October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 ISSN 2347 - 4912 …ISSN 2347 - 4912 Theme Paper Policy Review Case...

ISSN 2347 - 4912

Theme Paper Policy Review Case Studies

SHELTERPublication

Volume 15 No. 2October 2014

VOICES FROM SLUMS

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Dr. Medithi Ravi Kanth, IAS (r) has taken over as Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited (HUDCO) on 11th April, 2014.

Prior to joining HUDCO, he was CMD of Projects & Development India Limited (PDIL) on ‘absorption basis’, and as an IAS officer of 1986 batch in Kerala cadre, Dr. M Ravi Kanth was Principal Secretary to Government of Kerala and Joint Secretary, Ministry of Power, Government of India, New Delhi.

Dr. M. Ravi Kanth is M.A. (Economics) and Ph.D. (Agri-Exports) from Andhra University, L.L.B. from Delhi University and MBA (Finance) from Melbourne, Australia.

Dr. M. Ravi Kanth has served in various positions in Government of India viz. Dy. Chief Executive, Nuclear Fuel Complex, Dept. of Atomic Energy, Hyderabad; Private Secretary to MOS in Finance & Company Affairs, MOS (i/c) Labour & Urban Development; Director, APEDA in Ministry of Commerce & Industry; Chairman & Managing Director, National Handicapped Finance & Development Corporation in Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.

Dr. M. Ravi Kanth has also held several positions in the State Government of Kerala and Government of Delhi. These include District Collector & District Magistrate of Kannur (Cannanore); Managing Director of Cashew Export Development Corporation, Kollam (Quilon); General Manager, KSCSC and Director of Food & Supplies Department; Sub Collector & Sub Divisional Magistrate, Tellicherry in Kerala and as Secretary, Delhi Minorities Commission, Controller of Weights & Measures (Legal Metrology) and Food & Supplies in Government of Delhi.

Dr. M. Ravi Kanth has travelled widely in India and abroad, and brings with him unique vision and commitments of his own. Summoned up they are as follows : 1. Help the poor and the downtrodden, by preventing wastage of resources. 2. Promote and practise Health, Happiness, Honesty, Harmony and Humanity. 3. Uplift the Underprivileged, by advocating for Social Justice and Serenity. 4. Reduce inequalities and obstacles for Growth and Development of the Nation. 5. Inculcate egalitarianism, vegetarianism, cleanliness and commonsense. 6. Strengthen human relations, family bonds and child, women & old-age care. 7. Bridge the gaps between the Rural and Urban infrastructure & distribution. 8. Provide qualitative inputs to children for quality output and bright India. 9. ‘Live Light and Give Light’ by being close to the nature and down to earth.

HUDCO Welcomes its new CMD Dr. M. Ravi Kanth, IAS (r)

According to the UN-Habitat, slums are groups of people living in urban areas that lack one or more of these amenities- durable housing, sufficient living space, access to safe water, access to adequate sanitation and security of tenure that prevents forced evictions. However, it is important to highlight that not all slum dwellers suffer from the same degree of deprivation. While slums are treated as black spots on the city canvas, it is the place which provides shelter to many low cost service providers, be it maids, kabadiwala, motor repair mechan-ics, construction workers etc. Cities cannot live without their services and it is for this reason that each city has pockets of slums at locations close to the economically active areas. Greater the economic activity in a city, more are the slum pockets. It is therefore, important that cities device mechanisms to integrate slums with the urban scape and provide inclusive housing and social services; a safe and healthy living environment for all — with particu-lar consideration for children, youth, women, elderly and disabled; affordable and sustainable transport and energy; promotion, protection, and restoration of green urban spaces; safe and clean drinking water and sanitation; healthy air quality; job creation; improved urban planning and slum upgrading; and better waste management. It is a tall order and needs to be undertaken along with the participation of the community for far reaching results.

VOICES FROM SLUMS

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I N S I D E

The views expressed in this publication are the personal views of authors and do not necessarily reflect the official views and policies of HUDCO/HSMI. Articles or any other material in the publication may be reproduced so long as credit is given and tear sheets are provided to the editor.All photo credits are by the authors unless otherwise specified.

Theme Papers

01 Voices from Slums -To Speak and be Heard!- Sheela Patel

08 Unthinking Community Development - Talking the Walk

15Eight Questions about Affordable Housing in India- Geeta Mehta

FeatureMy Opinion

Case Studies

21 Shifting the Housing Paradigm - Embracing Incremental Construction and Access to Finance in Low-Income Neighbour-hoods- Mukta Naik - Rakhi Mehra

69 Whispers to Voices- Meet-ing the Aspirations of Slum Communities- Rajiv Sharma

61

56

Participatory Urban Envi-ronmental Revitalization in a Rehabilitated Colony -Ramdarbar Shows the Way - Manoj Kumar Teotia

32 Expert views of CMD, HUDCO on Affordable Housing- Dr. M. Ravi Kanth, IAS (r)

77 Smart Cities- What Value will they bring to Urban Development in India?- Ian Mell- Sejal Patel - Saswat Bandyopadhyay

IN THE BOX

General Guidelines for Submissions of Articles 14

HUDCO Awards 46

A HUDCO CSR Assisted Night Shelter in the City of Kolkata 55

Findings of NSSO Survey on Urban Slums in India 60

Initiatives of HUDCO’s HSMI 90

Policy Review

37Planning for Urban North East (NE) – Issues and Imperatives - Dr. Binayak Choudhury

Public Transit and Urban Poor - A Trade off between Urban Poor Mobility Needs and Transport Policy- Ankit Kathuria- Prof. M. Parida

ISSN 2347 - 4912

Theme Paper Policy Review Case Studies

SHELTERPublication

Volume 15 No. 2October 2014

VOICES FROM SLUMS

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- Ila Bose- Renu Khosla

47 Urban Housing Shortages in India - Aspects of Economic Category, Caste and Ethnici-ty- Arjun Kumar

SHELTERVol 15 No. 2 October 2014

www.hudco.org

ISSN 2347 - 4912

SHELTER is an official publication ofHUDCO/HSMI, distributed free ofcharge. It deals with issues related tohousing, urban development andother themes relevant to the habitatsector. Contributions, comments andcorrespondence are most welcomeand should be forwarded to:

EDITORSHELTERHUDCO’s Human Settlement Management InstitueHUDCO House, Lodhi RoadNew Delhi- 110 003Tel: 011 -24308600/638Fax: 011-24365292Email: [email protected]

BOARD OF DIRECTORSChairman & Managing DirectorDr. M. Ravi Kanth, IAS (r)

DirectorsShri N. L. ManjokaShri A. K. KaushikShri K. B. S. Sidhu, IASSmt. Jhanja TripathyProf. Dinesh MehtaShri Virender GandaProf. Sukhadeo Thorat

Company SecretaryShri Harish Kumar Sharma

EDITORIAL TEAMChief Editor: Rajiv SharmaCo-Editor: Dr. Akshaya SenDr. Ravi ShankarMs Nila PandianCover Design: Quip DesignCover Photo Credit: Rajiv Sharma

Akash Sharma

Registered Office:HUDCO Bhawan, Core-7-A,India Habitat Centre,Lodhi Road,New Delhi - 110 003Tel(EPABX) :011-24649610-23,24627113-15,24627091,92,95After Office Hours: 24648193-95Fax:011-24625308CIN:U74899DL1970GOI005276E-Mail: [email protected]

World Habitat Day was established in 1985 by the United Nations General Assemblythrough Resolution 40/202 to take stock of the state of our towns and cities, in thecontext of adequate shelter for all. Each year, World Habitat Day is marked on thefirst Monday of October. The theme of World Habitat Day 2014 -‘Voices from Slums’-has been earmarked to recognize the abysmal condition of life in slums, and givevoice to slum dwellers for improving quality of living conditions in existing slums.Slums are inevitable in fast urbanising countries, like India. But, proliferation ofslums manifest the shortcomings in our planning process, being fully aware that peo-ple are going to migrate to cities in search of better employment, better infrastructure,better health facilities and better education opportunities. Slums do not come bychoice but often due to the lack of it. Slum up gradation has to be looked at from the perspective of social integration,livelihood requirements, equity, integration with existing city, etc. The groups beingheterogeneous in terms of caste, ethnicity, religion, family size, employment activitiesetc. require much more understanding than a conventional housing project. The slum housing projects are often unpopular because beneficiaries are moved tonew resettlement locations. Therefore, relocation should be considered only after ex-hausting all options. All slum rehabilitation projects need a robust participatory ap-proach for success. In these projects, the community should become decision makersfor their upliftment, but in an organised and professional manner. The role of gov-ernment has to be that of a facilitator- giving structurally safe housing typologies,adhering to planning norms and establishing linkages with the city infrastructureservices. There is a need to develop processes and tools to protect the social, eco-nomic and cultural fabric of the people who have been living in slums. The policymakers and professionals in urban arena should be accosted with real stories, on slumupgrading programmes highlighting that these initiatives can achieve better life con-ditions for slum dwellers, and greater economic and social impacts for a city as awhole.This issue of Shelter combines the spirit of voices from slums in the four theme pa-pers.The paper by Sheela Patel acknowledges the alliance of community and profes-sionals to produce strategies that address their own problems as well as those of thecity. The paper by Ila Bose (et al.) emphasises community participation as a powerfulorganizing ideal that advances the communitarian agenda. Prof. Geeta Mehta poseseight questions to all the stakeholders in affordable housing in India, in the contextto overcome huge housing shortage in the country. Mukta Naik (et al.), argues for afavourable policy environment for incremental housing that ensures adequate qualityof affordable homes by leveraging the existing investments on the ground in low-in-come settlements. In the context of the proposed mission on “housing for all by 2022”, Dr. M Ravi Kanth,CMD, HUDCO, has shared his opinion on Affordable Housing and discussed the ini-tiatives of HUDCO, in this context. Arjun Kumar has outlined the estimated urbanhousing shortage by caste and ethnic group which focussed on the need for groupspecific policies (economic and social), to eradicate shelter deprivation and enhance-ment of the quality of life in urban India. The North East has been a new entrant to the country’s urban club. In this context,Dr. Binayak Choudhury highlights the issues and requirements of growing demandof urban services across the urban north east. Ankit Kathuria (et al.), discuss the im-peratives to frame a transport policy that fulfils mass mobility needs, keeping in mindthe large share of riders who are urban poor. The Chandigarh case study by ManojTeotia and the Delhi case by Rajiv Sharma examine the process of community em-powerment in improving the living conditions of relocated slum families. The paper of Ian Mell (et al.) examines Smart City discourse in theory and in praxis,debating its value in an Indian context, and explores whether the rhetoric of more in-novative investment in smarter ICT, environmental resource management, e-gover-nance and social mobility can be applied in India. We hope you enjoy reading these articles.

FROM THE CHIEF EDITOR

is article seeks to reflect on the voices of thepoor from the perspective of the organised andfederated communities of slum dwellersassociated with the alliance of the Society for thePromotion of Area Resource Centers (SPARC),Mahila Milan (MM) and National SlumDwellers Federation (NSDF). is paper willhelp the readers to understand and get familiarwith this alliance of professionals and slumdwellers, their processes and mechanisms ofknowledge creation, problem solving andnegotiation on the issues of land security, accessto basic amenities and services, and theirdemonstrated abilities to produce strategies thataddress their own problems as well as those ofthe city.

Within this framework, the concept of "voices ofslum dwellers" as a term can be seen to have apassive or active connotation depending on howit is interpreted. Many researchers and scholarsnationally and internationally have sought todocument “what people say” and bring theseissues to the notice of policy makers and politicalleaders.

e article indicates that the leadership of thismovement has systematised tools that facilitatepeople to develop skills, collate data andinformation about themselves and makerepresentations not only of their challenges butalso their strategy for change, in which they seekan active driving role. e article concludes witha message that to make slum developmentprogrammes effective, there is a need to buildthe capacity and confidence of senior leaders ofcities and government officers to listen,negotiate and produce joint ventures witharticulated and empowered communities ofslum dwellers. ere joint ventures would co-produce solution at a scale, needed to addressthe challenge of slums in a city.

INtroductIoN

Slums in cities, the face ofinformality of habitat and

livelihoods, have lived in theshadow of the formal and legal cityfor centuries. Individuals seekingcash incomes, or householdsexpelled by disasters from ruralareas and a wide spectrum of eventsin their environment, produce thepush to compel individuals andhouseholds to migrate to cities.eir logical integration into theformal city fabric, through plannedlocations for the migrants to stayand work, remains an ongoingchallenge and their lives remain castin illegality and perpetualinsecurity.

India remains one of the fewcountries in the world whereurbanisation even in the 21st

century is still below 35 per centalthough many parts of India,especially the developed andindustrialised southern states aremore urbanised. Yet despite thevolume of people living informallyand working in informal jobs, citydevelopment plans and budgetaryinvestments do not produce scale orvolume of intervention to addresstheir needs of secure tenure andbasic amenities. Even today 50 percent of those who defecate in theopen are in India’s villages andcities. e question is, why is thatso?

1October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - Shelter

VoiceS from SlumS

To Speak and be Heard!

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It is the passivity thatproduces the passive yetaggressive actions wherepeople just walk away fromstate provided benefits ofhousing or livelihood orother services since theynever wanted them in thatparticular form in the firstplace. Not repaying loans isanother form of rejection ofthe solution that comeswithout communityengagement.

Ms. Sheela Patel([email protected]) is the chair ofthe Shack/ Slum Dwellers International(SDI) board, as well as the founder andD irector of the Society for thePromotion of Area Resource Centers(SPARC), NGO support to the NationalSlum Dwellers Federation and MahilaMilan in India.

Sheela Patel

e national urban investmentprogram of JNNURM (2005-2012extended to 2014), has done little toaddress the challenges of habitat forthe urban poor. Hardly 2-4 per centof households in the cities, wherethis investment were made,benefitted from the subsidies andthe question to be asked is: why so?Is it that the poor are doing nothingabout the situation themselves? Isthe city and its leadership unawareof the overarching impact of poorliving conditions on the present andfuture workforce of the city? Arestate governments in charge of allurban local bodies and urbandevelopment activities incapable ofdeveloping a governance anddevelopmental response to thesechallenges? Can a nationalgovernment at the centre afford toallow this status quo to continue? Isit a matter that no one cares,including the poor, or is somethingreally wrong in the manner inwhich this entire issue ofinformality is being addressed?

is reflection is written from theperspective of a movement of slumdwellers called the National SlumDwellers Federation (NSDF) andSPARC Mahila Milan (SPARCMM), its sister organisation, thathave worked since 1986 with theSociety for the Promotion of AreaResource Centres (SPARC), anNGO based in Mumbai. Todayoperating in 70 cities and towns in9 states, the alliance of SPARC MMand NSDF seeks to build anorganised voice and communityengagements that get federated at

city level, state level and nationallevel. NSDF organises federatedcommunities of the urban poor andMahila Milan empowers thecollectives of women by buildingtheir skills and capacity to managelocal settlement challenges anddevelop collective leadership.

Since 1996, Asian, African andLatin American slum dwellers haveadopted the federation modeldeveloped by NSDF and MM, inwhich the entire slumneighbourhood get organised andnetwork with each other, to buildskills and capacity to representthemselves to the city state. us,Shack/ Slum Dwellers International(SDI) becomes their voice in theglobal discourse on urbanisationand the urban poor. Today SDIassists local federated communitiesand their national organisations tomake representations to theirgovernments and cities to producereally inclusive cities where thepoor benefit among others. If thechallenges don’t get resolved locally,SDI makes representation globallyto explore changing paradigms ofglobal development investmentsand intrude them on localengagements.

SDI is aware that its capacity andability to make impact locally andglobally is dependent on theproduction of voice at all levels-local to global. at voice, which isthe ability to articulate what thepoor have to face when dealing withexclusion and how it impacts theirlives and that of theirneighbourhoods, does not occur by

itself. Aer all, for centuries, thepoor who come to cities to improvetheir lot have been maligned, havebeen deemed criminal and facedmany hardships due to theconventional exclusion andpersistent evictions of their habitatthat get demolished each time thecity needs the land they haveencroached. e inability of themarginalised poor to makedemands, for decades, has madethem believe they have no rightsother than what their patronsprovide for survival, under theirpatronage.

BackgrouNd of NSdf

NSDF was founded in 1975 by slumdwellers who were defending theirslums against evictions. Initiallystarted in Bombay, thisorganisation, althoughunregistered, networked slumdwellers from 12 -16 cities and builta solidarity seeking recognition ofthe rights of slum dwellers in thecity1. In 1984, SPARC was set up byprofessionals seeking to developpartnerships with slum dwellers2

and at that time it worked withwomen’s collectives from pavementslums forming a women’sorganisation called Mahila Milan.Together, the three organisationsformed an alliance which will bealmost three decades old this year.It represented some significant andvital elements to develop a criticalmass of slum dwellers agreeable tostay organised over long periods oftime, to demonstrate theircapability to contribute to the cityand in return seek identity andvoice in city matters.

2 huDco - hSmi Publication

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Savings and credit managed bywomen

e most vital aspect of thisorganisational alliance was to buildknowledge and skills that the urbanpoor could develop and utilise tobuild capacity amongst slumdwellers and ensure the productionof insights and possibilities toexplore development that works forthe poor and the city. Havingsupported women’s collectives inthe slums where NSDF wasfederating slum dwellers, theprocess sought to highlight the roleand contribution of women in thesurvival strategies of slum dwellersseeking to ensure households andneighbourhoods got access to water,were protected against evictionsand to plan safe neighbourhoodsfor children, home based economicactivities and to manage homes.Women managed home financesbut had no control over them. Byinitiating savings and creatingcapacity to provide loans, a simplefinancial became the basis forcreating accountability andgovernance structures in the slums,with both men and women gettingloans but women managing them.Once their internal savings and loanmanagement systems startedworking well, they led to externalloans coming to the communitythrough SPARC, leading to incomegeneration and housing loans withwomen managing all theseprocesses.

Enumeration of slum dwellers

Somehow city and state

governments never have up to dateinformation about slums. Surveysof slums oen produce inaccuratedata, wrongly spelt or completelywrong names, and the residentsassociation never get access to thedata that is collected. Slum profilesand household surveys form apowerful enumeration tool thatdemonstrates the capacity ofresident’s association and NSDF tocollect accurate data that residentscan check and verify at any point oftime. SPARC took on the role ofmanaging the digitalisation of datain such a way that the data can beaggregated or disaggregated forusage by different organisations andfor different purposes.

Precedent setting and strategicsolutions

Based on residents’ networks,priorities and available data, a widerange of priorities were set. Landtenure, basic amenities, sanitation,housing, relocation due toinfrastructure projects, safety andmany other priorities were set bythe networks, and the process ofreflection amongst the leadershipwas to take on the challenge of notonly identifying the problem butfinding a solution for it. It emergedfrom reflections that oen theproblem may be rightly identifiedby a top down approach, but thesolution oen did not work for thepoor. So, while there wasrecognition that the resources andskills for the solution would not allbe necessarily available with slumdwellers, they should always beconsulted in the process of finding

a solution. Further, oen thestrategy that worked for the poorwithin the constraints of what wasfeasible was oen not within thenorms of the regulatory framework.e alliance designed real timeoutput- a house, a sanitation facility,to illustrate to the technical,administrative and political leaders,representing city and government,what poor need and how it could beproduced. is precedent oen gotapproval due to the apparentcommon sense and logicdemonstrated in practical termsrather than a contestation of policy.In many instances the residents of asettlement got permission toexplore that option, oen financedby the city and over time it replacedthe non-functional policy itcontested. Communities of the poordesigned, executed and managedthese projects, building skills andcapacity and livelihoods as theywent along this exploration.

Horizontal or Peer exchangesfor solidarity and learning

Once a particular strategy workedin one area, it was shared with slumdwellers from other slums in thecity, with slum dwellers from otherIndian cities, and now with slumdwellers from other countries. ehorizontal peer exchanges are basedon the belief that most effectivelearning is by seeing and doing andbest learnt from peers. Bothteaching and learning are powerfulprocesses that will improve thequality of life that transform theself-image of people who neverconsidered that they could make


THEME PAPER

contributions to change, or to teachsomeone anything.

Negotiations for engagement

In India, the Constitution iscommitted to the state takingresponsibility for citizens who arevulnerable, but cities practice theopposite in most instances. Cityplanning norms make thoseresiding in slums as illegal. Whilecities have historically not allocatedspaces for informal and low incomesettlements and people whoperform critical functions inmaking cities run, instead of thecities supporting and assisting thepoor, cities have by and large beenhostile to the informal city dwellersand their relationship with the cityhas been through evictions anddenial of basic services. While the

constitution gives equal right ofvote to the poor, most electedrepresentatives have done very littleto change statutes in the city thatdeny the poor access to securetenure, and only recently are issuesof water, sanitation, and electricitybegun to be provided despite legaltenure. is has led to the city andslum dwellers locked in a war ofattrition and their relationshipswith their elected representativesalmost feudal. Rather thandemanding their attention, electedrepresentatives by and largecontribute very little to overalldevelopment of informalsettlements. Yet, despite thesenegative backdrops, organisedcommunities of the urban poorseek to engage the state with data,with clear documentation of deficitsin basic needs and more

importantly with solutions theyhave begun to develop inviting thecity leadership to explore thesesolutions and engage in workingtogether to make change happen.

In the last three decades, NSDF andMahila Milan have found that notall city and state political andadministrative set-up agree toengage the community. Yet oenbreakthroughs emerge where theadministrative or political leadersees value in exploring thepossibility presented by the slumdwellers, and explore engagingthem to produce projects that servethe city and the needs of the poor.Over the years there are many suchexamples. • In 2000 the Government of

Maharashtra working toimprove the public transport inthe city of Mumbai3, initiatedthe MUTP (Mumbai UrbanTransport Project) incollaboration with IndianRailways and sought a loan fromthe World Bank. e challengeof relocating 18,000 householdsfrom the railway tracks was onlypossible due to the design andexecution of relocation projectsundertaken by the railway slumdwellers federation through acontract given to SPARC toundertake their relocation

• In 1998, the commissioner ofPune city invited SPARC, NSDFand Mahila Milan to design andundertake the construction ofcommunity toilet blocks in Punewith capital provided by themunicipality, based on a


THEME PAPER

Picture 1 : a toilet block in Pune built by the Mahila Milan

demonstration project showinghow this community toilet blockcould be managed bycommunities. MumbaiMunicipal Corporationsubsequently developed asimilar project and continues toconstruct community toiletblocks in the slums since 2000.Many other cities are exploringthis possibility.

• In 2009, slum federationsaffiliated to NSDF and MahilaMilan in Pune, Nanded,Bhubheshwar and Puri wereinvited by their city to take upBSUP4 projects under JNNURMthat represent a few communitydriven and designed slumupgrading efforts in cityprojects.

• In Pune and Mumbai, policecommissioners worked withMahila Milan, and set up PolicePanchayats where 7 women and3 men from slum communityand a policeman from the localpolice station were invited. Local

community members presentedtheir problems, ranging fromthe to under-age runawaymarriages to kidnapping todomestic violence, and othersuch problems which were dealtwith in most parts incommunity discussions. If thetwo parties were not satisfiedwith the solutions suggested bythe panchayat, they wereassisted to go to the policestation, register an FIR and thepanchayat ensured the problemwas dealt with humanely, so thatthe slum dwellers need not fearthe police and the law.

ese and many such projects haveemerged from various explorations.While they emerge from dialogueand negotiations with an official orpoliticians, once it begins, throughhorizontal exchanges, they inspireother slum dwellers to explore suchpossibilities. Seeing how some otherpoliticians or administrators haveaccepted the strategy, encouragesothers to explore it as well. Once

the city or state governmentundertakes to participate, the scaleof the projects grow exponentially,and attract the attention of thenational government whosepossibility to formulate policies thatother states can take up lead to greatscale and many more communitiesbenefiting from the program.

tHE ValuE of VoIcE VEr-SuS tHE “VoIcES of SluMdwEllErS”

Many years ago, the World Bankproduced a sensitive and valuabledocument called “Voices of thePoor”5. It was insightful fromdifferent points of view. It helpedtop down decision makers to hearwhat the poor had to say about theircircumstances. It provided insightsinto variations of what the poorfrom different regions had to sayabout their circumstances, whichgenerated discussions and debatesabout the need to listen to what thepoor had to say. Within the alliance,however, there was not muchexcitement about such a concept.NSDF and Mahila Milan leadersbelieved that there was a deepdifference between listening to thevoice of slum dwellers and the abilityof slum dwellers to voice their issues.

ey believe that listening to thevoices of the poor is animprovement from ignoring them,but never the less ensures that thepoor don’t decide what needs to bedone, or are deemed incapable ofarticulating what they need andhow it should be delivered or do nothave the capacity to deliver it if the

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Picture 2 : a house under construction in Bhubaneswar.

October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - Shelter

resources are available. ey alsobelieve that such a passivity wherethe poor say what their situation is,with no accountability of theresearcher who documents whatthey say to produce solution,represents complete lack ofaccountability to those who tell youwhat their problems are andtherefore seems unethical to thepoor. It also produces and deepensthe passivity amongst the poor andstrengthens their imagery of beingrecipients and beneficiaries ofwhatever the elite or the state wishesto give them, having no say in whatshould be prioritised.

