PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE CONSEQUENCES". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  8. ↑ Viswambhar Nath; Surinder K. Aggarwal (1 January 2007). Urbanization, Urban Development, and Metropolitan Cities in India. Concept Publishing Company. pp. 3–. ISBN 978-81-8069-412-7. Retrieved 15 June 2012.
  9. ↑ "The Indian Industrial Revolution". Srcindore.org. Retrieved 15 June 2012.
  10. ↑ "Rural-Urban distribution of population" (PDF). Census of India Press Release. Retrieved 19 November 2013.
  11. ↑ "Urbanization" (PDF). Planning Commission (India). Retrieved 15 June 2012.
  12. ↑ Viswambhar Nath; Surinder K. Aggarwal (1 January 2007). Urbanization, Urban Development, and Metropolitan Cities in India. Concept Publishing Company. p. 6. ISBN 978-81-8069-412-7. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  13. ↑ The Indian and Pakistan year book. Bennett, Coleman & Co. 1951. Retrieved 15 June 2012.
  14. ↑ Jonathan M. Harris; Tufts University. Global Development and Environment Institute (1 March 2001). A Survey of Sustainable Development: Social And Economic Dimensions. Island Press. pp. 142–. ISBN 978-1-55963-863-0. Retrieved 15 June 2012.
  15. ↑ Amitabh Kundu. Trends and processes of urbanization in india. IIED. p. 1. GGKEY:NNAEQJ0WFTW. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
  16. ↑ Pradhan, Rudra Prakash. "Does infrastructure play role in urbanization: evidence from India". Indian Journal of Economics and Business.[dead link]
  17. ↑ "Role of private sector in India's growth ~ Business News This Week". Businessnewsthisweek.com. 8 February 2009. Retrieved 21 June 2012.
  18. ↑ "The Economic Survey 2017-18 ;" (PDF).
  19. ↑ Mahapatra, Dhananjay. "Over 12,000 farmer suicides per year, Centre tells Supreme Court;". The Times of India.
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