NSDF and Mahila Milan leadershipoen believe that it is this passivitythat produces the passive yetaggressive actions where people justwalk away from state providedbenefits of housing or livelihood orother services since they neverwanted them in that particular formin the first place. Not repaying loansis another form of rejection of thesolution that comes withoutengagement. ere are manyinstances of such outcomes in statedelivered subsidies of services thatare more easily misconstrued to bethat the poor don’t likedevelopment or by non-payment orselling the asset they demonstratethat it’s better not to give anythingto the poor.

what produces a voice?

is is a question on which there isa great deal of reflection, discussionand debate within the federations ofthe organised poor. ere is, first ofall an acknowledgement thatVOICE - the ability to state one’s

aspirations, demand accountability,engage in possibilities for solvingcritical challenges, engagement incontestation of what should be theright way forward, or taking risksand exploring the unknown... are allvery difficult for most poor andmarginalised individuals andhouseholds whether urban andrural. In urban areas it is more sobecause development interventionsinstead of being supportive remainlargely hostile to the right of thepoor to demand this from the state.Instead, oen the message is thatthey should be grateful for beingallowed to stay. Most firstgeneration migrants oen claim tobe grateful that they have managedto survive in the city. eir childrenborn in the city, however, demandmore and have greater expectation,but remain in beneficiary modeexpecting someone else to give.

So once again what produces avoice? Our experience has shownthat there are many crucialfoundations on the basis of whichvoice and capacity to present theiraspirations, negotiate for solutionsetc can get defined and developed.Firstly, it’s collective and solidarityof association. rough this, thesustained collective engagement,positive self-images and self-beliefthat whatever the poor do tosurvive, emerges from innovation,and solutions emerge within limitedresources and restrictedopportunity. ough such outcomemay be limited, they demonstratethoughtful decision making,collective choice making andingenuity. Secondly, seeing patternsof solutions demonstrate that whatwas considered an isolated strategy

undertaken for expediency, is notincidental or isolated, but seenacross large numbers which makeseach individual and householddevelop collective identity. irdly,having invested in developingsolutions that breach the limitationsof a survival solution producesconfident and positive self-imageand capacity. It also helps to presentthe strategy devised collectively bythe community, especially whenthere is internal consensus that thesolution is acceptable to all.Fourthly, the format of any dialogueproduces impact. When anindividual narrates their situationalone to an outsider, all the sense ofinferiority or insecurity producessupplication, unlike whenprofessionals or administrators areinvited to a large assembly where inthe midst of their peers they presentthe strategy to the administrator orpolitician or professional. Finally,having once breached the divide ofpresenting their perspective todecision makers, they becomebetter at it the next time, and themore they watch others confidentlypresenting their perspective toothers, it inspires them to followtheir new role models.

e challenge of being heard

Yet it is not simple. Just as thecapacity to present and articulatetheir position and aspiration iscrucial and has to be developed, theability to listen, respond andhonour what the poor in slums sayrequires leadership of the elite whoare decision makers, to be able torespond. Oen, well developedpositions by the representatives ofthe poor get ignored or opposed or


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set aside simply because it seems tobe inconceivable that they (thepoor) can have an opinion, aposition or a possible alternative. Inother instances, it may be thatexploring the strategy developed bythe poor means changing policy orpractice which is also considered arisk of reputation. In someinstances, it may conflict with otherinterest groups who are dominantand the capacity to arbitratebetween these interests judiciouslymay not be well developed.

Participation, empowermentand citizenship

At the end of the day, the reality isthat there are more than 30-65 percent of slum dwellers living ininformality in cities in India. Amajority of them are secondgeneration, born in slums of thecity, globally connected and underthe age of 306. ey represent agroup very different from theirmigrating fore fathers. ey areincreasingly net savvy, connected toglobal knowledge and moreembedded in their urban identity.Cities can no longer work only onfiats from the top. Building capacityand support for every segment ofthe city, building networks acrossdifferent sections, facilitatingparticipation and demonstratingassistance for initiates taken locallyis a crucial way forward. Suchprocesses will produceempowerment and createthousands of local initiatives whichcan be woven into a tapestry of citylevel development that works for all.is makes the challenge ofproducing a voice for themarginalised, a crucial and

important milestone for cityleadership, which if suppressed ordenied will produce violentbacklash.

coNcluSIoNS

e big picture challenge oftransforming cities

Craing this article has furthersharpened our own understandingof the value of organisedcommunities of the marginalised asa way to empower and facilitatemainstreaming the participation ofthe urban poor into citydevelopment processes. No longercan a city afford to focus on a fewand ignore the majority. Yet, thesechanges cannot happen easily andquickly. Cities demonstrate themost powerful interlinked andtightly networked population, allinterdependent on each other,whatever may be the socioeconomic or caste or linguisticdifferences. Illness in one locationcan impact everyone else. Be thatclimate linked disasters, traffic jams,health challenges, all affecteveryone. Expanding urban areasare swallowing villages and hamletsmany of which have no urbanservices for decades. Such areasquickly become slums, where itlater becomes almost impossible toprovide amenities and services. Yetneither the residents areempowered with voice initially tomake demands, nor is the city readyto provide amenities early on.

change can’t be brought aboutin a day, a year or 5 years

Producing voice building,

organisational capacity, producingscalable solutions that willdemonstrate change, takes time.Oen the hurry to deliver goodsproduces distortions which are asbad as not providing anything.Sustainable change takes time, andit is only when it is facilitated in amanner that builds capacity, thatchange is sustained and built on.Yet, those who are exploring voiceswant things in a hurry! If and whenthe goals are to develop sustainableand inclusive cities, programs haveto develop a range for actionlearning and refining. People’s voicefacilitates this learning and helpsembed new practices as projectsdevelop.

NotES

1 NSDF2 Gender and Urban Federations3 MUTP Article by IIED4 BSUP Guidelines5 World Bank Paper on Voices of the Poor6 Census on Slums

rEfErENcESCensus of India, Census 2011, 30-09-2013,

Primary Census Abstract for Slum. Government of India, Guidelines of the Basic

Services for the Urban Poor program, a part ofthe Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban RenewalMission, a program by GoI.

Narayan, Deepa, et. al. Voices of the poor is a 3part publication by the World Bank, 1999.

Patel Sheela and Mitlin Diana, “e work ofSPARC, the National Slum Dwellers Federationand Mahila Milan”, working paper 5, WorkingPaper series on poverty reduction in UrbanArea, Dec 2001, by Human SettlementsProgram, IIED.

Patel Sheela and Mitlin Diana, “Gender andUrban Federations”, Making Gender andGeneration Matter for SustainableDevelopment, IIED.

Patel Sheela, D’Cruz Celine and Burra Sundar,“Beyond evictions in a global city, peoplemanaged resettlement in Mumbai”. IIEDEnvironment & Urbanization Vol 14 No 1April 2002.


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is article serves to contextualize the conceptof community participation by emphasizingthat it is a powerful organizing ideal thatadvances the communitarian agenda. Today,participatory planning is seen as an essentialpart of any development agenda in order topromote sustainable change and obtain betterresults. State governments are looking atcommunity participation as integral to planningprocesses, as those plans made without thecontribution of community voices have beenunsustainable and disconnected from groundrealities. State machinery is more and morelooking towards community based plans toensure grounded planning. e main purpose ofcommunity participation is to capturecommunity voices and represent them in thecity’s plans. is article portrays CURE’s workin this realm, illustrating it through fourdifferent case studies across Delhi and Agra:Community Shares in Sewer System for HomeToilets Networked to Trunk Sewers; SharedSeptic Tank in Savda Ghevra ResettlementColony; Spot Fixing the Drainage in NurseryBasti; and Social Coherence to RechargeGround Water and Revive City Wells in Agra.In conclusion it is clear that voices for planningmust come from within the community. Byenabling communities to be part of the actualdecision-making process, CURE helps them tomake that fundamental leap - from voicelessbeneficiaries to vocal owners.

CONTEXTUALIZING COM-MUNITY PARTICIPATION

It is a common misunderstandingthat a community is a social whole

where every individual occupies aclearly defined place and thatpeople’s interactions are mostlycooperative rather than seeped inconflict. In reality, communities areunorganized and heterogeneous,comprised of spatially associatedindividuals with something incommon (Hillery, 1995) shelteringa multitude of varying, competingand oen conflicting interests.ese individuals oen lack a senseof community or social identity andwhile the word community conveysan impression of singularity, this isdeceptive as communities are rarelyclear and identifiable.

In this context, the idea ofcommunity participation holds acentral place in any developmentagenda as it aims to involve peoplein developmental processes byidentifying common goals andinterests, and enabling them to takecollective decisions to overcometheir collective and individualconcerns and to improve theirquality of lives. It is about mininglocal information, recognizing

UNtHINKINg COmmUNIty DEvELOpmENt

Talking the Walk

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In order to generatequalitative information, theindividuals that comprise asettlement, must be deeplyintegrated into the datacollection process - for noone else knows theintricacies of aneighbourhood better thanthose who occupy it. Avariety of ParticipatoryLearning Action (PLA)tools can help build anuanced understanding ofpeople, their problems,resources, assets andchallenges.

Ms. Ila Bose ([email protected]) isProject Associate with CURE, NewDelhi and Dr. Renu Khosla is Directorof the Centre for Urban and RegionalExcellence (CURE), New Delhi.

ILA BOSE

RENU KHOSLA

“It is vain to talk of the interest of a community, withoutunderstanding what is the interest of the individual”

– Jeremy Bentham; philosopher, jurist and social reformer

individual differences, makingchoices, being strategic, leveraginglocal resources, talents andnetworks, and liberating the energyneeded to spark local change.Community participation is a‘powerful organizing ideal’ thatserves to advance thecommunitarian agenda. It is aprocess by which individuals,families, or communities assumeresponsibility for their own welfare,and develop the capacity tocontribute to their own and thecommunity’s development andinfluence the direction andexecution of development projectsrather than merely receive a share ofproject benefits. In other words,community participation is thescaffolding that fosters sustainabledevelopment in and ofcommunities. (Khosla. R, 2014)

Today, community participation isseen as an essential developmentprocess for promoting sustainablechange and achieving better results.Furthermore, its tools and practicesare viewed to be a magical solutionin redevelopment and slumupgrading. State governments arelooking towards communityparticipation as integral to planningprocesses, as those plans madewithout the contribution ofcommunity voices have beenunsustainable and disconnectedfrom ground realities. e Statemachinery is more and morelooking towards community basedplans to ensure grounded planning.

CAPTURING COMMUNITYVOICES

e main purpose of communityparticipation is to capturecommunity voices and representthem in the city’s plans. Suchengagement requires that thecommunities are mobilized,organized and empowered and areready to engage with local agenciesin the processes of planning andimplementation aimed at a betterquality of life. While it is true thatcommunities possess a deepunderstanding of the place and itsproblems, the individuals that makeup a community are usually notvery involved with each other andare caught up in the hustle bustle ofcity life, which makes for a certaindegree of individualism. To plan fora community by involvingindividuals, it is important to firstbuild a ‘sense of community’.

e idea of community comes witha better understanding of the peoplewho are spatially associated. Beforedrawing conclusions about them, itis fundamental to gather as muchinformation about them and theirliving area as possible, both thearithmetic and the ground realities.In order to generate qualitativeinformation, the individuals thatcomprise a settlement, must bedeeply integrated into the datacollection process - for no one elseknows the intricacies of aneighbourhood better than thosewho occupy it. A variety ofParticipatory Learning Action(PLA) tools can help build a

nuanced understanding of people,their problems, resources, assetsand challenges. While the gathereddata can help build up developmentplans, the process of evidencebuilding – getting the social,economic, cultural and physicaldetails - helps bring people together.During community workshops andmeetings, people are encouraged toshare their stories, needs andconcerns; discuss solutions to theirproblems and to create socialnetworks and systems that gluepeople together. People learn tocome together, to work on sharedproblems and set aside theirpersonal agenda, choose theirleaders and champions and createtrusting relationships.

Planning with and by thecommunity is critical to the processof sustainable communitydevelopment. Street level meetings,focused group discussions andlarger community meetings, helpshape the plans of the people thatseek to address issues of improvingtheir settlements with better basicservices of water, home toilets,improved drains, wastewatertreatment systems etc. Deeperdiscussions on the what, how,where, when, and who of the plans,results in innovative andreimagined solutions for addressingthe community’s concerns,infrastructural inadequacies as wellas behavioural issues.

Eventually, community voices mustfind their way into a city’s plan. einformation gathered from severalsettlements, needs to be organized

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in way that the planners andengineers of the government areable to analyse and fold these withintheir plans. By overlayingcommunity plans on formalsettlement maps, and usingGeographic Information System(GIS) platforms, the data acrosscommunities can be stitchedtogether, spatially analysed andmerged into grand plans for manymore communities. esecommunity based informationsystems help governments to makethis leap from one-size-fits-allplanning mode to planning that ismore granulated with localized,contextualized and customizedsolutions.

Women, young people and inter-ested groups, who will be part of theimplementation of these plans areencouraged to form street and usergroups, nurturing their local lead-ership and empowering them,crowd sourcing their talents and in-cluding them in the process ofplanned upgrading (Khosla, R.2014). e most productive way toinvolve people systematically in theprocess of planning is to organizethem into various groups responsi-ble for achieving specific goals– Toi-let Groups (for monitoring commu-nity toilet management), YouthGroups (responsible for all youthrelated activities and involvement),Women’s Health Clubs (functioningas health monitoring bodies andself-help facilities) etc. By organiz-ing people into groupings with clearresponsibilities, implementationplans of the community get drawnup.

NURTURING COMMUNITYPARTNERSHIPS

e Centre for Urban and RegionalExcellence (CURE) is adevelopment organization, whosecore strength is working with low-income and poor communities.Communities are where CURE’shome is. From these communitiesemerges the new imagination andvision for change that CURE uses tocurate an enabling environment forpro-poor urban and social policyand the notion of an inclusive andequal city. CURE helps to amplifythe ‘voices of people’ giving themthe strength and weight of collectiveaction, in particular those that maybe excluded by virtue of being verypoor, women, disabled, ormarginalized for reasons of caste,class and religion. By enablingcommunities to be part of the actualdecision-making process, CUREhelps make that fundamental leap -from beneficiaries to owners.

CURE’s close work with thecommunity is being traced herethrough four examples of itscommunity-led initiatives in Delhiand Agra.

Sewer System for Home ToiletsNetworked to Trunk Sewers

Sapheda Basti, is an illegal slumcommunity in the Geeta Colonyarea in East Delhi. It has 650families - mostly migrants, yetmany who have been living here forover 30 years. e settlement is anencroachment on DelhiDevelopment Authority land andhas minimal basic services, on

shared basis. In most families, allmembers work as skilled/unskilledlabour, locally or from home, andhave a combined monthly averageincome of Rs. 15,000. CURE hasbeen working with this settlementsince 2011 on improving people’saccess to basic water and sanitationfacilities. Community interactionshave been at the core of CURE’swork in this settlement and havebeen used as a mechanism toidentify the core issues, theresidents of this area face. During itswork with the community, a keyconcern that was repeatedly cited bythe people was the poor quality ofthe public toilet – deeming it to bean insufficient, unsanitary andunhealthy option. Residentsdreamed of having private toilets,recognizing these to be safe,dignified and healthy solutions.ey voiced their concerns over therisk women and girls faced in usingthe community toilet or whendefecating in the open, when thetoilet closed up. ey alsorecognized, that it was through thetoilet that diseases were spreading,and that illness kept men andwomen out of work andunproductive, and the familiespoor. e residents offered to sharethe cost of a regular system. eyorganized themselves into an O &M committee and set up a bankaccount to which householdsstarted contributing theirinvestment, they took charge of allliaisoning with engineers andcontractors and also over the actualconstruction process. In addition tothis the residents became moreactive in their engagement with the


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local sanitary committee membersand ensured regular cleaning oftheir streets and drains.

is was an idea that came from thepeople, who were helped withmaking the choice – aer discussingthe good and the bad of each.CURE converted the idea into anengineering design and assisted thecommunity in the meetings andinteractions with governmentofficials.

e community-led sanitationsolution has enhanced the socialcapital of Safeda Basti byencouraging collective action,association, decision-making,consensus building and resourcesharing. It has also strengthenedcommunity leadership by helpingthe poor understand their

entitlements and building theirability to negotiate for theirentitlements. An importantoutcome of this participativeprocess is the sustainability of theinitiative, as the community is now

in control, an attribute that is ofessence to the vulnerable poor.

Shared Septic Tank in SavdaGhevra Resettlement Colony,Delhi

Savda Ghevra is the largest recentlyplanned resettlement colony in NewDelhi without the planned basicservices that must go with anyplanned development - piped watersupply, underground sewerage forhome toilets, roads etc. In resettlingslum dwellers in Savda Ghevra, theplan has been for community toilets– even as there was secure landtenure here. Toilets became aprimary need once livelihoods werere-established in the new site.Despite plentiful lands, opendefecation was common as thecommunity toilets were un-

operational. It was provingdangerous – fears of sexual andphysical assault were paramount.Houses were small, self-built andstructurally weak and while makinghome toilets with septic tanks was

an option, people were recognizingthat their poorly constructed tankswere leaching into ground waterand creeping up the house walls,besides creating a dangerous holeunderneath, precipitating collapse.Numerous discussions with thecommunity, predominantly women,resulted in the idea of home toiletsconnected to a shared septic tank,away from individual homes.

To identify the required technicalaspects for the constructionprocess, leaders were identifiedfrom each street who worked withCURE to search for the contractor,address resident issues, oversee thebuilding etc. ese leaders enabledCURE to work on the technicalportion of the initiative while takinginto account the social aspect of thesettlement and its individuals. e

street leaders also collected themoney for de-sludging and regularmaintenance and deposited it into thebank account of the O&M committee.During the construction process, thepoorest also got to work on the


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Source: Energy Statistics 2011, Central Statistics Office, Government of India; India Energy Handbook 2011; Kumar, S (2011) Benchmarking Energy Use inBuildings and Cleanrooms, ISA Vision Summit, Bangalore

Development of Design Plan with Residents for a Slum Networking System in Sapheda BastiFigure 1 :


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project and earn money.

A design solution was engineered,that was capable of being built,managed, and maintained by thepeople - a community-basedsanitation system connecting 322household toilets to a shared septictank and an up-flow filter thatforms a decentralized wastewatertreatment system (DEWAT) to treatthe black and grey waters in SavdaGhevra for reuse.

From its inception, the processaccounted for sustainability throughinformally chosen street leadersrepresenting the residents who weretrained in the long-term O&M ofthe community septic tank andDEWAT. Households connectinginto the system also decided tocontribute a small fee, to financelong-term O&M expenses -engendering local responsibilityand accountability. A communityled solution has de-engineered a

sanitation solution capable ofproviding in-house services in thecity’s unplanned urban fringe.

Spot Fixing the Drainage inNursery Basti, Delhi

Nursery basti, with a population ofapproximately 210 households, issituated in East Delhi. CURE beganits community engagement bytrying to understand the contextand form an initial rapport usingPLA tools. People were involved inmapping their settlement, identifyingthe hotspots and prioritizing theirneeds. e community angst relatedto the unfinished drainage systemin the settlement. One particularspot that was the most troublesomewas where all the water from onepart of the settlement drained to,with nowhere to go. Adding to thechaos was the school in theneighbourhood that had made anopening in its wall to let out its

wastewater, flooding the roadeveryday. Besides the deterioratingstate of the road, the stagnatingwater on the road was resulting inhigh incidence of illnesses. With thehelp of the community, CURE studiedthe drain and discussed possiblesolutions. e plan was to make thelast mile connection to the slum drain,intercept and convey the schoolwastewater through an undergroundpipe into the drain, deepen and de-silt the existing drain and connect itto the city’s main drain through thecommunity toilet.

A sanitation monitoring committeewas mobilized. Group memberscame up with a system to monitorthe construction process. Locallabour and masons were identifiedfor the construction even as thegroup oversaw the process.Simultaneously, awareness meetingswere held with the community tobuild a sense of responsibility – to

Mobilization of Street Leaders for implementation of Shared Septic Tank Initiative in Savda GhevraFigure 2 :

Spot Fixing with Sanitation Monitoring Committee in Nursery Basti for Repairing Drainage SystemFigure 3 :

prevent disposal of plastic and otherwaste into the drain that wouldchoke it. By fixing a spot, an overallimprovement in the hygiene andsanitation in the communitybecame apparent. e city’s supportcame in the form of a resurfacedroad.

Social Coherence to RechargeGround Water and Revive CityWells in Agra

Agra has over the years lost many ofits natural and social foundations,especially with regard to water. ecollapse of the water system of Agrais the result of a fragmented societyand the unsustainable environmentalactions and decisions of itscommunities. Tajganj is a group of 13settlements in the neighbourhood ofthe Taj Mahal. ey are slummy,lack water and have poor sanitation.Ground water tables in the areawere rapidly dropping. Because thearea was not fully networked topiped water and/or had erraticsupplies, people were drawing waterfrom individual bore wells withoutrealizing the damage to theenvironment. Over the years theground water quality haddeteriorated and the numerouswater wells that traditionally servedthe water needs of people in the areahad dried up. CURE is working withthe residents of these settlements todo four things; conserve water,harvest rainwater, recharge waterinto the ground and treat and reusewastewater. Neighbourhood groupsare coming together to map theirareas, generate a water footprint,discuss options and solutions etc.

Traditional fairs and festivals,associated rituals and cras of thesecommunities are being revived –evening temple prayers, kite flyingfestivals, monsoon festivals (Sawanke Somwar), pigeon flying contests,henna, sanjhi art, etc.; rebuildingthe inherent knowledge of people oftheir area, crowdsourcing theirparticular wisdom and designingsolutions for nudging the ecologicalcycle back to its natural state.

CONCLUSIONS

Conceptualizing and implementingengineering and technologicalsolutions for the betterment of acommunity through an umbrellaapproach, makes up one end of thedevelopmental spectrum. e otherelements that constitute thisspectrum and must be tappedinclude retrofitting designsoriginating from the communitiesand targeting behaviour change.Without including the ideas ofpeople on the ground and in theabsence of awareness andknowledge building, investments bythe city in infrastructuralimprovement and physicalupgradation may just happen to fallby the wayside. It is imperative that

time is spent in understanding thevarious social, psychological andcultural facets that make up theindividuals that inhabitcommunities in urban settings –that come from different areas, lackcohesion or a common notion oftheir community or city.

Voices for planning must comefrom within the community. Withtechnical solutions these can beconverted into plans and designs.Accompanied by a rhythmiccapacity building and behaviouralexercises, communities can becomecoherent partners, takingresponsibility for their livingenvironments, upgrading andmanagement. is process takestime to be nurtured and skills tomanage.

CURE works closely withcommunities, oen for years,building rapport, mutualunderstanding and trust. ere isno work that can begin withoutunderstanding the differingparameters set by the individualsthat make up a settlement. CUREbelieves in un-thinking, re-imagining and re-socializing asettlement’s planning narrative,


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Development of Design Plan with Residents for a SlumNetworking System in Sapheda BastiFigure 4 :

complete with de-engineeredsolutions. e foundation of thisapproach is to do away with fixednotions and old templates andapproaching a group of peoplewithout presuppositions andassumptions and to use theopportunity to de-complex and de-engineer systems and solutions.

It is the work of NGO’s to assimilateand try to absorb the needs of the

poor into city level planning. It isimportant for the State to make realspace for community voices. CUREbegins its work with a communityimagined as a tabularasa, a cleanslate.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

e mentioned projects have been carried out byCURE’s dedicated team of project coordinators,

facilitators and field staff. In this regard it isimportant to acknowledge the work of – ManishKumar, Pranav Singh, Rajesh Kumar, ShahenaKhan, Siddharth S. Pandey and Sukant Shukla inthe successful implementation of the initiatives.

REFERENCESHillery, G. A. (1955). Definitions of Community:

Areas of Agreement Rural Sociology, Vol. 20,111-123

Khosla, R. (2014), Community Participation:Deconstructing the Challenge

Khosla, R. (2014), Agra’s Street Culture, SeminarMagazine

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GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSIONS OF ARTICLES

As the Government of India has set thegoal of providing ‘affordable housing forall by 2022’, this paper suggests revisitingthe social housing priorities in India andlearning from the precedents that haveproven successful in India and abroad.Arguing through a set of eightfundamental questions posed to allstakeholders in affordable housing, thepaper calls for according housing afundamental right status and concludesthat given the huge shortage of urbanhousing in India, especially for theeconomically weaker sections and lowerincome groups of the society, majorintervention is needed now in affordablehousing before the problem gets worse,due to projected increases in urbanpopulation.

IntroduCtIon

Housing impacts every indicator ofhuman development. Homeless-ness, housing poverty and illegalitynegatively impact economic oppor-tunities, water supply, sanitation,health, education as well as psycho-logical and social wellbeing of peo-ple. However, even aer 67 years ofIndependence, housing is still not afundamental right in India, just likethe Right to Education or the Rightto Information. Efforts in the mid1980s to enshrine the Right toHousing in the constitution failedand have not been attempted since

then1. We need to question ourcommitment to this goal. Onlywhen we have the courage to askfundamental questions such as thisthat are at the core of our society,can we achieve the results worthy ofour nation. It is with this intentionthat the questions below are posedfor, and to all the stakeholders in af-fordable housing in India.

Q1: Is speculative urbanism athreat to affordable housing andsocial equity in India today?

Following the neo-liberal model ofeconomic development that hasincreasingly gained popularity inmany countries in the past twodecades, Indian governmentalorganizations at the state as well ascity level have become brokersrather than providers of socialgood, with a goal to monetize andcapitalize on public and urban landrather than regulate and guardagainst market failure andexclusions. Inadequate access tohousing adversely affects not onlythe quality of life for the majority ofour people, but also the quality ofthe human resources available tothe private sector players, wholobby for the neo-liberal model, inturn affecting their own growth andprosperity in the long run.

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HousinG in indiA

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In 2012-13, 95 per cent ofthe financing in the housingsector flowed to middle andhigh-income group housingfrom the public sectorbanks and housing financecompanies, where theshortage is a mere 4 percent. Compared to this,only 5 per cent of thefinancing flowed to theeconomically weakersection and low-incomegroup housing from thesesources, where the unmetneed is of the order of 95per cent.

Ms. Geeta Mehta ([email protected]) isadjunct professor at the GraduateSchool of Architecture, Planning &Preservation, Columbia University, NewYork.

GEETA MEHTA

While market forces can ensure thathousing is made in the mostefficient way, these forces cannotensure that every one gets at leastminimum acceptable shelter. ishas been well illustrated in the caseof Bangalore, where illegality,housing poverty and homelessnesshas increased in tandem witheconomic development andliberalization since 1990s. It hasbeen argued that such economicdevelopment not only stimulateshomelessness but is actuallydependent upon it.2

Current policy frameworks have anincreasing emphasis on privateactors and developers, and the roleof housing as an economic goodseems to outweigh its role as acomponent of welfare and socialsecurity. In 2012-13, 95 per cent3 ofthe financing in the housing sectorflowed to middle and high-incomegroup housing from the publicsector banks and housing financecompanies, where the shortage is amere 4 per cent. Compared to this,only 5 per cent of the financingflowed to the economically weakersection and low-income grouphousing from these sources, wherethe unmet need is of the order of 95per cent. is was despite the factthat affordable housing is a sectormarked for priority lending by theReserve Bank of India.

A major factor for increasing socialinequality in India in recent yearshas been the sale of large tracts offarm land to developers at

throwaway prices, who then go onto develop these lands for middle orhigh income housing, reapingprofits in the range of 100~400 percent on their investments. eseprofits are multiples of those for realestate developments in any othercountry, including China. e cityor state governments in India rarelyimpose obligations on developers tocontribute adequately to thebuilding of equitable social andphysical infrastructure outside theirproperties. Capacity building oftown planning offices, so that theycan adequately negotiate publicgood from private developers, andmake the land sales, permission andinspection systems moretransparent, can help this situation.

State and city governments havealso failed to enforce the mandatoryreservation of land for low-incomehousing. Delhi set for itself a verylow quota for low-income housing,and even failed to meet that. Inorder for adequate amount ofaffordable housing to be provided,mandating reservation of land forsuch housing can prove useful.Lease instead of sale of land mustalso be considered to ensure thatthe spirit of the law is protected inthe long term. is has beeneffective in Singapore, where land isgiven only on lease, and 80 per centof the population lives in socialhousing.

Q2: Informality and legality inhousing

While the formal sector in India has

reaped the benefits of India’s robustGDP growth over the past twodecades, the informal sector hasbeen marginalized further.Outdated concepts of legality leavea large number of people in Indiaoutside the proverbial bell jar,articulated by the economistHernando De Soto in his famousbook “e Mystery of Capital”.4

Intermediate forms of legality,transitional housing andprogressive building codes need tobe devised to protect the mostvulnerable people whose housingneeds are not being met under thecurrent policy frameworks.Redefinition of legality mustinclude various forms of housingownership and rentals to enable allurban residents to enter the legalhousing market.

Individual residents can also beillegal within a legal settlement.Resettlement colonies, wherepeople evicted from squatted landare given legal plots are intended tobe the sole owner-occupiers,making resale and renting illegal.However, rental housing comprisesanywhere from one-third to one-half of all resettlement colonies butthe renters are deemed illegal,reducing the urban poor to thestatus of an illegal encroacher whocan be evicted. It has been shownthat families thus evicted rarelyrecover from this shock, due to lossof assets built with hard earnedsavings, loss of livelihoods oradditional burden of commuting,increased violence, and large-scaledropouts from schools.5

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Q3: Whom is affordable housingfor?

Affordable housing should not bejust for those who can afford it, butfor improving living conditions inthe entire spectrum of housingpoverty. is includes homelesspeople on the street, squatters nearwater bodies, and squatters onprime urban land. ere are alsohierarchies among squatters, withwomen headed households who arerenters and sub-renters, being themost vulnerable and deprived.While 53 per cent of all housesnationally do not have a latrinewithin the premises, the figure risesto 66 per cent and 77 per cent forScheduled Caste and ScheduledTribe households and within themto 78 per cent and 88 per cent forfemale-headed SC and SThouseholds. However, in every slumredevelopment project, these are thegroups most likely to be evictedwithout compensation.

Migrants, who come to the city forseasonal work, do not perhaps evenwant a permanent house.Dormitory housing for them, suchas was built for mill workers inchawls in Mumbai, is a goodsolution and should not beoverlooked. Affordable housingneeds to be conceptualized as acontinuum of achievable steps thatpoor and vulnerable families canembark on- improving theircondition as they climb up the stepsdevised by policy, and aided bysocial programs and people’s ownefforts.

e post-war Japan did not haveresources to build individual homesfor the workers who were needed topower its industrial rise, so micro-housing and dormitories for menand women were built in allindustrial cities. However, suchminimal housing was supported bystrong social and physicalinfrastructure that greatly helped inoverall societal development. Better regional and urbantransportation to enablecommuting from distant affordablehousing to places of employmentshould also be considered duringthe planning stages.

Q4: Are mixed-use mixed-incomehousing developments better forthe city?

Zoning laws from the post warperiod that sought to segregatecities into industrial, residential andcommercial zones did not learnfrom the many vibrant traditionaltowns around the world. In tryingto protect residential areas fromindustrial pollution, they alsosegregated non-polluting industriesand commercial uses that werecompatible with residential uses, inturn making the city moreinefficient for its users. Newerplanning systems are moving awayfrom this paradigm by promotingmixed-use development.

Mixed-income developments makea city more socially equitable,allowing various income groups tointeract, thus reducing mutualdistrust that can lead to insecurityand fear. Interdependence of low

and high-income communities is afact of life in India, so proximity ofthe two income classes should beexpressed in shared infrastructureand social spaces. Japan’s veryhierarchical pre-modern societywas turned into a modern, mostlyhomogenous middle class, withinone generation by creating sharedsocial housing, schools and othersocial institutions for all. WhileJapan’s success of engineeringnational pride and communalharmony is difficult to emulate,lessons can be learnt from it. Whencities with more social segregationin USA were bustling with race riotsin 1980s, such unrest was limited inNew York due to the various socialclasses rubbing shoulders on thesubway and other public places,reducing the level of distrust andresentment.

e power of mixed incomedevelopments to reduce socialtensions is also evident in Mumbai,the most socially integrated andtherefore, more vibrant and tolerantof all Indian cities, despite thepolitical rhetoric. e quintessentialimage of Mumbai is that of luxurysky- scrapers with informal housingand urban villages right next door.While it may surprise a visitor, it isa healthy solution till enoughaffordable housing is built to giveeveryone a step on the formalhousing ladder.

Mayor De Blasio of New York Cityis following the example of manycities that are realizing the power ofmixing income groups. Whiledevelopers could get additional


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Street based urbanism helps improve lifestyles, a feeling of social solidarity, and economic opportunities.Picture 1:

floor space index as an incentive forbuilding affordable housing, it willnow be made mandatory for all newhousing developments. RooseveltIsland in New York built in the1960s is a good example of marketrate and subsidized housing along astreet that serves as a commontransport and commercial spine.Via Verde in Bronx, built in 2012, isan award-winning example ofmixed income, multi-generationaland mixed-use development, wherethe commercial spaces, low-incomerentals and ownership apartmentsare all built to the same highstandard of design and materiality,but financed and regulatedseparately in one complex. Suchlocal policies and results are easierto institute in New York due to thestrong Mayoral system of city

governance, but much harder toachieve where top down stategovernments are hard to holdaccountable for local city matters. Q5: Is street-based urban designbetter for housing than “towers inthe park”?

People in low-incomeneighborhoods depend upon eachother to meet their daily needs, butgood neighborliness benefits richand poor alike. Eyes on the streetand a feeling of togetherness, thatJane Jacobs wrote so passionatelyabout, enriches public life. e“tower in the park” housingtypology propagated by Modernistslike Le Corbusier hamperspossibilities of such sharing andadversely affects the social capital,

lifestyles and incomes of poorcommunities. e unkempt leover spaces in between the towersin Gautam Nagar in Mumbai are agood example of bad urban design.Traditional Indian cities were builtalong streets, which are the ultimatepublic spaces open to all. ey arespaces for socializing, trade andfun.

‘Tower in the park urbanism’ inhigher-income new developmentsin Gurgaon and other such place isalso sterile and uncomfortable forlong-term living. It prioritizes carsand makes walking or bikingunpleasant, or even dangerous.While the most developedNorthern European cities are tryinghard to encourage walking andcycles, Gurgaon is repeating all the


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relocating people from vibrant informal communities into poorly designed high-rise housing blocksdestroys social capital and adversely effects people’s lives and livelihoods.Picture 2 :

mistakes of Modernism. It is nosurprise that Gurgaon leads in thenumber of incidents of violenceagainst women.

Q6: Can incremental affordablehousing help in wealth creationfor homeowners?

Owner-built incremental housingwas the norm in housing in India aswell as most other countries till justa few decades ago. Such housing, inslums and higher incomeneighborhoods, could be adapted tofamilies as they grew or changed.Even very-low income sites andservices scheme such as Hai ElSalam in Egypt, Orangi Project inPakistan and Aranya Township inIndia have shown that incrementalhousing helps in wealth creation ofowners. Incremental wealth

creation is also popular in suburbanhousing in United States ofAmerica, where owners add equityto their homes by buildingadditional parking or bedrooms.Adequate infrastructure and basicurban services are the key to suchtransformation.

For reasons sited above, a finishedhouse built of permanent (pucca)material, should not be the onlyform of affordable housing.Traditional mud, bamboo andthatched houses were not onlyclimatically suited to theirenvironment, but were also 100 percent recyclable and comfortable.is was empowering for the peopleas they could build, repair andexpand houses by themselves. enew fixation on pucca houses isrendering such homes illegal, also

resulting in loss of building cratraditions.

Q7: Can affordable housinginspire pride among residents?Social housing is oen built withpoor design and cheap materials, asa visual symbol of poverty. is isparticularly true of high-riseresettlement colonies. Tower inpark type of social housing inPruitt–Igoe in Saint Louis in USAwas so hated by its residents that ithad to be dynamited down in 1972.e stigma attached to living inapartments, in an environmentwhere people had been conditionedby the real estate market to desireindividual homes on a private lot,added to the residents’ sense ofalienation. However, similar socialhousing in Japan proved quitesuccessful as people considered

them symbols of the rise of middleclass and of national pride andprogress.

Ideally, social housing should be in-tegrated into other neighborhoods.Singapore is a good example of highstandards in design and materials insocial housing, where a variety ofhousing typologies and budgets arealso provided in close proximity toeach other to facilitate an integratedsociety.

e new Social Urbanism inMedellin is a good recent exampleof what strong and positivebuildings can do for the self-confidence and social developmentof neighborhoods. Librariesdesigned by world famousarchitects placed in the poorestareas of Medellin have become hubsof learning, community action andhope. Cable cars that are bringingpublic transport access toneighborhoods on most difficultterrains are integrating the city andreducing crime at a remarkable rate.

Q8: How best can communitiesparticipate in affordable housing?

While the importance of user-participation in affordable housingis understood, it is not easy andoen not undertaken. ere aresuccessful examples of NGOs suchas Slum Dwellers Internatonal(SDI)6 helping18,000 householdsparticipate in the design andexecution of their own relocation

plans for a relocation project inMumbai in 2000. URBZ7 , anothercommunity based organization inMumbai helps communitiesenvision and improve individualhomes and neighborhoods.However, the real challenge ofaffordable housing is in operationand maintenance. While individualfamilies can maintain and repair asmall single-family house, thesystems to maintain multi-familyaffordable housing in India are notyet in place. is is evident fromthe dilapidated condition of eventhe recently built high-riseaffordable housing projects.

SoCCs or Social Capital Credits8 isa system of exchange for socialgood, designed to incentivizecommunities to be involved in theirneighborhoods and multi-familybuildings in rich as well as poorneighborhoods. Communities arehelped to develop SoCC Earningand SoCC Spending menus relatedto the design, construction,operation and maintenance ofhousing. SoCCs can be earned forparticipation in building relatedactivities, waste management,maintaining public areas andstreets, improving neighborhoodsafety etc. Earned SoCCs can thenbe redeemed for products andservices such as telephone talk time,skill building courses, healthcareand school scholarships. e systemalso nurtures the social capital ofcommunities, developing localleadership and pride.

ConCluSIonS

Overall, there is a need to revisit oursocial housing priorities and learnfrom the precedents that haveproven successful in India andabroad. Major intervention isneeded now in affordable housingbefore the problem gets worse dueto projected increase in urbanpopulation. Access to affordableand appropriate housing must beseen as a public good, theprotection and provision of whichrequires a strong publiccommitment; and a recognition ofhousing as a right and anentitlement. Such commitment canresult in benefits across all sectorsand all parts of our nation.

referenCeS1 India Exclusion Report 2013-14, Action

Enterprise, Bangalore, India. First Edition.ISBN 987-81-926907-0-4

2 Graham Tipple and Suzanne Speak. erelationship between economic developmentand homelessness in South East Asia.University of Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.Accessed athttp://r4d.dfid.gov.uk/PDF/Outputs/HumanSecurity/ConfPapereRelationshipBetweenEconomicDevelopmentAndHomelessnessinSouthEastAsia.pdf.

3 Trends & Progress of Housing in India,Published by National Housing Bank, 2013

4 Hernando De Soto, e Mystery of Capital:Why Capitalism Triumphs in the West andFails Everywhere Else, 2000

5 India Exclusion Report 2013-14. ActionEnterprise, Bangalore, India. First Edition.ISBN 987-81-926907-0-4

6 https://strikingpoverty.worldbank.org/c130103

7 https://urbz.net8 www.asiainitiatives.org/soccs/


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With the majority of affordable housing supplycoming from the incremental housing segment,the government and financial institutions—aswell as the not-for-profit sector—must find waysto engage and support this housing typologythrough policy and techno-financialinstruments.

is requires a paradigm shi that seeks toinclude and not further marginalise informalareas of the city, where most incrementalhousing is built. Besides providing of basicservices like water supply, sewerage andsanitation, it is important to provide technicalassistance to self-help homeowners to improvehousing quality in the form of trained masonsand community architects. Access to finance, thebiggest obstacle for the urban poor in ensuringhousing security, can be addressed by delinkingit from legal titles. Instead, by thinking of tenurenot as title, but as a right to occupy property, theurban poor can be facilitated with small- andmedium- sized loans to incrementally improvetheir housing, making it easier not only toprovide adequate space for growing families andthus reduce crowding, but also to provideadditional space for home-based businesses andfor informal rental, all of which enhance incomeand help bring needy families out of poverty.

BACKGROUND

Despite government statistics thatclaim that the absolute urbanhousing shortage in terms ofnumber of housing units hasreduced in India, the new figurebeing 18.7 million instead of 24.7million, the fact remains that toomany Indians do not have adequateaccess to shelter. Many more citydwellers live in poor conditions on

account of extreme crowding,structurally unsafe buildings andhomes located in neighbourhoodsthat do not have access to basicamenities such as sanitation andpotable water and are unable toaccess housing finance to improvetheir housing conditions.

A deeper reading of NSSO data aswell as field analysis highlight thatthe concern about the sheernumber of housing units is a lesserone as compared to the worryingissue of overcrowding, with over 5people sharing a room being thenorm. Low-income families needadequate space and the flexibility tobe able to add space to homes formultipurpose use of dwelling, forlivelihood activities, accommodatefamily expansion and/or addressingrental demand. It is in appreciatingthis detail that the dichotomy isrevealed between the existinghousing supply for low-income andcommonly advocated schemes ofgovernment and private sector onaffordable housing.

e majority of urban housingsupply, especially low- lowermiddle-income housing, is self-built and incremental. is natureof housing offers flexibility thatincorporates changing family sizesand economic conditions. It lends

21October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - SheLteR

ShiftiNg the houSiNg PaRadigM

Embracing Incremental Construction and Access to Finance in Low-Income Neighbourhoods

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At present, between 30-60per cent of housing units inlow income settlements areon rent. India’s rentalhousing is beingsuccessfully and efficientlysupplied by homeowners inlow income settlements,making it entry point formigrants that are movinginto the city for bettereconomic opportunity.

Ms. Mukta Naik ([email protected]) is a freelancearchitect and urban planner working inthe area of low-income housing. Shealso teaches at the School of Planningand Architecture, New Delhi. Ms.Rakhi Mehra is co-founder of microhome solutions (mHS), New Delhi.

Mukta Naik

Rakhi MehRa

itself naturally to the social realityof the extended Indian family.Moreover, incrementally builtneighbourhoods are capable ofattaining the low-rise high-densityform that is now, in the wake of aglobal awareness aboutenvironmental sustainability,considered desirable due to betterthermal comfort and low carbonfootprint.

e government policy has focussedon supply-side interventions i.ecreation of contractor-deliveredformal sector housing for the urbanpoor, whether by the public orprivate sector. Citing high landprices and unavailability of urbanland as the prime reasons, thissupply is usually in the form ofapartments ranging from 25 squaremetres to 60 square metres locatedin high-rise energy inefficientbuildings, away from city centresadding to transportation costs aswell as impacting livelihoodopportunities.

is paper argues for a favourablepolicy environment for incrementalhousing that ensures adequatequality of affordable homes byleveraging the existing investmentson the ground in low-incomesettlements. Cognizant of the hugeimpediments posed by the issue oftenure and legality, the article shallfocus on highlighting the valuegenerated by incremental housing,identifying the significantcomplexities associated with thistypology of housing. Further, thepaper proposes techno-financialpolicy solutions to deliver scalableimpact for urban low-income

households. Many of theseobservations emerge from aworkshop on ‘Informality andIncremental Housing’ co-hosted bymicro Home Solutions (mHS) withthe Centre for Policy Research(CPR) in June 2013.

WHY SUPPORT INCREMEN-TAL HOUSING?

e paper takes the position thatincremental housing is the onlyviable and scalable model fordelivering affordable housing inIndia today and in the future,primarily because it decentralisesthe construction-process and offersmore decision-making power tohouseholds. Moreover, self-builthousing is progressive housing. Bynature, it improves over time withfurther savings and investments,unlike developer-built apartmenthousing that is at the risk ofdilapidation and poor maintenancein the long run.

Socio-economic advantages

e urban form of high-densitylow-rise neighbourhoods respectsthe livelihood, socio-cultural ethosand lifestyle choices of low-incomesegments. Mixed-income andmixed-use neighbourhoods add toeconomic vitality, safety on streetsand multi-functional use of space.

Self-help housing supports localbusinesses and entrepreneurship.Construction activity in theseneighbourhoods employ localmasons and contractors and givesbusiness to local material suppliers.Beyond business transactions, themarket reinforces social

relationships. In many cases,homeowners are able to lower thecost of construction by availingsecond hand materials andcontributing their own labour orcontracting skills. Self-help housingpromotes recycling of buildingmaterials and contributes tosustainability.

Affordability

Incremental investment makesimproved housing and increasedspaces affordable to homeownersover a period of time.

It leverages government investmentand scarce resources ininfrastructure with householdefforts in finance, home buildingand improvement. A quickestimation of the governmentresettlement colonies in Delhi,home to 2.1 million people, revealsthat over USD 1.3 billion have beeninvested by low income householdsover a period of 30 years (at today’sprices)1 . ese investments havelargely been made with thehouseholds’ own savings andborrowings and access to expensiveinformal credit. e numbersclearly indicate that once givenaccess to serviced land in well-networked urban developmentareas, low-income households havethe ability and capacity toundertake home construction. Newand innovative financial productsare being designed and offered byhousing finance companies such asSwarna Pragati, India ShelterHousing Finance, SEWA2 Grih Rinetc. to address the issues of tenureand mortgage finance for the low

22 hudCo - hSMi Publication

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income households with averageloans sizes of Rs 2 lakhs.

Supply of affordable rentalhousing

At present, between 30-60 per centof housing units in low incomesettlements are on rent3 . India’srental housing is being successfullyand efficiently supplied byhomeowners making it entry pointfor migrants that are moving intothe city for better economicopportunity. Government programsto directly own and manage rentalstock have failed in this regard- theyare over regulated, over subsidisedand few and far between. Masshousing schemes do not address thelarge-scale demand for a diverse setof rental options- dormitories,shared rooms, family etc.Supporting incremental housingthrough policy measures will,therefore, encourage currenthomeowners to offer more and

better quality spaces for rent andreduce the prevalence ofovercrowding, squatting andcreation of new slums.

SIGNIfICANT COMPLExI-TIES

Despite several advantages, self-help housing is associated withlimited urban planning, poorinfrastructure, over-crowding andillegality. Rather than embrace theIndian-ness and ingenuity ofhomegrown neighbourhoods,several policy documents in thepast have classified such areas asslums. Planners have rejected thepossibility of high-density, low-riseliving and promoted developmentnorms that embrace the idea ofsingle use zoning. e internationalview is, however, changing due toconcerns on social unrest and theenvironment and, therefore, highdensity is being encouraged.Indeed, it is a necessity in order to

be able to reconcile urbanization inthe context of climate change.

ere are some critical barriers thatneed to be understood andaddressed by multi-stakeholderefforts and coordination.

Legality and tenure

It has been a stumbling block forgovernments as well as financiers torecognise the positive aspects ofincremental housing and to thinkbeyond the barriers of legality andtenure.

Many incrementally builtneighbourhoods are formalisedover-time. e settlements usuallypossess some security of tenure,however, complications exist. Eitherthe land use is not residential bymaster plan or settlers havesquatted on land owned bygovernment or private individuals.Oen a monetary transaction isinvolved, which is not registered ordocumented. Some informalsettlements come up onenvironmentally unsuitable landsuch as floodplains and alongcanals. It is important to admit thatwhile all informal settlements maynot be tenable and may requireother thoughtful interventions andrelocation, over 50 per cent of theself-built settlements are on plottedlands, with opportunity for home-improvements4 .

Households that do possess securityof tenure find that formalinstitutions do not acknowledgeinformal evidence of tenure. eyare thus excluded from accessingfinance from formal sources and


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MORE ExPERIMENTATION REqUIRED fOR WORKABLE IN-SITUUPGRADATION MODELS, ESPECIALLY IN SMALL CITIESe Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) and Rajiv AwasYojana (RAY) have been the most ambitious steps taken by the government inaddressing the issue of low-income housing. RAY, in particular, seeks to replace slumswith more liveable neighbourhoods through the strategy of (preferably in-situ) slumrehabilitation and redevelopment. However, the RAY scheme is largely limited to theprovision of 25 square metre flats in multi-storey buildings. As mentioned before,apartments fail to solve the problem of crowding. A review of BSUP projects has alsosuggested that many of these are poorly designed and exhibit poor quality ofconstruction.

While high densities make in-situ slum upgrades unfeasible in metro cities, it mightbe meaningful to explore this model in small and medium sized towns across India,where slums are typically single storey homes. Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation’sscheme to provide seven basic services to slum households and offer them a 10-yearno eviction warranty, is a case in point.

ere is also a need to explore efficient and varied models for in-situ rehabilitation,especially the creation of alternates to the high-rise, focusing instead on low-rise high-density formats.

resort to expensive informalfinancing for home improvementsat over 5 per cent per month. ispushes them further into the debtand reinforces a poverty cycle.

Basic services

In the absence of registeredownership and titles, informalsettlements are not covered by thecity’s basic services like water andsanitation, though interestinglyelectricity is no longer contingenton legality. While electricityconnections have reachedsettlements (irrespective of securityof tenure), toilets and otherprovisions that will impact health,child mortality and women’s safetyamong other issues, are still foundwanting. Other than the inability ofcity governments to provideservices to these areas, narrow lanesand dense urban form makeretrofitting in these areas difficult.e lack of sewage lines prohibitshomeowners from putting inseparate household toilets even ifthey are willing to spend on one.Decentralised systems for watersupply and sewage that are beingpiloted in different locations ofIndia are required to tackle thisissue. Lack of basic amenities putshouseholds in these areas of the cityat a severe disadvantage. Not only ishealth adversely impacted, butprecious time is spent in activitieslike collecting and storing water.is in turn impacts their earningcapacity. For instance, in Delhi’sSavda Ghevra resettlement colony,a socio-economic survey of 500households found that women were

unable to work because the watersupply tanker arrives in the middleof the day5 .

Non-engineered design andconstruction

Incremental housing, despite all thebenefits, has also becomesynonymous with poor quality ofdwelling. ere is scant regard forsafety among the urban poor largelybecause of lack of awareness ofhomeowners as well as constructionworkers. Fieldwork shows that twoother factors contribute to the lowpriority for safety in incrementalconstruction—the perception that a‘designed’ structure is unnecessaryand far more expensive and afatalistic attitude that assumes thatharm will not come to their homein the event of a disaster.

Only 2 per cent of India’s masonsand labour workforce are trainedwhile the majority learns the tradeon the job, by trial and error.Despite this fact, the majority ofgovernment and NGO schemeswork on training masons andcontractors from the perspective ofskill improvement, livelihoods andjob creation. As a result, the masonis trained to be absorbed into theformal construction industry, buttrained masons do not serve self-built neighbourhoods. econstruction workforce in self-builtareas lack the technical know-howto construct vertical buildings inRCC and this is the primary reasonfor the building collapses in recentyears (ane in Mumbai, multiplecollapses in Savda Ghevra andLaxmi Nagar in East Delhi)6 .

Low quality building materials

e majority of self-built homes inIndia use brick for walls, in itself amaterial that offers poor insulationor protection from dampness.Roofing materials for single floorhomes range from temporarymaterials like thermocol, cardboardand tarpaulin to asbestos cement oriron roofing sheets.

Poor construction practices andstructural issues

Poorly mixed mortar, incorrectmasonry work and lack of adequatereinforcement are some of thecommon problems in self-builtstructures.

Weak or no foundations, owing topoor knowledge of structuraldesign mean that self-builtstructures are likely to be damagedor collapse in the event of a naturalcalamity such as earthquake orflood. Owing to small plot sizes,homeowners want to maximiseliving space. is means that, inmulti-storey structures built out ofbrick and reinforced cementconcrete structures, column sizesare of the same thickness as thewalls, which renders the buildingweak and prone to collapse.

With growing vertical densities thisrequires investigation. Further, theseismic guidelines and buildingcode is not adapted in low incomesettlements and thus there is verylittle technological innovation innon-engineered structures.

Layout and DesignSpace maximisation is the highest


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priority for the urban poor. Aspectslike light and ventilation that arenecessary for good health take abackseat. e problem is moreacute in the case of multi-storeystructures in dense settlements.

SUPPORTING INCREMEN-TAL HOUSING THROUGHPOLICY

Policy interventions are an effectiveway to facilitate design of a diverseportfolio of affordable housingsolutions instead of prescribingcertain implementation models.Besides this aim, integration ofhousing related policy with othermeasures to target urban povertysuch as the National UrbanLivelihood Mission (NULM) isimportant.

Many organisations in India such asSEWA, Mahila Housing SEWATrust, Transparent Chennai,Habitat for Humanity, Aga KhanPlanning and Building Services,Housing and Urban DevelopmentCorporation Ltd. (HUDCO),URBZ, Centre for Urban andRegional Excellence (CURE), eSociety for the Promotion of AreaResource Centres (SPARC) andShelter Associates have beenworking on various inter-relatedaspects of urban poverty likeshelter, basic services and finance,each from their own uniquepositions of strength.

In June 2013, mHS and Centre forPolicy Research co-hosted aworkshop to delve deep into theabove-mentioned barriers thatinhibit the creation of safe and

plentiful housing in low-incomeneighbourhoods. einterdisciplinary nature ofparticipants evolved clear positionsand the expertise being shared inthe two-day workshop resulted in arich and nuanced discussion onsupporting incremental housing.Importantly, governmentrepresentatives from the PlanningCommission as well as city-levelurban bodies in Delhi and Chennaiassured practitioners that thegovernment’s stand is rapidlyshiing from the position ofignoring or rejecting informality tofinding ways and means to supportit, although they are oenoverwhelmed with the task at hand.

e challenge remains to bridge thegaps between intention andimplementation; and between theideas propagated at centralgovernment level and the adoptionof these ideas by states and urbanlocal bodies. e followingsuggestions address practical areaswhere governments can makeimpact.

Improving access to basicservices

e foremost policy intervention inself-built settlements is to facilitateresidents’ access to services such asindividual connections for drinkingwater, toilet facilities, and sewageand waste disposal.

Issues

• Despite the unrolling of severalschemes to facilitate access,there are several issues. eexperience in Chennai with the

Rs 100 water connection schemeillustrates that applications forgovernment subsidy schemesare tedious and complex tounderstand and come withunrealistic requirements. eyinclude hidden costs such asrequiring the installation ofrainwater harvesting systemsand the purchase of handpumps, which cannot be met bythe urban poor and remain un-enforced even among the upperincome groups. Schemes forlow-income households areoen not rationalised with thosethat the larger population canavail of and the paperwork isgeneric and not tailor-made.

• Title and building planapprovals are still required toaccess services such as a waterconnection.

• Applying for access to oneservice oen requires furtherhurdles that are not clear at theoutset, for example, in Chennai,a sewage connection ismandatory in order to access anindividual water connection.

Successful interventions

In cities where intermediaryagencies such as NGOs and urbanprofessionals work, they havelobbied with municipalities andcreated a framework for bottom-upaccess to services. Mahila HousingSEWA Trust (MHT), for instance,acts as an aggregator and lobbieswith service providers, as their workin Ahmedabad and other cities has


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shown. e organization createsand empowers low income ResidentWelfare Associations (RWA) to bethe formal interface with thegovernment. It also provides smallloans for purchasing equipment fortoilets and water connections. Onthe other hand CURE, an NGOworking in Delhi, constructed aprivate decentralized solution forindividual toilets in resettlementcolonies of Delhi by mobilizing thecommunity and through grantfunds. ey are workingindependently of the municipalityand government service providers,but have created provision for afuture linkage into governmentsewage systems. Oen, in theabsence of an NGO working in thearea, communities in informalsettlements access services throughinformal and political channelssuch as appealing to their localMLA or Councillor. If thesettlement is not large enough ornot politically activated, they do nothave any formal recourse to addressthe absence of access to services.

Suggested policy actions

• Mandate access to servicesirrespective of tenure status;

• Evaluate decentralizedinfrastructure solutions thatcan be retrofitted into existingsettlements. Governmentalagencies such as NEERI andother social enterprises havedeveloped low-costinterventions suited for thesesettlements;

• Allow for intermediateservices, through private andcommunity solutions that are‘future proof ’ i.e can graduateinto long-term governmentschemes. For instance, deliveryvia community organisationsand NGOs is oen effective;

• Facilitation through NGO togenerate awareness by holdingsubscriber camps and access tofinance for purchase ofequipment;

• Rationalise the applicationforms (Forms are notcomprehensible even to aninformed educated audiencesuch as the one present in theworkshop); and

• Ensure transparency butprovide flexibility tostates/cities in the applicationand allotment process.

Access to Construction/Housing finance

e microfinance industry has beenproviding loans to residents insettlements through innovativemechanisms that ascertain thecreditworthiness of the client forlivelihood generation purposes.Little did MFI agencies know that20-30 per cent7 of the loansdisbursed were deployed forhousing-related investments andimprovements. It can be argued thatinvestment in housing promoteslivelihood stability as the homes areused as workspaces and additionalrooms fetch rental income.

Finance for home improvements,however, is a huge barrier and thelack of tenure adds to this problem,as discussed earlier. Innovativefinance solutions are the need of thehour.

Issues

• Developing a housing financescheme for low income that isrigid on tenure, is designed tohave no off-take. Majority ofIndia’s low-income populationlive with diverse tenurearrangements. Governmentschemes that have thisrequirement will not be able toserve the majority of this


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Picture 1 :

Many in Delhi’s Man-golpuri resettlementcolony, created in the‘70s to relocate slumdwellers, still live likethis because they do nothave the money to builta better home

segment.

• e issue of tenure is complexand a binary understanding oftitle/no title on property orland is not the right way toaddress the issue.

• Traditional city planning thatrelies largely on land-useplanning and is rigid in naturefalls short in supporting home-grown neighbourhoods;however, several flexibleapproaches including the ‘wholeslum’ approach taken up duringthe JNNURM project period bysome municipalities, showpromise in looking at housingand city planning holistically.

• Accessing schemes such asISHUP8 is practicallyimpossible because of currenteligibility conditions- itrequires building planapprovals, minimum carpetarea and a cap on subsidyamount plus eligibilityapproval through nodalagencies that are not equippedto aggregate the demand and

work with the financialinstitutions.

• Microfinance regulationprevents MFIs from lendingabove Rs 50,000, thus missingthe incremental housingdemand

• Housing Finance Companieswill not be refinanced by NHBif primary security (i.e title) isnot available.

• e National DisasterManagement Authority(NDMA) guidelines,circulated through NationalHousing Bank, mandate abuilding plan approval processthat is top-down and leads tocorrupt practices withoutensuring compliance onstructural safety; this does notwork for informal areas whereincremental housing is thenorm and these homes are leout of the ambit of safetyregulations

• Lack of confidence in the low-income market andapprehensions that the NPA

rate for loans up to Rs 2 lakh ishigher than 10 per cent.

Successful experiments

In 2009-10, some of the larger MFIs(SKS, Equitas, Ujjivan, BASIX,MIMO Finance) had designedspecific products for housing thatwere of longer duration than atypical product (up to 7 years), withloans up to Rs 3 lakh9 and relied onthird party social collateral andtenure security to provide the loans.International Finance Corporation(IFC) is working with NationalHousing Bank to develop a HousingMicro Finance (HMF) toolkit forthe sector to encourage lending forhousing finance.

To tackle the issue of tenure, acommendable application of thewhole slum approach was seen inthe case of Sangli-Miraj-Kupwad,where the corporation worked withNGO, Shelter Associates, to createcitywide maps of slums and landownership patterns. A collaborativeapproach was used to identify slumsthat need to be relocated and thosethat can be redeveloped in-situ.

Suggested actions

• National Housing Bank tocontinue lending forincremental housing throughthe pre-financing channel thatoffers flexibility, in order todevelop portfolio andconfidence in this segment.

• A ladder of property rightsmust be constructed to allowfor lending where there is aminimal security of tenure (i.e


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Picture 2 : Despite the poverty and crowding, residents of informal communities likeMangolpuri take pride in their homes

lease hold arrangements).

• Beyond what the land is zonedfor, as per plan, it is importantto know the status of varioussettlement types in the city interms of whether residentshave clear title, right to occupy,right to rent or right to sell.Various permutations of thesewill determine flexible ways oflooking at land in the city.Moreover, the situation in eachcity will differ drastically. mHSstudies have indicated that theownership (government orprivate) of land on whichslums exist changes a lot fromcity to city. However, while theneed to provide housing forthe poor must be balancedwith the need for land forother purposes, we must alsoremember that mixed-useneighbourhoods could behighly efficient mechanismsfor cities to cope with urbanproblems and planners mustsee these neighbourhoods notas problems, but as possiblesolutions to the challenges ofproviding amenities.

• e Microfinance Bill,currently tabled in Parliament,will no longer require MFIs toengage in mortgage-basedlending for the purposes ofhousing by looking at the rightto occupy land rather thanlegal titles. It will also removethe current cap of Rs 50,000 onmicrofinance lending. Ifpassed, the Bill will provide adirect impetus to the self-construction market.

• States to provide documentationto homeowners in informalareas that property isbankable/can be mortgagedbut not sold or transferred bythe individual.

• Other apex lending bodiessuch as SIDBI10 , NABARD11

that work with cooperatives,MFIs and NGOs shouldencourage lending for homeimprovements and incrementalconstruction including loans forwater, sanitation, roomextensions, etc.

• R&D and experimentation(pilot projects) offering newloans products to enhance off-take of government schemessuch as ISHUP and mortgageguarantee fund.

• At present, the Ministry ofHousing and Urban PovertyAlleviation (HUPA) isworking to develop newpolicies, both to tackle theissue of slum redevelopment aswell as to replace existinginterest subsidy schemes withnew ones.

Improving disaster prepared-ness, construction quality andbuilding safety

A supporting component oftechnical assistance is necessary toenable self-built communities tobuild safer and better qualityhomes. In the absence of a formalbuilding plan approval process, it isdebatable as to whether some sortof regulation is implementable insuch neighbourhoods, since it is too

early to comment on self-regulationmodels to implement and monitorsafety standards.

Issues

To reiterate, the major areas thatneed technical support are:

• Poor quality of constructionwith little regard to lightingand ventilation;

• Poor structural quality,especially for multi-storeystructures;

• Poor preparedness levels fordisasters, both natural andman-made; and

• Limited technical expertise formason/contractors for verticalconstruction.

Successful interventions

A number of models for providingtechnical assistance can be offered.Habitat For Humanity Internationalis working with MFIs in southernIndia to provide technical assistancein home upgrading to ensurequality construction. Micro HomeSolutions has developed innovativestructural engineering solutions (in3D formats) for multi-storyconstruction (G+2 floors) that canbe delivered to mason/contractors,as well as prepared easy-to-understand training material suitedfor masons and contractors servingthe incremental housing market.is training manual is currentlybeing piloted in a number ofinformal settlements inAhmedabad. In a pilot project inDelhi’s Mangolpuri resettlement


THEME PAPER

colony, mHS had offered a bundledtechnical assistance service with thefinance provided by an MFI. ishad allowed the construction of 30safe and well-designed housingunits in the area.

While the above examplesdemonstrate the work done by theNGO sector working withcommunity organizations and financecompanies, government partnershipscan make it easier to scale up such

initiates. In ailand, CODI12 workswith community architects to bridgethe technical know-how gap betweeninnovations in the constructionsector, skills and the practice on theground. In fact, the work done byCODI is now being replicated incities across ailand, Indonesia,Vietnam and other south-east Asiannations.

Suggestions/ Action points• Disseminate appropriate

training to masons andcontractors, that focusses oncorrection of commonconstruction mistakes andensure better design andstructural safety ;

• Testing models of delivery oftechnical assistance throughHUDCO supported buildingcentres and collaborating with aresource pool of local architectsand professionals;


THEME PAPER

Picture 3 : mHS worked hard to sensitise community members about safetyissues while constructing their homes

Picture 4 : Before and aer of Manjesh’s home looked like when mHS began working with Mangolpuri residents inassociation with microfinance players BASIx.

• Encourage participation ofcommunity in disasterpreparedness plans forinformal areas;

• Building centres must becomehubs that promote andstrengthen the idea ofcommunity architects andcommunity builders, who willadvocate and ensure safety ofconstruction. It must be notedhere that the idea is not toenforce a system of sanctionsand approvals on informalsettlements, but rather to buildskills and awareness so thatthere is a bottom-up demandfor safety and improvedstructural design. is hasbeen amply demonstrated inmHS pilot projects as well as inCODI’s work across the southeast Asian region; and

• Community building centrescan pull together a variety ofresources for working on suit-able local building materials,technologies, the adaptation oflocal skills and building prac-tices to urban built environ-ments; all of which can be ef-fectively used to support theself-help housing market thatfunctions through people’sown investments and does notrely on government subsidyalone.

GOING fORWARDEven with the best intentions,supporting informality through

government schemes like theJNNURM and RAY has been tricky,essentially due to an inability orunwillingness of professionals andbureaucrats to delve into thecomplexity of the issues on ground.Moreover, measures to supportincremental housing can only beimplemented by an appropriatecombination of stakeholders, in adecentralized model and thisrequires far more patience (10-20years perhaps) than is acceptable inthe current economic and politicalclimate. Ever so oen, therefore,

there is “an urge and impatience todo something world class andgrand13 ” that disallows nuancedand insightful work, beingundertaken by practitioners toinform policy.

e paradigm can be shied onlythrough policy that offers incentivesfor state and local governments totake on the work of providingservices, delivering technicalassistance and creating conditionsfor better access to finance. At thesame time, policy needs to refrain


THEME PAPER

Picture 5 : A page from mHS-designed graphic manual to train masonsfor informal sector self-help housing.

from being overly prescriptive,allowing governments and localcommunity organisations to adaptfor local conditions and context.Moreover, this approach requires anessential shi from subsidizedhousing to market-based solutions.In this way, instead of creatingperverse incentives for large privatedevelopers to cash in on free land orfor the poor to sell free housing,government would be able toencourage self-investments inhousing by the LIG and middleincome groups as well as rentalhousing within self-builtcommunities for the urban poor.ere is also a place in this scenariofor catalysing private informalrentals.

To begin with, there is an urgentneed to create a working group atthe city level that consolidatesexperiences of state and localgovernments, as well as privatepractitioners, across the countrywith regard to incremental housing.Based on these experiences, itwould be possible to creatematerials and empower a panel ofexperts to advise governments onspecific projects as well as onnational and state policy.

rough this paradigm shi, theGovernment of India through theMinistry of Housing and UrbanPoverty Alleviation (HUPA) has theopportunity to drastically upgradethe quality of living for low- and

middleincome families across thecountry that have invested andcreated their own vibrantneighbourhoods. We mustremember that while we mull ourpolicy options, self-built settlementsare growing and expanding in citiesacross India everyday. We require tourgently address issues of basicservices, construction expertise andlegal rights in these areas if we areto provide the urban poor lives ofdignity as enshrined in ourConstitution.

REfERENCES

1 mHS, 2011, ‘Self construction: Enabling safeand affordable housing in India’

2 e Self-Employed Women's Association ofIndia

3 Field estimates, mHS

4 mHS study for World Bank on incrementalhousing, unpublished

5 Survey component, mHS’ DHS pilot projectin Delhi’s resettlement colonies

6 mHS, 2013, ‘Built to Collapse’, unpublishedresearch study

7 Statistics from SEWA Bank

8 Interest Subsidy Scheme for Housing theUrban Poor

9 Rates of interest were effectively 19-21% perannum that poses a high monthly burdenlargely due to the short tenure.

10 Small Industries Development Bank of India

11 National Bank for Agriculture & RuralDevelopment

12 e Community Organizations DevelopmentInstitute (CODI) is a ai government agencyformed in 2000 through the merging of theUrban Community Development Office(UCDO) and the Rural Development Fund.

13 Quoting K C Sivaramakrishnan, formerbureaucrat and currently Visiting Professorwith Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi.


THEME PAPER

SUPPORTING INfORMAL RENTAL HOUSING: A NARRATIvE fROMGURGAON

It is well documented that affordable rental housing offers the urban poor a footholdin the city and a significant percentage of those living in self-built neighbourhoods arerenters (or sharers, referring to relatives that share space with a household and offerpayments in kind). Conversely, self-built neighbourhoods are important to retain andaugment the stock of affordable rentals in a city. Besides, landlordism is a significantsource of income for landowners in low-income areas.

A recent study1 found that landlords in Gurgaon’s urban villages and unauthorisedcolonies are unable to efficiently manage their rental businesses because of a lack ofadequate infrastructure, inefficiencies in operations and maintenance, poormanagement and accounting skills. e study also found that landlords are keen toupgrade the rental housing that they offer and improve their own skills, to bring downinefficiencies. However, they feared that the government would interfere in theirbusiness, deeming it illegal or levy service tax on them. In a city where informal rentalsare the only supply of housing for the urban poor, especially for low- and middle-income migrants, measures to support this form of supply are necessary.

Of course, addressing this need via regulation is contentious, bringing in complianceand transaction costs on the side of the government as well as landlords, costs that therenter will eventually bear. A community-based approach to strengthen the informalrental market can be intertwined with other efforts to support incremental housing.Additionally, a rental housing component must be added to slum redevelopment andrehabilitation schemes so that renters continue to be served and are not forced to createmore slums.

32 HUDCo - HsMi Publication

ExpErt viEws of CMD, HUDCo on

AfforDAblE HoUsing

My OPInIOn

Dr. M. Ravi Kanth, IAS (r)Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) Housing and Urban Development Corporation Limited (HUDCO)

1. How do you see the housingscenario in the country?

As per the Census 2011, the totalurban households were estimated as78.86 million and the total urbanhousing stock was estimated as78.48 million for residential andresidence-cum-other uses,including non-serviceable kutcha.e number of vacant houses inurban areas were estimated as 11.06million in 2011. e Report of theTechnical Group on Urban HousingShortage during the 12th Planperiod (2012-17) has assessed theurban housing shortage to be 18.78million in 2012. Most of thisshortage is due to households livingin congested houses & requiringnew houses (14.99 million) andhouseholds living in obsolescenthouses (2.27 million). Significantly,95.62% of the shortage assessedpertains to Economically WeakerSections (10.55 million) and LowIncome Groups (7.41 million) ofthe society. e funds requirement

for addressing urban housingshortage of 18.78 million works outto be around Rs. 9.6 lakh crore.

As per the Census 2011, theestimated number of ruralhouseholds were 167.83 million,whereas total rural housing stockwas 166.16 million for residentialand residence-cum-other uses.ere were 13.58 million vacanthouses in rural areas in 2011.According to the estimation of theWorking Group on Rural Housingfor the 12th Plan period, the totalrural housing shortage in thecountry in 2012 was around 43.9million dwelling units, and 90% ofthis shortage pertains to BPLfamilies. Keeping an approximateunit cost of Rs 1 lakh in rural areas,

for the estimated deficit of 43.9million units, the requirement offunds is of the order of about Rs. 4.4lakh crore.

us, the total fund requirement toaddress the deficit for the housingsector (urban plus rural housing) isabout Rs. 14 lakh crore.

2. What is the contribution ofHUDCO in reducing housingshortage both in urban and ruralareas?

e Government of India had setup HUDCO as a fully owned publicsector enterprise in 1970, in orderto effectively address the housing

33October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - sHEltEr

HUDCO Place, New Delhi- Planning, Design & Development by HUDCO.

HUDCO has emerged as the leadingnational techno-financing CPSE with themajor objective of financing/encouraging

the housing activity in the country and alleviatinghousing shortage for all groups in rural and urbanareas as well as the development of infrastructurein human settlements.

and urban developmentrequirements in the country withspecial focus on the housing andurban service delivery for theEconomically Weaker Sections(EWS) and Lower Income Groups(LIG) of the society. HUDCO todayhas emerged as the leading nationaltechno-financing CPSE with themajor objective offinancing/encouraging the housingactivity in the country andalleviating housing shortage for allgroups in rural and urban areas aswell as the development ofinfrastructure in humansettlements.

HUDCO has many special schemesto promote affordable housing andthey are quite successful. HUDCO'ssupport for a variety of housingoptions include: Housing projectsboth in urban and rural areas for allsections of the society taken up byState Governments, Urban LocalBodies, Housing Boards/Corporations / Agencies, ParastatalInstitutions, DevelopmentAuthorities, etc.; Housing projectsfor employees by StateGovernments/public Institutions;Land acquisition projects forhousing; Housing projects underJnnURM for meeting theState/ULB contribution (ViabilityGap Funding); Take-out financingof earlier borrowed loans fromother lenders as per HUDCOnorms; Employee housing throughthe recently launched ‘Rent-to-

Own’ scheme of HUDCO; andRetail financing to individualsthrough HUDCO nIWAS.

Till end July 2014, cumulatively,HUDCO has sanctioned 16.5million houses under 14,850schemes, with a loan component ofRs. 45,971 crore for housingprojects in the country, out of whichabout 15.36 million units (95%) arefor the EWS/LIG beneficiaries.Besides, HUDCO has also financedRs. 5127 crore directly toindividuals through its retailfinancing window of HUDCOnIWAS.

3. ‘Affordability’ is importantwhen we talk of buying a houseand this becomes very importantfor urban poor. What are themeans by which HUDCO canpromote houses which areaffordable to the urban poor?

Since inception, HUDCO has beenpromoting affordable housingwhich is very important for thesocio-economic development of thecountry. HUDCO is the largestHousing Finance Company (HFC)in India addressing the housing andhousing-related infrastructuralneeds of the poor. With anallocation of significant quantum ofits housing funds for theEconomically Weaker Sections andLow Income Groups of the society,with a relatively lower interest rate,higher extent of unit cost extended

as loan, and with a relatively longerrepayment period, HUDCO makeshouses affordable for the urban andrural poor segments. HUDCOcross-subsidises the interest ratesfor loans for housing of poor andthis rate is even below our averagecost of borrowing. e aboveaffordable terms of finance andother efforts of HUDCO haveresulted in over 95% of the dwellingunits supported by HUDCObenefiting the EWS & LIG groups.Further, towards cost reduction ofhousing units, HUDCO has beenpromoting technology advocacythrough the network of BuildingCentres/ nirmithi Kendras, whichencourage the use of local buildingmaterials and adoption of costeffective construction practices thatare environment friendly,aesthetically pleasing and yeteconomically affordable.

4. HUDCO has stopped fundingto Private Sector. Do you thinkthat this will restrain the deliveryof housing stock?

It is recognised that private sectorwould have to step in a big way forprovision of affordable housing inthe country. HUDCO has notstopped financing private sector foraffordable housing segment. In fact,HUDCO has very special andcompetitive terms of finance forprivate sector, constructingaffordable housing projects thathave been approved by the


My OPInIOn

Central/State Government.

5. How is HUDCO supporting theGovernment of India initiativeson affordable housing?

Since inception, HUDCO has beenassisting in the implementation of‘Government of India Action PlanSchemes’, such as the Two- MillionHousing Programme (2 MHP),night Shelters, Swarna JayantiShahari Rozgar yojana (SJSRy) fortraining component, national SlumDevelopment Programme (nSDP),Valmiki-Ambedkar Awas yojana(VAMBAy), Jawaharlal nehrunational Urban Renewal Mission(JnnURM), Interest SubsidyScheme for Housing the UrbanPoor (ISHUP) and ‘AffordableHousing in Partnership’ Scheme.All these initiatives of HUDCO arein line with the Government ofIndia’s policy of sustainabledevelopment of human settlementsincluding Affordable Housing forAll, Provision of Secure Tenure,Slum Rehabilitation andUpgradation, Expansion of UrbanInfrastructure and promotion ofGood Governance in the cities andtowns in India.

Under JnnURM, besidesundertaking appraisal, monitoring,capacity building and supportingthe agencies through preparation ofCDPs and DPRs, HUDCO has alsobeen providing Viability GapFunding (VGF) to State/Local

Governments. HUDCO has beenchosen as the nodal Agency as wellas a Prime Lending Institution(PLI) for Interest Subsidy Housingfor Urban Poor (ISHUP) schemewhich has now been rechristened as‘Rajiv Rinn yojana’ (RRy).HUDCO is now expected to take alead role in implementing theGovernment of India’s flagshipprogramme for creating slum-freecities – ‘Rajiv Awas yojana’ (RAy)with Preparation of Slum Free CityPlanning as well as appraisal,monitoring, capacity building andViability Gap Funding.

6. Kindly elaborate the stepsHUDCO proposes to undertakefor improving the housing sector.

It has always been the endeavour ofHUDCO to finance housing andinfrastructure projects in innovativeways along with the conventionalmethod of financing. On thehousing front, HUDCO introducedinnovative financing for housing forthe Below Poverty Line (BPL)households in various districtpanchayats in rural areas inRajasthan and financing forconstruction of 1 lakh dwellingunits for EWS families in urbanareas under the MukhyamantriShahari BPL Awas yojana inRajasthan, through Rajasthan AvasVikas and Infrastructure Ltd.Similar schemes are being workedout in other States, which wouldhelp in provision of affordable

housing to all.

HUDCO has taken many newinitiatives during the year 2012-13& 2013-14 to expand its reach andenhance its contribution forimproving the housing sector,especially the affordable housingsegment. Towards this, HUDCOhas set up an exclusive InnovationCell. e important initiatives, inregard to housing, are as follows:

i. Towards improving access tohousing for all sections of thesociety, especially at the lowerrungs of the society, HUDCO hasintroduced two innovative productsin Fy 2013-14, namely, Rent-to-Own Scheme and HUDCO navnagar yojana (Hunny). Rent-to-Own scheme is a‘rental-cum-ownership’ schemewhich is designed to facilitate anagency to initially avail loan fromHUDCO on behalf of its identifiedlower level employees and wouldallot the houses to them, initially onrental basis. e ownership wouldbe transferred aer receiving fullrepayment. Hunny offers acomprehensive solution to thegrowing cities/towns from‘Planning to Financing’ thesustainable habitats. Under thescheme, HUDCO would providetechnical and financial support fordeveloping potential sites asplanned urban extensions to meetthe requirements of the evergrowing population.

35October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - sHEltEr

My OPInIOn

ii. Micro Finance for Housing:HUDCO Board has given in-principle approval for equityinvestment of Rs.1 crore in theproposed new Housing FinanceCompany, promoted by SEWA.rough the proposed equityparticipation, HUDCO wouldensure financial inclusion of thewomen members of SEWA, whohave so far been denied the benefitof home loans through the formallending mechanism. HUDCO isalso in the process of devising aninnovative product for extendingloan assistance to Micro HousingFinance Institutions in India for on-lending to informal sectorhouseholds who are deprived offormal sector financing.

iii. Venture Capital: HUDCOBoard has approved the proposalfor the subscription of Rs.25 crorein Class-A units of India InclusiveInnovation Fund (IIIF) – anAlternative Investment Fund –Venture Capital Fund (VCF) beingestablished by the nationalInnovation Council. e fund willprovide risk capital to enterprisesthat create and deliver technologiesand solutions in products and inservices aimed at enhancing thequality of life of the people at the

bottom of the socio-economicpyramid. e Fund will invest in theenterprises involved in the housingand urban development sectorincluding start-ups as well asemerging and growing ventures thatneeds support to scale-uppotentially successful solutions andbusiness models, allowing them tomaximize their social impact in theHabitat Sector.

iv. MoU with SeveralOrganisations: As a step towardsfurther promoting the housing andhabitat sector, HUDCO has enteredinto memorandum ofUnderstanding (MoU) with severalorganisations such as nationalCulture Fund (nCF) forconservation of heritagesites/buildings; ConstructionIndustries Development Council(CIDC) for creation of skillsrequired in the buildingconstruction industry; nationalCommission for Women (nCW)under CSR for improving the livingconditions of widows at Vrindavan,Mathura; national BuildingConstruction Corporation (nBCC)for joint development of projects;and School of Planning &Architecture, new Delhi forresearch related activities in thehabitat sector.

7. What are HUDCO’s futureplans in the housing sector?

In the light of the significant deficitin the housing and urban servicedelivery in the country and the needfor massive efforts to achieve theobjective of affordable housing andprovision of urban basic services forall, HUDCO is fully geared up toface the challenges of social housingdelivery as well as the provision ofurban infrastructure services in thecountry.

e future growth path for thehousing portfolio of HUDCO isenvisioned in HUDCO’s CorporatePlan-2020. e Corporate Plan-2020 has a major focus and thruston social housing in order toachieve the national goal ofaffordable shelter for all. Itanticipates an increase in the socialhousing operations to a significantlyhigher level, so as to retainHUDCO’s premier role as the onlyHFC of its kind with a mandate of‘profitability with social justice’ andalso help the Government of Indiain its mission of providing housingfor all by 2022. HUDCO’s recentinnovative initiatives and expansionof its activities, in addition to itsconventional techno-financingbusiness, would give a big push tothe housing sector.


My OPInIOn

It is but obvious that a sound urban infrastructuralbase is not only critical to urban living, it is equallycrucial to infuse and sustain the urban growthmomentum. Urban North East has been a newentrant of the country’s urban club. Urban NorthEast started growing only aer the bifurcation ofAssam and the attainment of Statehood byArunachal Pradesh. 2011 census shows half ofMizoram becoming urban with Assam stillremaining the lowest urbanized state of North East.However, Assam accounts for more than fiypercent of the region’s urban population. While theintercensal growth in the level of urbanization hasbeen highest in Tripura, Mizoram recorded thelowest growth. Historically the urban governancestructure across North East has been thecoexistence of formal municipal government(designed by Lord Ripon) and the traditional tribalcouncils. A major part of the region has beencategorized as Scheduled Areas and is being largelyadministered under the Schedule V and VI of theIndian Constitution. Not to speak of availability offormal rental housing or intracity mass transitsystem or sewerage network, even fiy percent ofurban North East is not blessed with the provisionof three basic urban services, - water, electricity andlatrine. Given a rich demographic dividendawaiting the region by the later part of this decadeand a number of schemes generously beingsponsored by the Central government, urban NorthEast is replete with a sea of opportunities for itsurban settlements to strengthen theirinfrastructure, address the poverty issue and at thesame time, revitalize their administrative system.However such an intervention should be precededby and followed with a series of reforms aimed atthe structural, financial and fiscal domain of urbangovernance.

ProloguE

It is but obvious that a sound urbaninfrastructural base is not onlycritical to urban living, it is equallycrucial to infuse and sustain theurban growth momentum. UrbanNorth East has been a new entrant

of the country’s urban club. Till1971 the level of urbanization ofNorth Eastern India was at anabysmal low of five percent. UrbanNorth East started moving sincelate seventies with the bifurcation ofAssam in 1972 to create theindependent states of Mizoram,Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh,attaining statehood in 1987. eprime factor behind theurbanization of North East has beenthe proliferation of service sectoracross the North Eastern states.Although the economy of all theseven north eastern states ispredominantly agrarian, the shareof service (tertiary) sector in theStates’ Gross Domestic Product hasbeen rising over the years. In viewof the growing service sector, theimportance of the urbansettlements across the NorthEastern states hardly needs to behighlighted. But the all importantquestion is – are the urbansettlements of North East India in aposition to shoulder the growingdemand of urban services? Howcan we sustain the growth of theseurban centers? e present papertherefore tries to seek answers tothese queries by referring to thescope of different urbandevelopment programmes andurban management tools across theurban North East.

37October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - shEltEr

Planning for urBan north East (nE)

Issues and Imperatives

POLICY REVIEW

A major part of the NorthEast region has been catego-rized as Scheduled Area andis being largely adminis-tered under the special pro-visions of the IndianConstitution. While theFih Schedule of the IndianConstitution looks aer theadministration and controlof the Scheduled Areas ofManipur, Nagaland, andArunachal Pradesh, theSixth Schedule of the IndianConstitution takes care ofthe Schedule Areas ofAssam, Meghalaya, Tripuraand Mizoram.

Dr. Binayak Choudhury([email protected]) is Profes-sor and Head in the Department ofPlanning at School of Planning andArchitecture, Bhopal.

Dr. Binayak

ChouDhury

METhodology

e present paper begins with ananalysis of the urbanization patternof the north eastern states. It is thenfollowed by an examination of thelevel of urban services,- state wiseand then by a reference to the urbangovernance system across the northeastern states. e emerging tools inurban planning and management,especially those related toinfrastructure finance and planningshall be dwelt upon thereaer. issection is followed by a reference tourban demographic dividend of NEStates and then by the provisionsunder different urban developmentschemes across urban North East.Finally, the paper dras an agendatowards the renewal of urban NorthEast through a holistic approach.

urbANISATIoN IN NorThEAST – A PréCIS

e seed of urbanization in NorthEast India was sown only in earlypart of nineteenth century with theBritish Rulers setting up a fewadministrative centers for policingthis part of their Indian colony andfor exploiting its natural resources.Deliberate urbanization of thehuman settlements by the Britishempire across the North East washowever not uniform. WhileAssam, Meghalaya, Manipurreceived attention, the rest of NorthEast remained predominantly ruralin character. While Meghalaya wasthe seat of British Administration,Manipur the gateway to Burma(Myammar), Assam the land ofresources, rest of North East couldnot register its importance beforethe British Administration in

having their settlements receivingan urban status. e growth in theurbanization level across the northeastern states could be traced backto three time periods – postindependence period (1950 –1970),post Statehood period(creation ofindependent states by bifurcatingAssam), post liberalisation period(1990 onwards).

e growth of urban North East,since 1971 could be discerned fromTable 1. It is seen that exceptManipur and Sikkim, theurbanization level has been on asecular rise across the north easternstates. e reason behind Manipurexperiencing a marginal fall in itsurbanization level during thedecade of 1991 – 2001 could be thestagnating urban economy of thefour hill districts of Manipur. Again

the reason behind the quantumjump in the urbanization level ofArunachal Pradesh during thedecade of 1981 – 1991 and 1991 –2001 has been due to its attainingfull statehood in 1987. With thenatural increase in urbanpopulation slowing down and theurban pull factor getting weakened,the plausible factor behindurbanization of NE could be the netrural – urban migration.

e growth of towns ( Table 3 )during the intercensal period (2001– 11) across the north eastern statesclearly substantiates the pace ofurbanization in North East (NE).e growth in the number of urbancenters have been spectacular in allthe north eastern states exceptMizoram, which already has a welldistributed urban spaces across the

38 huDCo - hsMi Publication

POLICY REVIEW

Name ofthe

State

urbanisation level regionalrank

(2001)

regionalrank

(2011)1971 1981 1991 2001 2011

Assam 8.62 9.88 11.09(2487796)

12.72(3389413)

14.08(4388756) 7 8

Manipur 13.19 26.42 27.52(505645)

23.88(575964)

30.21(822132) 2 2

Meghalaya 14.55 18.07 18.59(330047)

19.63(452612)

20.08(595036) 4 7

Mizoram N.A. 24.67 46.09(317946)

49.50(441040)

51.51(561977) 1 1

Nagaland 9.95 15.52 17.21(208223)

17.74(352821)

28.97(573741) 5 3

Tripura 10.43 10.99 15.29(421721)

17.02(543094)

26.18(960981) 6 4

ArunachalPradesh 3.70 6.56 12.79

(110628)20.41

(223069)22.67

(313446) 3 6

Sikkim 9.00(20000)

15.00(50,000)

9.00(37006)

11.10(59870)

24.97(151726) 8 5

Source : Census of India 1971,1981,1991, 2001, 2011. Figures in parentheses indicate urban population.Rank calculated by the author

Table 1: urbanisation Profile of North East India

state. Sikkim has been an exceptionin not adding a single town to itsgeography probably because itsexisting urban centres retaining thegrowth momentum and itseconomy not experiencing astructural change.

Although Mizoram is the mosturbanized state in North East, itscontribution to the urbanpopulation of North East is aboutseven per cent. While Assam

accounts for fiy three percent ofthe urban population of North East,Arunachal Pradesh’s share is as lowas four percent. e intercensal(2001 – 11) growth in the level ofurbanization has been highest inSikkim (153.43) followed byTripura (76.08) and Nagaland(67.38) while it has been lowest incase of Mizoram (27.43) withAssam registering the second lowestspot (27.61).

ere has been no million pluscities in North East as per 2011census. Out of 468 one lakh pluscities across the country, North Easthas only 12 cities with Assamhaving 7 out of them and rest arefive capital cities of other NE States,except Gangtok and Itanagar

On density parameter, Manipur ishaving the highest urban densitywith Mizoram at the bottom. It thusbecomes clear that not a singlenorth eastern state on its own couldclaim the top position on all thespatio demographic features. Onemay capture the salient features ofurban North East as follows :

• Urban features not uniformacross the states

• Mizoram is the most urbanizedstate

• Absolute urban populationhighest in Assam

• Urban Area largest in Assam• Decadal increase in

urbanization level highest inTripura, lowest in Mizoram

• Density of urban populationhighest in Manipur and lowestin Mizoram

• Urbanisation highly concentricaround the State capital

Although many NE States reportedno slums in 2001 census and theslum data of 2011 census not yetpublished, we can rely on theReport of the Committee on SlumStatistics of Registrar General ofIndia (RGI), which has projectedthe slum population till 2017. It isevident from Table 4 that all the


POLICY REVIEW

Name of the State Population in ‘000 Name of the State Population in ‘000

Assam 6600 Mizoram 680

Arunachal Pradesh 762 Nagaland 453

Manipur 690 Sikkim 127

Meghalaya 678 Tripura 929

Source: Census of India, Population projection for India and States 2001 - 2026

Source: TCPO, Ministry of Urban Development, Govt of India, 2012N.B.: Figures in parentheses indicate the percentage growth in the number of towns across NE States

Name of theState

growth in number of Statutory and Census Towns

2001Total

2011TotalStatutory

TownsCensusTowns

StatutoryTowns

CensusTowns

Assam 80 45 125 88 126 214(71.2)

Manipur 28 5 33 28 23 51(54.5)

Meghalaya 10 6 16 10 12 22(37.5)

Mizoram 22 0 22 23 0 23(4.5)

Nagaland 8 1 9 19 7 26(188.90)

Tripura 13 10 23 16 26 42(82.6)

ArunachalPradesh 0 17 17 26 1 27

(58.8)

Sikkim 8 1 9 8 1 9(0.0)

Table 2 : Projected urban Population (2026)

Table 3 : growth of urban Centres Across North Eastern States

eight NE States shall have asubstantial number of slumpopulation which calls for timelyintervention following a holisticapproach.

urbAN govErNANCE INNorTh EAST INdIA

Historically North East India islargely inhabited by numeroustribes, each being an atomizedgroup and is characterised by anearly total absence of secondaryinterface with others. A major partof the region has been categorizedas Scheduled Areas and is beinglargely administered under thespecial provisions of the IndianConstitution. While the FihSchedule of the Indian Constitutionlooks aer the administration andcontrol of the Scheduled Areas ofManipur, Nagaland, and ArunachalPradesh, the Sixth Schedule of theIndian Constitution takes care ofthe Schedule Areas of Assam,Meghalaya, Tripura and Mizoram.Under the provisions of the FihSchedule, the executive power ofthe State rests with the Tribal

Advisory Council which looks aerthe development of the area and isanswerable to the Governor of theState. Under the provisions of theSixth Schedule, the tribal areas inthe states of Assam, Meghalaya,Tripura and Mizoram are declaredas autonomous areas and thedevelopment of the autonomousdistricts rests with the AutonomousDistrict Councils. With theenactment of the Seventy FourthConstitution Amendment Act,1992 (CAA), Government of Indiaconstituted a Committee of theMembers of Parliament in 1995 tosettle the confusion regarding theapplicability of provisions underCAA to the Scheduled Areas of theNorth East. As such, the urbancentres in the Scheduled Areas havebeen grouped under threecategories, viz.(i) Transitional areas having

urban and rural character to begoverned by Nagar Panchayats;

(ii) Larger urban centers to begoverned by MunicipalCouncils; and

(iii) Industrial and miningtownships having a specialcharacter to be treated under aspecial category.

e Committee further suggestedthat the Autonomous DistrictCouncil should have an UrbanAffairs Committee to coordinatethe activities of local bodies atdifferent levels for a harmoniousurban development. However, theimplementation of the provisionsunder the CAA across the northeastern states has been onlycosmetic by way of grantingmarginal fiscal and functionalautonomy to the urban local bodies.

e urban governance structure inNorth East is given in Table 5.

Urban governance across NorthEast assumes special significance inthe face of reform driven approachof most of the centrally sponsoredschemes, namely, Jawaharlal NehruNational Urban Renewal Mission(JNNURM), Urban InfrastructureDevelopment Scheme for Small andMedium Towns (UIDSSMT),Integrated Housing and SlumDevelopment Programme(IHSDP), Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY),Integrated Low Cost SanitationScheme (ILCS). While JNNURMtakes care of the capital cities only,the rest of the programmes aremeant for all statutory towns.

But despite the existence of formalurban government, parastatalagencies still trespass the domain ofurban local bodies. Alongwith theparastatals, several Stategovernment departments also lookaer the urban affairs as indicatedin Table 6.

e financial governance in theurban governments across NorthEast has also been in totters. Rev-enue deficit plagues almost all theurban local bodies across NorthEast. e dependence of urban localbodies on higher level governmentsfor capital expenditure is a normalphenomenon. Most of the urbanlocal bodies are yet to switch over todouble entry accrual based ac-counting system and none of thempublishes the balance sheet. emunicipal fiscal regime still followsthe age old Annual Rental ValueMethod (ARV) for the estimation ofproperty tax. Not only do the ULBshave a low tax base, the administration


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Name of the State Population Assam 1253798Arunachal Pradesh 131494Manipur 78789Meghalaya 226415Mizoram 117599Nagaland 89226Sikkim 15729Tripura 149232

Source: Report of the Committee on SlumStatistics, RGI

Table 4 : Projected Slum Population(2017)

of municipal tax is also highly lack-adaisical across the ULBs (it is notat all imposed in many States!).Most of the urban services are offeredfree. Community participation inurban governance is almost negligible,despite the constitutional provisions ofhaving Ward(s) Committee and themandatory requirement for Area Sab-has and Community Development So-

cieties, Neighbourhood Committees /Groups.

urbAN INFrASTruCTurEIN NE INdIA – AN INvEN-Tory

Urban infrastructure across NorthEast is not only highly deficient insupply but also poor, qualitatively.

ere is no single agency to takecare of respective urban services.For example, in Guwahati, there arethree agencies involved in theprovision of water supply anddrainage and two agencies forroads.

It has been a sad commentary thatnone of the north eastern town hasgot a sewerage network except avery small part of Guwahati. Intracity mass public transport is non -existent in as many as six capitaltowns (out of eight). Intermediatepublic transport, in the form lowcapacity passenger vehicles, autorickshaw, cycle rickshaw etc., rulesthe roost in intra-city commuting.Although banking and insurancenetwork is well laid across urban


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Name of theState

urban governancestructure governed by

remarks

Assam ree tier urban localbodies (ULBs)

e Assam Municipal Act 1956 (as amended) exceptthe six districts under the Autonomous TerritorialDistricts. Separate act for Guwahati MunicipalCorporation.

Elected bodies in position

Meghalaya Two tier ULBse Meghalaya Municipal (Amendment) Act 1973.However the Autonomous Councils have the powerto notify and constitute a town committee.

Nominated bodies in place oradministrator run ULBs

Mizoram ree tier ULBs Mizoram Municipalities Act 2007. As of now,enforced only in for Aizawl.

Elected body for only Aizawl, otherurban areas are governed by villagecouncils

Manipur ree tier ULBse Manipur Municipalities Act 1994 except the fourhill districts to which the Manipur (Hill Areas)District Council Act 1971 applies.

Elected body in position except thelone hill town

Nagaland Two tier ULBs e Nagaland Municipal Act, 2001 Elected bodies in positionArunachalPradesh Two tier ULBs e Arunachal Pradesh Act, 2009 Elected body for only Itanagar –

Naharlagan and Pasighat

Tripura Two tier ULBs e Tripura Municipal Act 1994 except the areasunder the Tripura Tribal Areas Autonomous Districts Elected bodies in position

Sikkim ree tier ULBs e Sikkim Municipalities Act 2007 Elected bodies in position

Name of the department / institution urban functions

Development Authority Permission to land use, execution of infrastructureschemes

Town & Country Planning Preparation of land use plan and zoning regulations,formulation, execution and evaluation of differenturban development schemes

Public Works Roads, drains, bridges etcPublic Health Engineering Water supply & sanitation

Table 5 : urban governance Structure in North East

Table 6 : Functional domain of urban Institutions across NE States

Source: Tabulated by the author


North East, there has hardly beenany governmental rental housing inthe urban areas of North East. etele-density across urban north eastappears significant but powerscenario offers a bleak story. eAlpha Wise City Vibrancy Index forGuwahati prepared by MorganStanley corroborates the miserableinfrastructure scenario across theurban North East.

ere seems to be an utter lack ofcoordination between the differentdepartments and organizationsinvolved in the provision of urbanservices. For example, while thePublic Health Engineeringdepartment (PHED) provides waterin the urban areas , the urban localbody collects the water tax orcharges but seldom do they pay thedues to PHED in time and in full.e level of urban services acrossthe urban centers of the northeastern states, as given in Table 7,reveals that Sikkim tops the list inthe provision of services on accountof water, sanitation and electricity

followed by Meghalaya with otherStates having varying degrees ofaccessibility to different services. Itfurther reveals that water stillremains the first priority in theplanning for the provision of urbanservices.

urbAN dEMogrAPhICdIvIdENd oF NorTh EAST

Although the urban population of

the respective NE States accountsfor a modest proportion of theirrespective total population, itcertainly holds a key to expediteand strengthen the States’ urbanbase. Given the projected aggregatepopulation in the 15 – 59 age group(Table 8) in NE States by 2017 andassuming the urbanisation level ofNorth East at 21 per cent aroundthat period, we can roughlyestimate that by 2017, there wouldbe a sizable 15 million urbanites in414 urban settlements across entireNorth East. But sadly enough, thepercentage share of NE States in thetotal country population belonging

to 15 – 29 age group with formaltraining is a mere 0.6 per cent. Notonly this, the percentage of personsin the 15 – 29 age group with formaltraining in the respective totalpopulation of NE States is also apaltry 1.4 percent against thecountry’s at 3.9 per cent. To addwoes to it, the share of NE States inthe seating capacity of ITI1 andITC2 of the country is also a meager0.5 per cent. However, the onlysilver lining in this dismal scenariois the increase in NE States’ share inthe young labour force during 2006– 17 at 3.4 per cent.

Coming to the State-wisepercentage distribution of labourforce by sex and sector across NEStates (Table 9), it is found that NEState’s share has been much belowthe national average with the onlyexception that urban female sharein other NE States is better than thatof the national average.

However, in this entire scenario,North East edge past the rest of thecountry as far as educationalattainment is concerned, as revealedin Table 10. We find that NE Statesfare well as far as the number ofilliterates, having education uptoprimary and below primary andhigher secondary and secondarylevel amongst the labour force isconcerned.

rENEWAl oF urbANNorTh EAST

Urban development has alwaysbeen a cyclical phenomenon. Withurbanization, there has been aspontaneous urban decline of thecore areas because of its exploitationbeyond the threshold limit. UrbanNorth East has been no exception to


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Name of the States

Percentagedistribution ofhouseholdhaving tapwater

Percentagedistribution of householdwith no latrine

Percentagedistribution of householdwith electricity

Percentagedistribution of householdwith puccahouse

ArunachalPradesh 87.2 0.1 98.5 62

Assam 36.6 0.9 94.6 75.5Manipur 65.6 0 99.3 29.1Meghalaya 95.6 0.2 99.3 88.3Mizoram 72 0 99.8 92.1Nagaland 25.7 1.3 100 72.7Sikkim 98.2 0 99.4 99.9Tripura 60.6 0.9 95.3 57.6

Source : NSS Report 535, Housing Conditions and Amenities,2008 - 09

Table 7 : urban Amenities in North East India (2001)

urban decline. ere had beenoccasional deliberate attempt toarrest this decline through urbanrenewal. Urban decline and urbanrenewal being the inevitableprocesses, balancing factor has beenthe pace of change. Urban growthinfected with economic decline,physical decay and adverse socialconditions leads to physical andeconomic deterioration of land andbuildings and dilapidated servicesand utilities. Urban renewal is thusthe revitalization of the derelictareas of an urban settlement andconsists of redevelopment orreconstruction, rehabilitation andconservation. Urban renewal

therefore takes care of two issues –functionality of the urban servicesand optimality in the use of urbaninfrastructures. e road map tourban renewal across the urbansettlements of NE includes –making an inventory of the areasneeding interventions and theprioritization of the interventions;relocating urban activities (city levelfunctions) to ensure requireddensity and commensuratingservices; changing land use to fullyutilize the potential land values byintroducing TransferableDevelopment Rights, Land Poolingand Redistribution, AccommodationReservation, Incentive Zoning and

banning non conforming use; andrehabilitating the slum dwellers.

INFrASTruCTurE dEvEl-oPMENT IN urbAN NorThEAST

A stream of opportunities areavailable before the urbangovernments across north east inthe form of different urbandevelopment schemes sponsored bythe central government. It is hightime that ULBs across North Eastmake best of these opportunities.Table 11 lists the schemes availablefor urban infrastructuredevelopment and eradication of


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Name ofthe State

Projectedpercentageof popula-tion in 15-59 agegroup by2017

Projectedpopula-tion of 15-59 agegroup by2017 inmillion

Percentage shareof States of per-sons in 15-29 agegroup with formaltraining againstthe country total

Percentage ofPersons withTraining in theAge group(15-29)

State’s share in theincrease in younglabour force (15-29) during 2006 –2017 against thecountry total

State’s Share inseating capaci-ty in ITI andITC againstthe country to-tal

Assam 65.10 21.4 0.8 1.4 4.8 0.6Other NEStates 68.30 10.1 0.4 1.3 2.0 0.5

India 63.90 820.6 ---- 3.9 ----- -------

Table 8 : demographic dividend of North East

Source: NCEUS Report, 2009



State wise percentage distributionof labour force by sector and sex,2005

State wise distribution oflabour force in millionby sector and sex, 2005

Name ofState

UrbanMale

Urban Female

UrbanMale

Urban Female

Assam 10.72 1.89 1.19 0.21Other NEStates 12.84 5.88 0.75 0.34

India 20.13 5.52 93.96 25.75

Name ofthe State

Illiterates Primaryand

below Primary

Secondaryand

higherSecondary

graduatesand

above

Assam 18.89 28.32 21.56 10.14

Other NEStates 19.64 30.35 20.03 8.02

India 22.14 25.64 16.99 17.45

Table 9 : urban labour Market Scenario Table 10 : State wise Percentage distribution oflabour Force by Educational Attainment

urban poverty.

ULBs across North East must workon a mission mode to avail of thesemassive grants to strengthen theinfrastructure base of theirrespective town, address theproblems afflicting urban povertyand revitalize their administrativeinfrastructure.

ThE urbAN AgENdA In order to make the Urban LocalBodies (ULBs) across North Eaststructurally, functionally andfiscally stronger, following agenda isput forth:• Traditional local governance

infrastructure (autonomousvillage councils) should bemoulded in the current formatof municipal governance toensure effective local leveldemocracy;

• Densification by raising FAR3 inurban settlements as proposedfor by urban planners shouldnot be permitted particularly inthe hilly regions across NorthEast because of its tectonicsensitivity and terrainoustopography (located in the ZoneV of disaster vulnerability);

• Small and Medium towns acrossNorth East should be givenmore attention because of theirinherent locational advantagehitherto unnoticed;

• In view of entire North Eastenjoying tremendous potentialto be the locus of commercialhub once the Look East Policygets nationally andinternationally acknowledgedand enforced. Despite being alandlocked region, identification

of GEM (Generators ofEconomic Momentum) townsshould be undertaken forthwithfor accelerated development inthe irteenth Five Year Plan;

• Land being held mostly bycommunity or clan, any land useplan (including preparation ofMaster Plan) should beundertaken taking the local


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Name of theScheme

Coverage objective Conditionalities

Jawaharlal NehruNational UrbanRenewal Mission(JNNURM)

e State capitalsDevelopment of urbaninfrastructureStrengthening ofurban governance

State governmentand ULBs to un-dertake massivereforms

Urban Infrastruc-ture DevelopmentScheme for Smalland MediumTowns(UIDSSMT)

All statutory townsother than State cap-itals

Development of urbaninfrastructure


IntegratedHousing and SlumDevelopmentProgramme(IHSDP)

All statutory townsother than State cap-itals

Development of urbaninfrastructure in slumareas


Rajiv Awas Yojana(RAY)

All statutory towns

• Housing and in-frastructure inslum areas

• Biometric and GISbased slum map-ping


Non LapsableCentral Pool ofResources

All statutory towns Urban infrastructuredevelopment

Ten Percent LumpSum Central PoolFund (available for north eastonly)

All statutory towns Urban infrastructuredevelopment

Integrated Low Cost Sanitation(ILCS)

All statutory towns Sanitation for slumareas

Swarna Jayanti Sa-hari Rozgar Yojana(SJSRY)

All statutory towns

• Self employment• Small infrastruc-

ture developmentthrough wage em-ployment

• Skill development• Development of

community struc-tures

Table 11 : urban Sector Schemes

community into confidence;• Rain water harvesting should

not be confined in the buildingbye-laws but practised in theright earnest;

• In view of very poor score againstFiscal Autonomy Ratio (FAR),Revenue Decentralization Ratio(RDR) and Expenditure Decen-tralization Ratio (EDR), munic-ipalities should be strengthenedfiscally by taking recourse toproperty tax, other civic taxes,user charges etc. Unit areamethod should be adhered tofor estimating property tax. Mu-nicipal Tax tribunal should beconstituted to settle disputes;

• Municipal accounts throughdouble entry accrual basedaccounting and regular audit byC&AG or local audit must beensured;

• Any asset creation must besupported by asset management;

• Universalisation of urbanservices should be ensured;

• Formula based grants – in – aidshould be adhered to even if anumber of NE States areexempted from the constitutionof State Finance Commissionunder Article 243 M;

• Timely utilization of fundshould be ensured to expeditetimely release of subsequentfund besides plugging costoverrun;

• GIS – MIS integration of allurban information should beensured;

• For bigger towns, additionalfloor space index andTransferable DevelopmentRights (TDR) may be granted, if

permissible from the standpointof disaster vulnerability;

• e – municipal governance andsingle window service should beintroduced;

• State-wise uniform municipalstaffing should be ensured witha dedicated municipal cadre;

• Land use change should bepermissible in selective cases onpayment of heavy premium;

• Public Private Partnership(PPP)mode should be followed in theprovision of all urban services;

• Infrastructure gap analysisshould be meticulously done toassess infrastructure needs;

• Credit worthiness of ULBsshould be enhanced;

• Municipal ombudsman shouldbe appointed for all states;

• Property title certification mustbe introduced;

• Community participationthrough formal structures (areasabhas, CDS4 , NG5 / NC6 ) mustbe ensured;

• Maintenance and periodicupdating of municipal data base,following uniform formatshould be made mandatory forthe all the ULBs; and

• Skill formation and upgradationof the vast milieu of urbanlabour force should be plannedfor, to cash in the demographicdividend to be had by all the NEStates by 2017.

EPIloguE

Urban development requiresserious attention in its own right.However, urban development oughtnot to be superfluous. It should

enable an urban area to act as theprime mover of the whole socio-economic operational system. Allthe aforesaid schemes appear to bethe enabler. But in order to reap thefruits of these schemes, urbanNorth East must be courageousenough to undertake the reformswithin the given time line. If NorthEast has the will, the aforesaidschemes are the way. Let uscombine these two and wait for aprosperous urban North East.

ENd NoTES1 Industrial Training Institute2 Industrial Training Centre3 Floor Area Ratio 4 Community Development Society5 Neighbourhood Group 6 Neighbourhood Committee

NoTESe deprivation index {DI = 0.5 X + 0.25 (Y+Z)},where X, Y, and Z are respectively the percentagesof household fetching water from a distance,without latrine, and without drainage preparedby Twelh Finance Commission by deriving thedistance of each State from the minimumdeprived state and weighing it by 2001population. It also corroborates theinfrastructural backwardness of NE States.

e decentralization index calculated by theEleventh Finance Commission also substantiatesthe poor governance infrastructure across urbanNorth East. No perceptible governance reform isvisible to suggest any departure from the decadegone by.

e fiscal health of ULBs across North East is ina wretched condition as is evident (TwelhFinance Commission) from their revenue effortwith respect to own revenue of the respectiveStates and GSDP (net of primary sector). WhileArunachal Pradesh and Mizoram draws a blank,Assam scores a mere 0.434 and 0.374 and therests relegated to second decimal. No fiscalreform has yet been undertaken to reverse thesituation.

e district infrastructure index, defined as DIIi= ∑wixij , where DIIi is the composite index forthe ith infrastructure, wi is the weight assignedto the ith infrastructure and xij is the value of the


POLICY REVIEW

ith infrastructure for the jth district and wherexij of equation is further defined as xij =100*(yij/yiA), where yij is the value of the ithinfrastructure for the jth district and yiA is thevalue of the ith indicator for whole of North Eastcalculated by the Planning Commission alsosuggest uneven position of the State across thedifferent infrastructure although it does notdifferentiate between urban & rural space.

rEFErENCESAssam Development Report 2002 , Planning

Commission, Government of India.India Infrastructure Report 2008, Oxford

University Press, New Delhi.Kundu, A. (2005), Handbook of Urbansation in

India, Oxford University Press, New Delhi.

Kundu, Amitabh (2007), Infrastructure Financingand Emerging Pattern of Urbanisation: APerspective, NIUA, New Delhi.

Mathur, M. P. (2004), Municipal Finance andMunicipal Services in India: Present Status andFuture Prospectus, Second InternationalConference on Financing Municipalities &Sub-National Governments, Washington DC.

Mathur, O. P. and S. akur (2004), India’sMunicipal Sector, A Study for the TwelhFinance Commission, National Institute ofPublic Finance and Policy, New Delhi.

Mohanty, P. K. (2000), City Development Strategyand Comprehensive Municipal Reforms: eApproach of Hyderabad City in India, AsianCity Development Conference, Japan.

Mohanty, P. K. (2001), Strategic Issues inMunicipal Infrastructure Development,Infrastructure Forum organised by the WorldBank at Washington D C.

Mohanty, P. K. (2003), Financing Urban Infrastructure:Some Innovative Practices of Resource Mobilisation,CGG Working Paper.

Nallathiga, Ramakrishna (2007), Off-budgetApproaches to the Delivery of Urban Services:the Potential of Public-Private Partnerships,ICFAI Journal of Public Finance, Volume V (2):53-64.

Pethe A.M. and M. Godke (2002), FundingUrban Infrastructure - From Government toMarkets, Economic and Political Weekly.


POLICY REVIEW

HUDCO’s contribution as the premiertechno-financial institution in the countryis not limited to housing finance butincludes various other pertinent initiativesto contribute to the cause of sustainableurban development. In keeping with thistradition, HUDCO launched the HUDCODESIGN AWARDS and HUDCO BestPractice Award.

hudCo design Awardse HUDCO Design Awards werelaunched on World Habitat Day in 2012 togive recognition and felicitate innovativeideas and initiatives that contribute tomaking our cites inclusive, livable andenvironmentally sustainable. e award has5 categories viz. Cost Effective Rural /Urban Housing including Disaster ResistantHousing, New and Innovative Town DesignSolutions / Eco-cities, Conservation ofHeritage, Green Buildings and LandscapePlanning and Design. A three memberindependent jury, consisting of an eminentarchitect, a planner and a landscapespecialist, decides the winners. It includes atrophy, a certificate and prize of Rs. 4.00lakh (four lakh) and Rs. 2.00 lakh each forfirst and second Prize winners respectivelyin each category. e hallmark of theHUDCO Design Awards is that through its5 categories it tries to capture themultidimensional challenges of sustainableurbanization and its approach is to

appreciate sensible and sensitive design –not just grandeur. For more information on Design Awardsand copies of publication, please contactExecutive Director (DD/ URP Wing),HUDCO, New Delhi([email protected]).

hudCo Awards for best Practices HUDCO has institutionalized the HUDCOAwards for Best Practices to Improve theLiving Environment in 2011-12. e firstHUDCO Best Practice Awards for the year2011-12 were presented on the HUDCOAnnual Day held on 25th April 2012. Since then every year, HUDCO hasawarded many organizations for theirsuccessful initiatives and practices acrossIndia for the improvement of livingenvironment.Entries can be submitted in the seven

categories - Urban Governance; Housing;Urban Poverty & Infrastructure; UrbanTransport; Sanitation; EnvironmentManagement, Energy Conservation &Green Building; Urban Design & RegionalPlanning/ Inner City Revitalization &Conservation and Disaster Preparedness,Mitigation & Rehabilitation. A Committee comprising of eminentprofessionals with diverse backgroundselects the winning entries. is criterion isbased on planning implementation/ processapplied, innovativeness/application oftechnology, stakeholder’s participation,impact, sustainability and replicability. eAwardee is given, a commemorative plaque,and a certificate and prize money of Rs 1.00Lakh (one lakh). For more information and details onsubmission of Best Practices please contactExecutive Director (Training), HUDCO’sHSMI, New Delhi([email protected])e winning entries of HUDCO DesignAwards and Best Practices Award arecompiled and published by HUDCO andwidely circulated among variousstakeholders including urban local bodiesand policy makers to inform and sensitizethem in matters of complex urbanchallenges and innovative solutions beingpracticed across the country.

hudCo AWArdS

47October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - sHeLter

is paper has estimated the urban housingshortages in India in 2012 by Caste and Ethnicgroup following the methodology of theTechnical Group on Urban Housing Shortage,2012-17 (TG-12) using data from Census 2001and 2011 and NSS Housing Condition Roundsunit record data 2008-09. e TG-12 estimatednumber of urban households to be 81.35 millionand urban housing shortage to be 18.78 millionin 2012, majority of which belongs toEconomically Weaker Section and Low IncomeGroup households. Households living incongested conditions were found to be the mainfactors leading to these housing shortages.Among Caste and Ethnic Groups, housingshortages were found high for Scheduled Castehouseholds as compared to Scheduled Tribe andOther households. Results suggest the need forattention on urban housing with targeted groupspecific policies (economic and social), toeradicate shelter deprivation and enhancementof the quality of life in urban India.

INTRODUCTION

Several policies and programmesare being implemented in urbanIndia to tackle the housing problemwith the mission of providingaffordable housing for all, especiallyshelter and basic services to allslum-dwellers and urban poor suchas National Urban Housing andHabitat Policy 2007, JawaharlalNehru National Urban RenewalMission (JNNURM), AffordableHousing in Partnership Scheme

(AHIP), Interest Subsidy Schemefor Housing the Urban Poor(ISHUP) and Rajiv Awas Yojana(RAY), etc. RAY envisages a ‘Slum-free India’ with inclusive andequitable cities in which everycitizen has access to basic civic andsocial services and decent shelter. Itaims to provide the support toenable states to redevelop allexisting slums in a holistic andintegrated way and to create newaffordable housing stock.

e Technical Group on UrbanHousing Shortage, 2012-17 (TG-12)constituted by the Ministry ofHousing and Urban PovertyAlleviation, Government of Indiahas estimated the urban housingshortages for 2012 to be 18.78million, out of which 95.62 per centpertains to economically weakersections and low income groups ofthe society. ese shortages werearrived at by putting togetherfactors such as excess of householdsover housing stock, householdliving in congested conditions, non-serviceable temporary houses,obsolete houses and householdsliving in homeless conditions.

urbAn Housing sHortAges in indiA

Aspects of Economic Category, Caste and Ethnicity

e issue of housing povertyand deprivation remainsclose to the weakereconomic category such asEWS and LIG households aswell as caste and ethnicgroups. Among caste andethnic groups, SChouseholds were found tohave high urban housingshortages as compared toST and Other households.

Shri Arjun Kumar([email protected]) is a DoctoralFellow at Indian Council of Social Sci-ence Research and PhD Scholar (Eco-nomics) at Centre for the Study ofRegional Development, JawaharlalNehru University, New Delhi.

Keywords: Urban Housing, Housing Shortages, Rightto Shelter, Quality of Life, Twelve Five Year Plan, RajivAwaas Yojana, Economic Category, Caste, Ethnicity

Arjun KumAr

POLICY REVIEW

Micro level studies have shown thatthe Scheduled Castes haveexperienced caste-baseddiscrimination in accessing basicpublic services and common publicresources. e failure ofentitlements due to caste basedexclusion is significant. is callsfor corrective measures preferablythrough legal procedures, to bringabout equality across social groupsin all the spheres. Fightingdiscrimination calls for additionalpolicies, complementing anti-poverty and economic developmentprogrammes. ‘Inclusive policies’must include interventions andpositive steps to overcome socialexclusion and discrimination invarious market and non-marketinstitutions from where peopleaccess source of livelihood andsocial needs (orat & Sabharwal,2011).

e insights from the experience ofpoverty and consumptionexpenditure changes during theperiods 1994-2005 to 2005-10,particularly during the latter period,need to be kept in mind indeveloping a pro-poor inclusivegrowth strategy during the TwelhPlan. e results imply that a broad-based pro-poor policy needs to besupplemented by group specificpolicy (social, religious andeconomic groups) and this must bemade an integral part of the overallplanning strategy (orat & Dubey,2012).

e Twelh Plan recognises theinclusive growth approach as themeans to an end that woulddemand outcomes which yieldbenefits for all and particularly tothe marginalised sections of society(orat & Dubey, 2012). As per theApproach Paper of the PlanningCommission, “inclusive growthshould result in lower incidence ofpoverty, improvement in healthoutcomes, universal access toschool education, increased accessto higher education, including skilland education, better opportunitiesfor both wage employment andlivelihoods and improvement inprovision of basic amenities likewater, electricity, roads, sanitationand housing. Particular attentionneeds to be paid to the needs of theSC, ST and OBC population,women and children as alsominorities and other excludedgroups” (Planning Commission,2011).

is paper estimates the urbanhousing shortages in India in 2012by caste and ethnic group (socialgroups1) following themethodology of TG-12, using datafrom Census 2001 and 2011 andNSS Housing Condition Roundsunit record data 2008-09.

URBAN HOUSING SHORT-AGES – 2012 AS PER TG-12

As per the Census 2011, the totalnumber of Census houses2 in urban

areas were 110.1 million of which11.1 million were vacant andanother 0.7 million were occupiedbut kept as locked. ere were 76.1million houses used for onlyresidential purposes and 2.4 millionhouses used for residential-cum-other uses, the two together givingthe housing stock3 of 78.5 million.ere were 78.9 millionhouseholds4 (excludinginstitutional5 households). egrowth rates of housing stocks werefound to be higher than households,which resulted in narrowing the gapbetween households and housingstocks over the period of time andeased the housing situation.

ere has been a massive rise of 4.6million vacant census houses, from6.5 million in 2001 to 11.1 millionin 2011 (Table 1). e TG-12 notedthat- “Applying the proportion of79.82 per cent of urban houses usedfor residential purposes (excludingthe locked and vacant houses) asper Census 2011, it can be inferredthat around 9.43 million residentialunits were lying physicallyunutilized that could meet a largepart of housing needs.” However,the TG-12 categorically stated theunavailability of informationpertaining to the characteristics ofthese vacant and locked housessuch as size, physical conditions,reason for the non-occupancy andbeing locked.

e increase in the number ofhouseholds is understandably due

48 HudCo - Hsmi Publication

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to the addition to the urban areasrecorded in the latest Census. etotal number of urbanagglomeration and other cities andtowns had gone up by only 2541 inthe 10 decades of the last century.However, during 2001-11, thenumber has gone up by 2774, from5161 towns in 2001 to 7935 townsin 2011, majority of these being the“Census towns”. e jump in thenumber of census towns from 1362to 3894 during 2001-11 is

unprecedented in the history of theIndian Census. e number ofstatutory towns increased from3799 to 4041 during 2001-11. In the2011 Census, 475 places with 981Outgrowths (OGs) have beenidentified as UrbanAgglomerations6 (UAs) as against384 UAs with 962 OGs in 2001Census.

e number of households as onMarch 31, 2012 works out as 81.35

million by TG-12, using annualexponential growth rate during2001-11 and discounting theincrease on account of additionaltowns in 2011 Census. e TG-12has estimated the housing shortagesin urban India in 2012 by addingfour factors; households living in (a)non-serviceable kutcha/temporary7houses as per Census 2011 figures;(b) obsolescent houses8 (excludingnon-serviceable kutcha/temporaryhouses); (c) congested houses9

Source: Tables on Houses, Household Amenities and Assets, House listing and Housing Data, Census of India, 2001 and 2011.

Table 1 : Levels and Changes in the Census Houses and Households in Urban India during 2001 and 2011

2011 2001 2001 – 2011 (Changes)No.

(millions)as

proportionduring

2011 (in %)

No.(millions)

as proportion

during 2001 (in %)

No.(millions)

as proportion

during 2011 (in %)

Number of census houses

Total number of census houses 110.1 100.0 71.6 100.0 38.6 53.9 100.0

Total number of vacant census houses 11.1 10.1 6.5 9.0 4.6 71.9 12.0

Total number of occupied census houses 99.0 89.9 65.1 91.0 33.9 52.1 88.0Number of occupied census houses

Total number of occupied census houses 99.0 100.0 65.1 100.0 33.9 52.1 100.0

Occupied Census Houses used as Residence 76.1 76.9 50.2 77.1 25.9 51.6 76.3

Residence -cum- other use 2.4 2.4 1.8 2.8 0.5 27.8 1.5Shop/ Office 10.7 10.8 7.8 12.0 2.9 36.7 8.5School/ College etc. 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.1 48.0 0.4Hotel/ Lodge/ Guest house etc. 0.4 0.4 0.3 0.4 0.1 48.1 0.4Hospital/ Dispensary etc. 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4 0.1 22.5 0.2

Factory/ Workshop/ Workshed etc. 1.5 1.5 1.2 1.9 0.3 22.3 0.8

Place of worship 0.6 0.6 0.4 0.6 0.2 42.6 0.5Other non-residential use 5.9 6.0 2.8 4.3 3.2 113.1 9.3No. of occupied locked census houses 0.7 0.7Total Households 78.9 53.7 25.2 46.9Occupied Census Houses used as Residenceand Residence -cum- other use 78.5 52.1 26.4 50.8

Total Households - Occupied Census Housesused as Residence and Residence -cum- otheruse

0.4 1.6 -1.2


POLICY REVIEW

requiring new houses; and (d)homeless condition. e excess ofhouseholds (that do not includehomeless) over housing stock hasbeen marginal in 2011 and the gapwas found to be narrowing overtime as discussed before. us, theTG-12 has not incorporated excessof households over housing stockwhile estimating the housingshortage and also added that thisphenomenon may not beconsidered as housing shortage.With regard to estimation ofhouseless condition, the TG-12considered that half of the totalhomeless population of 0.8 million,as per Census 2011, were singlemigrants whereas the other half hadan average household size of 3. Bythis estimate, the housing need forthe homeless should be roughly 0.4million for single male migrantsand 0.13 million for those withfamilies, taking the total to 0.53million in 2012.

e total urban housing shortage in2012 was estimated to be 18.78million, out of which 5 per cent, 12per cent, 80 per cent and 3 per centwere on the account of householdsliving in non-serviceable temporaryhouses, obsolete houses, congestionconditions and homeless conditionsrespectively (Table-2). e urbanhousing shortage in 2007 wasestimated at 24.71 million by TG-11. ere was decline of almost 6million housing shortage between2007 and 2011. is was mainly onaccount of excess of householdsover housing stock which narrowedover time. e excess of householdsover housing stock was estimated at

7.47 million by TG-11 in 2007,whereas this gap reduced to 0.4million in 2011 which has eased thehousing situation. us, TG-12 didnot incorporate this factor in the

estimation of urban housingshortages in 2012.

URBAN HOUSING SHORT-AGES – 2012 BY ECONOMICCATEGORIES

e classification of variouseconomic category households suchas economically weaker section(EWS), low income group (LIG),middle and high income groupwere based on household incomecriteria prevalent in 2012. EWShouseholds are those with incomeup to Rupees 5000 per month andLIG households are those withincome between Rupees 5000 and10000 per month. e TG-12 usingthe consumption expenditure datafrom NSS 66th Round for 2009-10,found that EWS categoryhouseholds comprise one third ofthe households in urban area and

80 per cent of the households haveexpenditure equal to or below theLIG category. According to TG-12,the households from EWS, LIG,middle and high income group

category accounted for 56.18 percent, 39.44 per cent and 4.38 percent respectively of the totalestimated urban housing shortage.ese figures were arrived at by theestimation of total housing shortagein 2012 by consumptionexpenditure deciles classes usingNSS 65th Round (housing conditionround) for 2008-09.

ESTIMATION OF URBANHOUSING SHORTAGES –2012 BY CASTE ANDETHNIC GROUPS

e shares of households in urbanIndia during 2011 were 4.04 percent, 14.34 per cent and 81.62 percent for STs, SCs and Othersrespectively (Table 3). Out of 81.35million estimated urban householdsin 2012, the number of estimated

Source: e Technical Group on Urban Housing Shortage (TG-12) (2012-17), Ministry of Housing andUrban Poverty Alleviation, Government of India

Shortage (in millions)Total Households 81.35Households living in Non-ServiceableKatcha/Temporary Houses 0.99

Households living in Obsolescent houses (excludingnon-serviceable katcha/ temporary houses) 2.27

Households living in Congested houses requiring newhouses 14.99

Homeless Households 0.53Total Housing Shortages 18.78

Table 2 :Summary of Households having Housing Shortages in Urban India,2012 by the Technical Group on Urban Housing Shortage (TG-12)(2012-17)


POLICY REVIEW

households for STs, SCs and Otherswere 3.29, 11.66 and 66.40 millionrespectively.

e urban housing shortage bycaste and ethnic groups has beenestimated taking into account the 4factors as per the TG-12 estimationfor urban housing shortage, asdiscussed in the following sub-sections.

Households living in Non-Ser-viceable Temporary Houses

Urban households living in non-serviceable temporary houses in2011 were 0.99 million. Amongsocial groups, the urban householdsliving in these non-serviceabletemporary houses in 2011 were 9.23per cent, 28.26 per cent and 62.51per cent for STs, SCs and Othersrespectively (Table 4). ehouseholds living in non-serviceable temporary houses in2012 were estimated to be 0.99million and the number ofestimated households living in non-serviceable temporary houses forSTs, SCs and Others were 0.09, 0.28and 0.62 million respectively.

Housing Shortage due to Obso-lescence excluding TemporaryHousese households living in obsoletehouses excluding non-serviceabletemporary houses in 2012 wereestimated to be 2.27 million and thenumber of estimated householdsliving in obsolete houses excludingnon-serviceable temporary housesfor STs, SCs and Others were 0.05,0.30 and 1.89 million respectively(Table 5).Households living inCongested Conditions18.4 per cent of the urban

households were living in congestedconditions in 2008-09. Amongsocial groups, the urban householdsliving in congested conditions in2008-09 were 16.77 per cent, 26.52per cent and 17.08 per cent for STs,SCs and Others respectively (Table6). e households living incongested conditions in 2012 wereestimated to be 14.99 million andthe number of estimatedhouseholds living in congestedconditions for STs, SCs and Otherswere 0.55, 3.09 and 11.34 millionrespectively.

Households in HomelessConditions

e households in homelessconditions in 2012 were estimatedto be 0.53 million by TG-12 and thenumber of estimated households inhomeless conditions for STs, SCsand Others were 0.03, 0.12 and 0.38million respectively. Due tounavailability of data, thehousehold share of the bottom mostquintile across social groups was

ST SC Others TotalNSS 2008-09Share of households in % 3.28 14.43 82.29 100.00Census 2011Households (in millions) 3.19 11.31 64.37 78.87

Share of households in % 4.04 14.34 81.62 100.002012* (Forecasted)Households (in millions) 3.29 11.66 66.40 81.35

Table 3 : Number of Households and their Share across Social Groups inUrban India, 2008-09, 2011 and 2012

ST SC Others Total

Households living in Non-Serviceable Katcha/Temporary Houses in 2011

in millions 0.09 0.28 0.62 0.99Share in Non-Serviceable Katcha/ TemporaryHouses in % 9.23 28.26 62.51 100.00

Households living in Non-Serviceable Katcha/Temporary Houses in 2012in millions 0.09 0.28 0.62 0.99Total Households in 2012in millions 3.29 11.66 66.4 81.35Households excluding Non-Serviceable Katcha/Temporary Houses in 2012in millions 3.20 11.38 65.78 80.36

Table 4 : Estimation of Households living in Non-Serviceable Temporaryhouses across Social Groups in Urban India during 2012

Source:- Tabulated by the author



POLICY REVIEW

ST SC Others TotalHouseholds living in 40-80 years old dwelling unit having bad condition of structure of thehouse excluding non-serviceable temporary/katcha houses during 2008-09(as proportion of households in %)

1.11 1.72 1.34 1.39

Households living in 80 and more years old dwelling unit excluding non-serviceabletemporary/katcha houses during 2008-09 (as proportion of households in %) 0.53 0.95 1.55 1.43

Households in Obsolescent or unacceptable dwelling units (40-80 years old dwellingunit having bad condition of structure of the house and 80 and more years old dwellingunit) excluding non-serviceable temporary/katcha houses during 2008-09(as proportion of households in %)

1.64 2.67 2.89 2.82

Households excluding non-serviceable temporary/katcha houses, 2012 in millions 3.20 11.38 65.78 80.36

Households living in Obsolescent houses (excluding non-serviceable temporary/katchahouses) in 2012* in millions 0.05 0.30 1.89 2.27

Table 5 : Estimation of Housing Shortage due to Obsolescence excluding Non-Serviceable Temporary/Katchahouses across Social Groups in Urban India during 2012

ST SC Others Total

A Total estimated households during 2008-09 2.18 9.59 54.68 66.44

A1 Total estimated households excluding non-serviceable katcha/temporary housesduring 2008-09 2.14 9.49 54.47 66.10

B Estimation of households requiring a separate dwelling unit to take care of congestionexcluding those living in non-serviceable katcha/ temporary houses during 2008-09 0.37 2.62 9.86 12.85

C Estimation of Households requiring a separate dwelling unit to take care of congestion innon-serviceable katcha/temporary houses during 2008-09 0.00 0.00 0.00 0.00

B + C Dwelling units required on account of Congestion during 2008-09 0.37 2.62 9.86 12.85

DNo. of households with married couple not having a separate room, living in badstructures aged 40-80 years excluding non-serviceable katcha/temporary housesduring 2008-09

0.01 0.06 0.28 0.34

E No. of households with married couple not having a separate room, living in 80 yearold houses excluding non-serviceable katcha/ temporary houses during 2008-09 0.00 0.02 0.25 0.27

D + E Deductions to be made on account of double counting 0.01 0.08 0.52 0.61(B+C) -(D+E)

Estimated households requiring a new dwelling unit on account of Congestionduring 2008-09 0.37 2.54 9.34 12.24

{(B+C) -(D+E)/A}*100

Households living in Congested Living Conditions as a Proportions of TotalEstimated Households of NSS during 2008-09 (in %) 16.77 26.52 17.08 18.43

Total Households in 2012 3.29 11.66 66.40 81.35

Households living in Congested houses requiring new houses in 2012 0.55 3.09 11.34 14.99

Table 6 : Summary of Process of Estimating Households living in Congestion and requiring a New Dwelling Unitacross Social Groups in Urban India during 2012 (in millions)




POLICY REVIEW

applied to the total estimatedhouseholds in homeless conditionsin 2012 by TG-12 to arrive at theestimates for social groups (Table7).

Total Urban Housing Shortages- 2012 across Caste and EthnicGroups

Total urban housing shortages in2012 comes out to be 18.78 millionby adding the four factors (non-serviceable temporary houses,obsolete houses, congestion

conditions and homelessconditions) as discussed before.Among social groups, the numberof estimated urban housingshortages in 2012 for STs, SCs and

Others were 0.72, 3.79 and 14.23million respectively (Table 8).Urban housing shortages asproportion of urban households in2012 were 23.05 per cent foraggregate and among social groups,22.01 per cent, 32.54 per cent and21.44 per cent for STs, SCs and

Others respectively. Out of the totalurban housing shortages of 18.78million in 2012, STs, SCs andOthers accounted for 3.86 per cent,20.24 per cent and 75.92 per centrespectively. SC households werefound to have high urban housingshortages as compared to ST andOther households.

CONCLUSIONS AND POL-ICY ISSUES

is paper discussed the housingsituations and shortages in urbanIndia, and also focused on aspectsof economic category, caste andethnic groups. is paper alsoestimated the urban housingshortages in India in 2012 by casteand ethnic group, following themethodology of TG-12 and usingdata from Census 2001 and 2011and NSS Housing ConditionRounds unit record data 2008-09.Given the magnitude of urbanhousing shortage, it is imperativethat adequate and affordable urbanhousing has to be given immediateattention and thrust from the States,by allowing more housing supply toeradicate shelter deprivation and toenhance the quality of life.

e issue of housing poverty anddeprivation remains close to theweaker economic category such asEWS and LIG households as well ascaste and ethnic groups. Amongcaste and ethnic groups, SChouseholds were found to have highurban housing shortages as

ST SC Others TotalShare in Bottom Most Quintile during 2008-09(in %) 6.23 22.89 70.88 100.00

Homeless Household* (in Million) 0.03 0.12 0.38 0.53

* TG-12 assumed that all homeless households were subsumed in bottom two deciles or Bottom quintile.Homeless households across social groups were calculated by applying their household share in bottomquintile during 2008-09 upon figure of 0.53 million homeless households as taken by TG-12 for 2012.

Source- National Sample Survey, Housing Condition Round (65th) unit record data, 2008-09.

Table 7 : Households in Homeless Conditions across Social Groups in UrbanIndia during 2012

ST SC Others TotalTotal Households (in millions) 3.29 11.66 66.40 81.35Share of households in % 4.04 14.34 81.62 100.00Households living in Non-ServiceableKatcha/Temporary Houses 0.09 0.28 0.62 0.99

Households living in Obsolescent houses(excluding non-serviceablekatcha/temporary houses)

0.05 0.30 1.89 2.25

Households living in Congested housesrequiring new houses 0.55 3.09 11.34 14.98

Homeless Households 0.03 0.12 0.38 0.53Total Housing Shortages 0.72 3.79 14.23 18.74(as proportion of households in 2012 in %) 22.01 32.54 21.44 23.05(as proportion of housing shortages in 2012in %) 3.86 20.24 75.92 100.00

Table : 8 Summary of Households having Housing Shortages across SocialGroups in Urban India, 2012 (in millions)

Note- Shortages by each social groups have been added up here to arrive at total housing shortages byeach factor in 2012, which may slightly vary from the aggregate urban housing shortages estimates in2012.

compared to ST and Otherhouseholds. ST and SC householdswere also found lagging in theattainment of housing amenities ascompared to Other households.is calls for the need ofsupplementary targeted groupspecific policies (economic andsocial) in urban housing.

Given the dynamics of urbanhousing, recommendations of theTG-12 such as declaration ofhousing to be made part ofinfrastructure sector or declared tobe an industry (so that it is possibleto incentivise the constructionactivities to deliver an appropriatemix of dwelling units to meet theneeds of the people in housingpoverty), bring in the vacant housesinto the housing market throughtaxation and incentive policies,create extra space or build extrarooms through support from publicagencies to tackle the problem ofcongestion and shi the householdsliving in houses more than 80 yearold to new units, will act ascomplimentary measures to reducethe estimated urban housingshortage of 18.78 million. eseadditional and alternate measureswill also help to achieve the targetseffectively and reduces dependencyon single remedy of supply ofaffordable housing by the statewhich may have concerns like highgestation periods among others.Measures like these would help inthe attainment of the Twelh FiveYear Plan’s objective of ‘Faster,Sustainable and More InclusiveGrowth’ in urban India.

NOTES1 Scheduled Tribes (STs), Scheduled Castes (SCs)and Others.

2 'House' was defined 'as a building or part of abuilding having a separate main entrance fromthe road or common courtyard or stair case etc.Used or recognised as a separate unit. It maybe inhabited or vacant. It may be used for aresidential or non-residential purpose or both'.

3 Housing Stocks includes occupied censushouses used as residential and residential cumothers use.

4 A ‘household’ is usually a group of persons whonormally live together and take their mealsfrom a common kitchen unless the exigenciesof work prevent any of them from doing so.Persons in a household may be related orunrelated or a mix of both.

5 A group of unrelated persons who live in aninstitution and take their meals from acommon kitchen is called an InstitutionalHousehold. Examples of InstitutionalHouseholds are boarding houses, messes,hostels, hotels, rescue homes, jails, ashrams,orphanages, etc.

6 An urban agglomeration is a continuous urbanspread constituting a town and its adjoiningoutgrowths (OGs), or two or more physicallycontiguous towns together with or withoutoutgrowths of such towns. An UrbanAgglomeration must consist of at least astatutory town and its total population (i.e. allthe constituents put together) should not beless than 20,000 as per the 2001 Census. Invarying local conditions, there were similarother combinations which have been treated asurban agglomerations satisfying the basiccondition of contiguity. Examples: GreaterMumbai UA, Delhi UA, etc.

7 Katcha/Temporary Houses: Houses in whichboth the walls and roof are made up ofmaterials that needs to be replaced frequentlyand made up of straw, cloth, etc (grass / straw/ leaves / reeds / bamboo, etc). Non-ServiceableTemporary House: Temporary houses in whichwall is made of Grass, atch, Bamboo, etc.Plastic or Polythene.

8 Obsolescent houses comprised of householdsliving in 40-80 years old dwelling units havingbad conditions of structure. e TG-12estimated this to be 2.82% of all dwelling units.

9 A married couple sharing a living room withan adult is considered as congestion. isestimated by TG-12 to be 18.42% of the totalhouseholds.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

is paper is an abridged version of a researchstudy undertaken by Indian Institute of DalitStudies under ink Tank Initiative program,IDRC. e author would like to acknowledgeProf. Amitabh Kundu, Prof. Sukhadeo orat,P.C. Mohanan and IIDS Research team for theirhelpful comments.

REFERENCESCensus of India (2012), H-Series Tables onCensus Houses, Household Amenities andAssets, 2011, Registrar General and CensusCommissioner, India, Ministry of HomeAffairs, New Delhi.

Kumar, Arjun (2013), "Access to Basic Amenitiesin Urban India -Status of Levels across Caste,Ethnicity, Religion, Livelihood Categories andPoverty in Various Class Sizes of Towns andCities", Urban India, July – Dec 2013, NationalInstitute of Urban Affairs.

Kumar, Arjun (2014), “Access to Basic Amenities:Aspects of Caste, Ethnicity and Poverty inRural and Urban India—1993 to 2008–2009”,Journal of Land and Rural Studies, January2014, Vol. 2, No. 1, pages 127-148, SagePublication.

Kundu, Amitabh (2006): “Trends and Patterns ofUrbanisation and their Economic Implication”(Chapter 2) in India Infrastructure Report onUrban Infrastructure 2006 by InfrastructureDevelopment Finance Company, OxfordUniversity Press, New Delhi.

Kundu, Amitabh (2011), “Politics and Economicsof Urban Growth”, Economic and PoliticalWeekly, Vol - XLVI No. 20, May 14, 2011.

Kundu, Debolina, and Dibyendu Samanta,(2011), “Redefining the Inclusive UrbanAgenda in India”, Economic and PoliticalWeekly, Vol - XLVI No. 05, January 29, 2011.

Ministry of Housing and Urban PovertyAlleviation (2007), Report of the TechnicalGroup [11th five year plan: 2007-12] onEstimation of Urban Housing Shortage,Ministry of Housing and Urban PovertyAlleviation, National Buildings Organisation,Government of India, New Delhi.

National Sample Survey Organisation (2010):“Housing Condition and Amenities in India:2008-09”, Report No 535, National SampleSurvey Organisation, Ministry of Statistics andProgramme Implementation, Government ofIndia, New Delhi.

Planning Commission (2011), “Faster,Sustainable and More Inclusive Growth: AnApproach to 12th Five Year Plan”, PlanningCommission, Government of India, NewDelhi.

orat, Sukhadeo and Nidhi S. Sabharwal (2011),“Social Exclusion and Commons” in“Vocabulary of Commons” book byFoundation for Ecological Security, printed atWQ Judge Press, Bangalore, India.

orat, Sukhdeo and Amaresh Dubey (2012),“Has Growth Been Socially Inclusive during1993-94 – 2009-10?”, Economic and PoliticalWeekly, Vol - XLVII No. 10, March 10, 2012.


POLICY REVIEW

55October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - sHeLterHudCo - Hsmi Publication

Amidst a milieu of burgeoning socio-legalconcerns and interventions for ‘Homeless’in India, the ‘CSR and Sustainability Policy’of HUDCO appreciably enlists among otheractivity thrust areas, the following:‘Initiatives for slum redevelopmentincluding environmental improvement inlow income habitats, sanitationinfrastructure and support; Projects ofday/night shelters, children homes, seniorcitizens/poor citizens home etc. and toprovide support for the projects of barrierfree amenities/accessible facilities forphysically challenged as well as to provideequipment for support’. HUDCO hasextended grant assistance to several UrbanLocal Bodies (ULBs) for construction ofNight Shelters/ Shelter facilities, besidesundertaking activities like supporting skillbuilding initiatives, construction of Pay &

Use toilets and health care needs likepurchase of ambulance, under its “CSR andsustainability policy”.SARBARI, 19 B, Chetla Hat Road,Ward No. 82, Kolkata ‘Sarbari’, is a shelter for Homeless andmentally ill women run by ISHWARSHANKALP, an NGO working withhomeless and mental health in the Kolkatametropolitan area. e institution was bornin April 2010, propelled with the realisationthat homeless women with mental illnesswho live on the streets are extremelyvulnerable to different kinds of abuses: thegang-rape of a homeless woman in the citywho was under the NGO’s treatment formental health and was recovering, was thecatalyst owing to her recovery from mentalillness and consequential improvedhygiene and physical appearance, ironicallyshe became more susceptible to theincidence of rape. e subsequent ‘Shelterfor Urban Homeless’ scheme of West Bengaland grant assistance from HUDCO torenovate the shelter building has been morethan enabling.

e Shelter is housed in a KolkataMunicipal Corporation owned building, inthe southern end of KMC area. It is set offfrom the main Chetla Hat road and has awalled boundary, hence ideally suited to theshelter type. e building was originallymeant to be a ‘vagrant home’ under theWest Bengal Vagrancy Act. It’s a Ground +1RCC structure; the shelter operates only onthe ground floor. ere are clear spatialunits for rest and sleep; for psycho-socialrecovery activities; livelihood activities;doctors’ unit; Special Care unit,administrative unit; Community Kitchen,verandahs and an open courtyard. eNGO runs a community-based outreachprogram called ‘Naya Daur’ for homelesspersons with psycho-social disability withinthe Kolkata metropolitan area. e fieldofficials bring mentally ill destitute women

to the shelter for rehabilitation, resettlementand restitution. Initially when a woman isidentified as homeless and having mentalillness through the Outreach program orthrough Kolkata Police and consequentlyagrees to be brought in the shelter, theprimary emphasis is on basic hygiene,physical and mental health care andsymptom reduction. Once the womenbecome stable and functional, they aregradually involved in the routine householdactivities of the shelter which act as basic lifeskill therapies. Counsellors and therapistsidentify their interest and aptitude andaccordingly occupational and vocationaltherapy training programs begin. Havingidentified their employment options, effortis made to resettle the women for self-sustenance. Wherever possible, they arerestored back to their families of origin.Women leave the shelter only aer they arerestored or rehabilitated. From the year2012-13, the Shelter is also emphasizing onproviding entitlements to the residents.Several bank accounts have been opened.e process of applying for UID cards hasbegun.

e shelter is managed as per theinstitutional norms of the ‘Scheme ofShelter for Homeless’ of the West BengalGovernment. e NGO has a team of 42regular and 6 consulting officials includingsocial workers, medical and paramedicalpersonnel especially in the area of mentalhealth. A seven member Board involvingdoctors and paramedical professionals areat the helm of running the Shelter. eshelter has enabled mentally ill homelesswomen to shi from being treated as ‘lawbreakers’ and arrested under the Anti-Beggary Act to people who need care; needa place to heal from the wounds inflicted byfamily, state and society and a place thatwould enable them to redefine theiridentity, find new skills and start rebuildinglife.

It is herein accentuated for readers tointernalise that ‘Night Shelters’ or ‘Shelters forhomeless’ are more than places for thehomeless people to rest in the night. ere areseveral causes and conditions thatcharacterise ‘homelessness’, hence there are‘homeless types’. Homeless people may beyoung or old, men or women, families ordestitute, orphans or run-away kids, ablebodied or infirm, beggars or workers andmigrants or natives. Homelessness may betransient or perpetual. Each homeless typehas associated conditions and concomitantrelief, recovery or rehabilitation needs.erefore every project intervention toaddress ‘homelessness’ must take the inherentheterogeneity of the homeless populationconstruct as their point of departure’ andcreate and nurture institutional mechanismsfor meaningful outreach, this of-course leavesthe debate of structural frameworks withinwhich ‘Homelessness’ posits and perpetuates. Documented by Sangeeta Maunav, SeniorManager, HUDCO’s Human SettlementManagement Institute, New Delhi

A HUDCO CSR ASSISTED NIGHT SHELTER IN THE CITY OF KOLKATA

56 hudco - hsMi Publication

Urban poor are deprived of basic necessities oflife like secure housing, livelihood and easyaccess to adequate health facilities. eirmobility needs have to be evidently understoodso that they don't spend more on travel thanwhat they can afford. In past years many newinitiatives towards public transportation havebeen taken, but a study by UNEP has revealedthat these initiatives have not been able to meetthe needs of the urban poor. erefore, it's achallenge now for the decision makers to framea transport policy that is able to fulfil the massmobility needs of riders who constitute thisvulnerable group. Few issues that should be keptin mind while attempting policy formulation, tomaintain a trade-off between transport policiesand urban mobility needs are: firstly,implementing a differential fare structure sothat urban poor can afford the transportationcost. Secondly, resettlement of this group alongtransit corridors will help by increasing theaccessibility to transit systems. Further, strongimplementation of national urban transportpolicy will make the transport system sociallyinclusive and equitable. Finally, providing goodpedestrian facilities to access the public transitsystem will help in increasing the ridership byreducing the overall travel cost.

INTRODUCTION

Indian cities are in the midst of aconsiderable wave of urbanizationas approximately 10 million peoplemove to towns and cities in India insearch of jobs and opportunitiesaccording to the World Bankoverview 2013. ese peoplemoving into cities require shelter tolive and also fast and cheap transitsystem to access jobs. e physicalinfrastructure services like water,sanitation and public transport in

cities are now becoming incapableof meeting the requirements ofthese migrants and henceincreasing the difficulty level forurban poor to survive in cities.

According to World bank, urbanpoor is a person or a family who is"deprived of employmentopportunity, income, inadequateand insecure housing and services,little or no social protectionmechanism and limited access toadequate health and educationfacility". e urban poor are mostvulnerable and susceptible tovarious risks like rise in fuel price,rise in public transit fare, etc., whichmake it difficult for them to accesspublic transport, thereby affectingtheir employment opportunity.

e challenge to the decisionmakers now is to frame a transportpolicy to fulfil mass mobility needs,keeping in mind the large share ofriders who are urban poor. For this,relationship between transportinfrastructure and urban poor hasto be clearly understood as to howpeople are getting affected by a lackof access to transport services andwhat makes them likely to fall into“transport poverty”. Transportpoverty is reached when ahousehold is forced to pay more intravel costs than it can reasonably

Public trAnsit And urbAn Poor

A Trade off between Urban Poor Mobility Needs andTransport Policy

POLICY REVIEW

e challenge is to frame atransport policy to fulfilmass mobility needs,keeping in mind the largeshare of riders who areurban poor. For this,relationship betweentransport infrastructure andurban poor has to be clearlyunderstood as to howpeople are getting affectedby a lack of access totransport services and whatmakes them likely to fallinto “transport poverty”.

Shri Ankit Kathuria ([email protected]) is a Doc-toral student in Transportation Engi-neering Group, Department of CivilEngineering, Indian Institute of Tech-nology Roorkee & Prof. M. Parida isProfessor in Civil Engineering & Head,Centre for Transportation Systems at In-dian Institute of Technology Roorkee.

Ankit kAthuriA

Prof. M. PAridA

afford. For example, the poor aregenerally rehabilitated on theoutskirts of cities, thus increasingtheir cost on travel. ey rely onprivate vehicles, which again meansthat lower income groups andurban poor spend more time ontravel, than other income groups.

BACkgROUND

Effects of transport policies onurban poor

In the Jawaharlal Nehru UrbanRenewal Mission (JNNURM), therewas a sub-mission for urbaninfrastructure and governancewhich was focused oninfrastructure development,including road network and urbantransport redevelopmentconnecting the peri-urban areas tothe city centre. Although, thismission was catering to urban poorin providing them mobility, it wasnot in favour of subsidised farestructure.

According to a research Report by"UNEP Risø Centre on Energy,Climate and SustainableDevelopment, Technical Universityof Denmark"1, it is evident that inAhmedabad, a sizeable group of lowincome households do not usepublic transit services like BusRapid Transit (BRT). In terms ofper capita household expenditure ofIndian cities on transportation, itwas found that, on an average, six toseven per cent of total householdincome is spent on travel relatedcosts. But, on the other hand, urbanpoor spend no more than 3 per centof household income on

transportation.

Following results were claimed bythe Report aer a survey of 580 lowincome household in Ahmedabad(Table-1):

Table-1 indicates that public transitridership is not preferred by theurban poor. Further, a very smallaverage trip length is observed inthis group. Also, maximum urbanpoor rely on Non-MotorisedTransport (NMT) or walking.Talking about formal modes ofpublic transit like BRT, urban poorrepresent only 0.4 per cent of thetotal ridership. erefore, it couldbe logical enough to conclude thatplanning these transit systemsunder JNNURM schemes was notdone specifically to facilitate themobility needs of the urban poor.

Public transport accessibilityby urban poor

Slums being the core disposition ofthe urban poor, it’s important to

understand where, why and howthese squatter settlements occur.e old and run-down conditionsof houses in the inner city areascompel and pull the urban poor torent them out. From herein the

complex relationship develops interms of a variety of serious issueslike socio-economic, environmentaland accessibility. Inaccessibility topublic transport limits movementof urban poor2. Talking aboutmetropolitan cities, thisinaccessibility results in lack ofaccess to jobs and educationopportunities for the families ofurban poor. Apparently, it can beseen that mobility of urban poor ismostly restricted to NMT orwalking. Also, it is evident from theUNEP report that urban poor makefewer transit trips as compared tothe non-poor, due to lowaffordability.

e brazillian "favellas" (slums)which are apparently close to theareas where job opportunities


POLICY REVIEW

Source: UNEP Report1

S. No. Factors Values

1 Walk to work (women) 30%

2 Walk to work (men) 30% walk +20% cycle

3 In the absence of affordable PT system 16% use Intermediary PublicTransport (IPT)

4. No. of urban poor using BRT 0.4 %

5. Average trip lengths (Women-urban poor) 3.2 km

6. Average trip lengths (men-urban poor) 5.3 km and lower

Table 1 : Implication of lack of affordable travel choice in Ahmedabad

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POLICY REVIEW

persist, are still not served by propertransit services hence causing amobility issue to the urban poor3.

Urban sprawl, urban poor andpublic transport

e expansion of the urban areasand the multiple facilities it has tooffer, is a very alluring affair for therural masses. ese rural massesmigrate into the urban areas and fillinto the little gaps and cavities of theintricate urban fabric, making it allthe more complex. is migrantpopulation forms the urban poorsegment of the society. For themtravel to different parts of a city,looking for opportunities oflivelihood, reinforces the fact thatcity needs to provide transportationfacility, which is affordable. ereason why public transit should beencouraged is because it supportsaccessibility to the important civicservices like education and health.Restriction to mobility tends tolimit the job opportunities to urbanpoor and hence they tend to resettlethemselves around job centres, evenin slums or dilapidated housing.

Strategies to maintain a trade-offbetween urban poor mobility andpolicies

Society needs a socially equitablegrowth, which can be achieved byincluding the growth of urban poorin the economic structure. A trade-off between urban poor mobilityand transport policy can beachieved by the following policyinitiatives:

Differential fare structure: Amodel can be developed to form a

fare structure with variable rates. Insome countries differential farestructure is seen on the basis ofdistance of travel or time of day inwhich a person is travelling. On theaforesaid fare structure aninnovation can be worked out by

linking the fare structure to theeconomic status of the person. Aninnovative way to achieve a goodfare structure is by carrying out areliable life cycle analysis ofdifferent transport systems and thentesting various policy options,considering different farestructures.

Differential fare structure is morecomplicated than the conventionalflat fare system but with theupcoming of smart card like"MORE- India's common mobilitycard", it will be easier to implement.

Few examples of countriesimplementing differential farestructure on the basis of one or

more parameters are listed in Table-2.

Resettlement of urban poor alongTransit Corridors

To increase the mobility of urbanpoor, rehabilitation of poor should

take place along transit corridors, soas to increase their accessibility tothe public transit modes. It can beincluded as a policy initiative under"transit oriented development(TOD)". On the other handwherever space permits, the transitcorridors should be planned in away that it becomes more accessibleto the urban poor living in squattersettlements. Integrated land-useplanning and TOD should go handin hand. Cities like Guatemala,Curitiba in Brazil and ArlingtonCounty, Virginia are examples ofgood TODs.

A report on "Working Group onUrban Strategic Planning-2011" by

Table 2 : Different types of differential fare structures in world

Continent Country System Variable Fare system

Asia Hong Kong,China Hong Kong (MTR) Distance based

Asia Japan Tokyo Metro Distance based

Asia Singapore Singapore (SMRT) Distance based

Europe Great Britain London Underground Zone based

NorthAmerica USA Amtrak Distance & demand based

NorthAmerica USA Greater Seattle Area (King

County Metro) Zone and peak based

NorthAmerica USA Puget Sound Region

(Sound Transit) Zone & distance based

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/, retrieved on 28th August 2014


POLICY REVIEW

Ministry of Housing and UrbanPoverty Alleviation, India focuseson planning in consonance with theincome distribution structure of thecity. It tells that the urban poorshould be located near publictransport nodes/links and spaceshould be provided for the urbanpoor in master plans for living,selling and working - at city, zoneand local levels.

Implementation of NationalUrban Transport Policy (NUTP),India

NUTP focuses on providingsocially equitable, inclusive andsustainable transportation system4.According to the NUTP, all incomegroups should have equal access totransit services. Hence, it isessential to keep the NUTPguidelines in mind at the time ofplanning any new transit system ina city.

Cities with a similar emphasis asmentioned in NUTP are Bogota,Columbia and Palembang,Indonesia. ese are movingtowards pro-poor transport systemfor the city. ese cities are usingvarious mobility interventions tobridge the rich and poor divide soas to have an equal access to transitservices

Providing good Non-motorisedTransport (NMT) facilities toaccess the public transit system

Pedestrian walkways should be safe,efficiently lit up and comfortableenough to walk. Pedestrianinfrastructure like street furnitureand sitting places is a good idea

because it will be used by pedestrianto take rest during their journey5.Good pedestrian facilities willfacilitate urban poor to use publictransport system by reducing theiraccess and dispersal cost. Bikesharing schemes to access the publictransit services will also help inincreasing the accessibility to publictransit services. is will alsocontrol the growing motorizationand promote the use ofenvironment friendly technology.Cities working on major NMTimprovements are illustrated inTable 3.

CONClUSIONS

Urban poor are most vulnerable torisks related to change in transportpolicies like rise in fare structure orfuel price. Policy formulationshould be socially inclusive. Eventhough previously developedpolicies/schemes like JNNURM

were connecting the peri-urbanareas, they were still notcomplementing the mobility needsof urban poor. A trade-off betweenurban poor mobility needs andtransport policy can be achieved bystrategies like differential farestructure. is will decrease theload of transportation cost onurban poor, hence their monthlytransportation cost will not be morethan what they can afford. Policylike resettling the urban poor alongtransit corridor is no doubt adifficult option but can be plannedvery well if the transit corridor isreaching the suburban areasbecause relocating them to theseareas is easier due to the availabilityof land. is will reduce the accessand egress cost to a transit system.

Adhering to NUTP guidelines willhelp in attaining socially equitablegrowth while planning future oftransportation infrastructure.

City Type of Improvement

Bengluru, India Improving access and safety on roads for cycling

Cape Town, South Africa Improvement in NMT Infrastructure

Mexico , North America Promoting bicycling as an environment friendly andlow cost mobility solution for the population

Hangzhou, city ofZhejiang Province inEastern China

World’s largest bike sharing program providing cleanmobility options to city residents

Temeke, Dar-es-Salaam,Tanzania

Promoting bicycling as an environment friendly modeof transport in Marikina NMT project

Nairobi, Kenya Improvement of walking and cycling infrastructure

Eldoret, Kenya Creating a safe walking and cycling infrastructure

China Multi modal transportation: Integrating BRT withpublic bicycle sharing

Source: Pro-poor mobility: Policy guidelines and case studies (2013) , TERI.

Table 3 : NMT improvements in different cities across world

Finally, providing good pedestrianfacility will help increase theridership of urban poor and willalso help reduce the environmentalimpacts. e aforesaid strategies, ifimplemented and enforcedeffectively, can help fulfill themobility needs of the urban poor.

REFERENCES1 UNEP Riso Centre on Energy, Climate and

Sustainable Development report, RetrievedAugust 20, 2014 from http://www.unep.org/

2 Aisha Faiz (2011, December). Transportationand urban poor, ITE Journal. Pg 40-43.Retrieved from www.ucd.ie/t4cms complete.

3 Ken Gwilliam (2002), Cities on the move : aWorld Bank urban transport strategy review.

Retrieved fromhttp://siteresources.worldbank.org/ complete

4 Pro-poor mobility: Policy guidelines and casestudies (2013) , TERI. Retrieved fromwww.teriin.org/div complete.

5 Sharma, R., Parida, M. and Jain,S.S. (2010),“Planning for Mobility of the Urban Poor”,Nagarlok,Vol. XLII April-June,No.2.

e National Sample Survey Office (NSSO),Ministry of Statistics and ProgrammeImplementation has released the keyindicators of urban slums in India,generated from the data collected in its 69thRound survey during July 2012 toDecember 2012. e last survey on slumswas conducted as part of the 65th Round ofNSS (July 2008- June 2009). Some of thesalient findings of the survey are as follows:

Number of Slums• A total of 33,510 slums were estimated

to be present in the urban areas ofIndia. About 41% of these were notifiedand 59% non-notified.

• Maharashtra, with an estimated 7723slums, accounted for about 23% of allslums in urban India, followed byAndhra Pradesh, accounting for 13.5%,and West Bengal, which had a share ofabout 12%.

• Of the 19,749 non-notified slumsestimated to exist in urban India,Maharashtra accounted for about 29%,West Bengal for about 14%, and Gujaratfor about 10%.

• Out of an estimated 13,761 notifiedslums in urban India, Andhra Pradeshhad about 23%, Maharashtra about14%, and Madhya Pradesh, West Bengaland Tamil Nadu about 9% each.

Number of Slum Households• An estimated 8.8 million households

lived in urban slums, about 5.6 millionin notified and 3.2 million in non-notified slums.

• e notified slums formed 41% of allslums but housed 63% of all slum-dwelling households in India.

• As many as 38% of slum households ofurban India were estimated to be livingin Maharashtra, and 18% in AndhraPradesh.

• Of slum households in non-notified

slums, 40% were estimated to bepresent in Maharashtra and 9% each inGujarat and West Bengal.

Average Slum Size• At the all-India level the average slum

size was estimated at 263 households.e average notified slum had 404households and the average non-notified slum had only 165.

• For notified and non-notified slumstaken together, average slum size washighest in Maharashtra (433), followedby Karnataka (392) and AndhraPradesh (352).

• State-level average slum sizes of notifiedslums varied widely. For Maharashtrathe average was over 1000 householdswhereas for Chhattisgarh, it was only84.

• About 56% of slums in the million-pluscities and 58% of those in other urbanareas had less than 150 households.

• About three-quarters of non-notifiedslums (77% in the million-plus citiesand 74% in other urban areas) had lessthan 150 households. About 40% of thenotified slums, both in million– pluscities and also in other urban areas, had150-450 households.

Characteristics of Slums• At all-India level 44% of slums – 48% of

notified slums and 41% of non-notifiedslums – were located on private land.

• In about 60% of all slums, the majorityof houses had pucca structures. eproportion of such slums was 85%among notified slums but only 42% ofnon-notified slums.

• Tap water was the major source ofdrinking water in 71% of all slums at theall India level. e figure was 82% innotified slums and 64% in non-notifiedslums.

• e phenomenon of absence ofelectricity in slums appeared to belargely confined to non-notified slums.At all-India level only 6.5% of all slumshad no electricity – the correspondingfigures being 11% for non-notifiedslums but only 0.1% for notified slums.

• In about 66% of all slums, the roadwithin the slum used by the dwellers asmain thoroughfare was a pucca road.e proportion was 83% for notifiedslums and 55% for non-notified slums.

• At the all-India level 31% of slums hadno latrine facility, the figure being 42%for non-notified and 16% for notifiedslums.

• About 31% of all slums had no drainagefacility – the figure being considerablyhigher for non-notified slums (45%)than for notified slums (11%).

• At the all-India level, 27% of all slumshad no garbage disposal arrangement –the figures being about 38% for non-notified slums and about 11% fornotified slums.

• In an estimated 32% of all slums, theapproach road to the slum usuallyremained waterlogged due to rainfall.e figure was 35% for notified slumsand 29% for non-notified slums.

• At the all-India level 24% of slumsbenefited from welfare schemes such asJawaharlal Nehru National UrbanRenewal Mission (JNNURM), RajivAwas Yojana (RAY), or any otherschemes run by the central g overnmentor state government or any local body.e proportion benefiting from suchschemes was 32% among notified and18% among non-notified slums.

Compiled by Akash Sharma, ResearchAssociate, HUDCO’s Human SettlementManagement Institute, New Delhi.

FINDINgS OF NSSO SURVEY - 69th ROUND ON URBAN SlUMS IN INDIA

POLICY REVIEW

hudco - hsMi Publication60

“Ramdarbar”, a rehabilitated colony ofChandigarh, experienced degeneration in itscivic services, which was further aggravated in1980s due to rapid growth of population. erewas no participation of local citizens inmanagement of sanitation, parks, protection ofurban forestry/ environment in theneighbourhoods of Ramdarbar. e situationstarted changing aer 1997 when the localelected councillor mobilized the people andstarted to involve them in the maintenance ofbasic facilities and civic services. e citizensvoluntarily demolished extended boundaries oftheir houses, removed animal shelters/otherencroachments from about 90 parks andcontributed labour and money for developingparks. Today, environmental infrastructure ofthe colony has improved considerably andisolated human settlement of the past has beenintegrated with mainstream settlements of thecity. In this context, the major objective of thepaper is to study the dynamics of people’sparticipation in environmental revitalization ofRamdarbar, with a view to see its necessity forurban regeneration and replication of goodinitiatives for sustainable development of urbanhuman settlements.

IntRoductIon

e city of Chandigarh, initiallyplanned for five lakh, experiencedtremendous growth in its urbanpopulation and crossed a skytouching tag of a total population of9 lakh in 2001 and 10.55 Lakh in2011 with 8.09 lakh and 10.25 lakhpersons living in urban area inrespective census decades. Withurbanization, large number ofslums came up in the city. In 1970only 4454 ‘jhuggis’ were listed. But

in 1974 their number grew to 8,003.e population living in the slumsalso grew rapidly. Census of India,1961 reported only 1,922 persons intemporary huts near sector 26 buttheir number grew to 22,939persons in 1971. Slum populationfurther grew to 0.58 lakh persons in1991. e slum population inChandigarh again increased to 1.07lakh persons (13.24 per cent of thetotal urban population) in 2001 butit decreased marginally to 0.95 lakh(9.28 per cent of the total urbanpopulation) in 2011.

the context

Chandigarh, the only planned cityof North India, is considered to bea unique combination of urbanarchitecture and planning. eunplanned developments that tookplace in the last few decades inChandigarh, were not anticipatedby the founding fathers of the city.e city started facing physical andenvironmental decline from earlyyears of its construction due tomigration, haphazard growth ofslums and encroachments, whichhave been further aggravated in1980s and 1990s. Chandigarh wasplanned for a population of 5 lakhto be realized in two phases. efirst phase comprised 1 to 30 sectors

61October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 - SHeLTer

ParTiCiPaTorY urBan enVironMenTaL reVi-

TaLiZaTion in a reHaBiLiTaTeD CoLonY

Ramdarbar Shows e Way

CASE STUDIES

Participation is crucial forthe success and sustainabil-ity of environmental revital-ization initiatives, essentialfor sustainable developmentof human settlements. eparticipatory initiatives bythe local people, supportedby the area councillor, haschanged the face of Ram-darbar from a very con-gested, encroached andpolluted habitation to open,clean and green settlement.

Shri Manoj Kumar Teotia([email protected]) is AssistantProfessor at Centre for Research inRural and Industrial Development(CRRID), Chandigarh.

Manoj KuMar TeoTia

for a population of 1.5 lakh and thesecond phase was to accommodateanother 3.5 lakh in sectors 31 to 47,naturally demanding a continuousinflow of labour force (ChandigarhAdministration, 1998). However,according to the Census of India,1991, the population of Chandigarhwas 6.42 lakh in 1991, that is, thecity had already crossed theprojected population of 5 lakh. eservices and other facilitiesprovided for it were already beingfelt to be inadequate. Le Corbusier’sidea to have Chandigarh, as anadministrative city, with a finite size(5 lakh) and precise quality of itscitizens has not worked’ (CRRID,1999). Chandigarh has experiencedtremendous growth in its urbanpopulation due to migration fromthe neighboring states and it hascrossed a sky touching tag of totalpopulation of 9 lakh in 2001 and10.55 Lakh in 2011 with 8.09 lakhand 10.25 lakh persons living inurban area in respective censusdecades.

With urbanization, a large numberof slums came up in the city whichgrew from 4,454 ‘jhuggis’ in 1970 to8,003 in 1974. e slum populationin Chandigarh grew rapidly from1,922 persons in 1961 to 22,939persons in 1971 and further to 0.58lakh persons in 1991 and 1.07 lakhpersons (13.24 per cent of the totalurban population) in 2001. eslum population decreased onlymarginally to 0.95 lakh (9.28 percent of the total urban population)in 2011. Some of rehabilitatedcolonies also grew like slums with

multiple deprivations. e survey ofun-authorized and rehabilitatedcolonies of Chandigarh (CRRID1999), found a total population of2.27 lakh persons (55,670households) living in 45 colonies(19 authorized and 26unauthorized). Out of 2.27 lakhpersons, 1.09 lakh were living inauthorized and 1.18 lakh persons inunauthorized colonies, withmultiple deprivations.

‘Despite the serious efforts of theadministration to provide bettershelter to such dwellers, there hasbeen no dent in the increasinginflux of such migrants and theirpresent number in theunauthorized colonies, calls for animmediate programme for action,as the pockets of abject poverty andthe denial of basic human needs inareas of affluence does not augurwell for the state and the economy

62 HuDCo - HSMi Publication

CASE STUDIES

Picture 1: Location of Ramdarbar in chandigarh

as a whole’ (CRRID, 1999).According to Kalia (1987) ‘a majorfactor contributing to the growth ofunauthorized squatter colonies inChandigarh was the city’s pooreconomic base. eadministration’s efforts at providinghousing failed to keep pace with thephenomenal growth rate of the city.e administration’s efforts to solvethe slum problem by setting uptransit colonies have not beeneffective because these efforts haveignored the related issues ofincome, jobs, security of tenure,land and development policy,health and above all, education.Planned as transit colonies, theyhave acquired a permanentcharacter, but without the necessaryinfrastructure.’ In an excellent workon ‘Urban Planning in the irdWorld: e Chandigarh Experience’,Sarin (1982) describes thedevelopment of the city, showinghow concepts inherent in themaster plan and the policiespursued in its implementation notmerely ignored, but totally excludeda major section of the population

from legal housing andemployment. Kalia (1987) hashighlighted that ‘Chandigarh’splanners had paid little attention tourban labour and had discouragedinformal activities’. In 1971, 11 percent of the population was living inpartially or totally illegalsettlements. A recent Study byTeotia (2013) shows the poor stateof affairs in the context of planningfor the poor in Chandigarh. eparticipation of people andbeneficiaries has been negligible inmost of the housing programmessupported by government includingJNNURM, leaving multipledeficiencies in the implementationof initiatives for housing the urbanpoor.

PooR envIRonmentaLInfRastRuctuRe InRamdaRbaR In PRe-InI-tIatIve PeRIod

Ramdarbar, one of the oldestrehabilitated colonies ofChandigarh, is situated in southeastperiphery of Chandigarh (Ward 23)

near the Defence Area/ ArmyTransit Camp and in closeproximity to the Industrial Area,Phase II (Refer Picture-1). ecolony was rehabilitated in twostages, first in 1974 and second in1979. ere were about 1,500houses in Phase-I and 2,500 housesin Phase-II but number ofhouseholds have grownconsiderably. e population baseof Ramdarbar has been growingand in 2001 Ramdarbar had apopulation of 29,384 personscomprising of 16,833 males (57.28per cent) and 12,551 females (24.71per cent). Out of the totalpopulation, about 39 per centbelonged to the category ofScheduled Castes (SCs), which wasmuch higher than the city averageof 17.28 per cent.Ramdarbar wasshort of civic infrastructure and hadappalling living conditions prior to1997. e parks, as the one shownin Picture-2, were in poorcondition. e first picture (far le)shows parks encroached by slumdwellers. A major road adjoiningthe colony (picture in the centre)


CASE STUDIES

Picture 2 :Ramdarbar prior to Revitalisation Initiative From le to right. Far le: Illegal construction of slums in apark; Centre: Dumping of garbage on a major road adjoining to the colony; Far right: One of the site withscattered garbage/ waste.

became a dumpsite for theresidents. e scenes of scatteredgarbage were very common (picturein the far right) due to poor wastecollection. But things are quitedifferent now. e transformationhas come up with the active supportof people under the dynamicleadership of the elected wardmember from this locality. eward member was later elected asMayor of the city of Chandigarh,twice.

In the pre-initiative period,Ramdarbar was deficient in watersupply, sewerage, solid wastemanagement, roads, parking andcivic services like health, educationetc., coupled with theunprecedented population pressureof migrants. e colony receivednegligible attention from theAdministration for environmentalimprovement and upgradation ofmunicipal infrastructure/services.ere were about 90 parks/ openspaces planned in Phase-I and II,but in actual these spaces wereencroached by the residents forrearing pigs, buffaloes, cows, goats,hens etc. Some of these places wereused by local houseless people astemporary shelters, huts and storesfor unused/old household articles.is made the colony very dirty andcongested. Absence / poorconditions of services like playgrounds, community center,dharamshala and schools was starkin 1980s and early 1990s. Peopleused to drink water collected in 4-5feet deep pits near their houses.

ere were many outbreaks ofdiarrhea and malaria, resulting inmany deaths. ere were noparking facilities and no electricitywas provided in the markets ofRamdarbar. A general view aboutthe pathetic condition in the colonywas evident from the fact thatseveral residents used to recite“Ram Darbar to Sirf Naam Ka HiRamdarbar Hai, Lekin Yeh NarakKa Dwar Hai”, (Ramdarbar wasnamed only for name’s sake, butactually it is a gateway to Hell ! ).

PaRtIcIPatoRy InItIa-tIves foR envIRonmen-taL RevItaLIzatIon

e situation started changing aer1997. Some of the developmentactivities in Ramdarbarwere startedaer the first elections of MunicipalCorporation of Chandigarh. elocal Municipal Councillor, Mrs.Kamlesh was from the same localityand fully conversant with itsproblems. She initiated severaldevelopment activities forenvironmental revitalization ofRamdarbar by mobilizing localpeople. e first initiative was takentowards upgradation of watersupply system in the slum colony.Subsequently, projects forconstruction of toilets, installationof streetlights, etc. were taken up.But the improvement in Ramdarbarwas not visible and residents weredepressed and not coming forwardto participate. To improve situationand make a visible improvement,the Councillor started a campaign

by rehabilitating slum dwellers fromRamdarbar, shiing people withdomestic animals to Mauli Jagran,and augmentation of localinfrastructure and services. eslum rehabilitation and otherdevelopment initiatives garneredconsiderable support of people forother local initiatives i.e., removal ofencroachments from parks and theroads for green growth. emessage of her genuine efforts wentto the people living in Ramdarbarwho promised to support her incarrying local initiatives forregeneration of environment. Withthis a local champion was born towork for the development of thelocal area.

e Ward Councillor conducted anassessment survey and discussedthe priorities of people. She furtherlinked these improvements with thegovernment programmes. A briefanalysis of measures initiated forurban environmental revitalizationin Ramdarbar has been discussedbelow:

Removal of encroachments anddevelopment of Parks

Removal of encroachment fromabout 90 parks was a gigantic task.e administration tried to removeencroachments by using bulldozersbut failed due to stiff opposition bythe encroachers. e Councilloralong with her husband and severallike-minded residents started adrive to convince encroachers toremove their encroachments


CASE STUDIES

willingly. ey contacted eachhousehold and persuaded them forremoving encroachments. Inseveral cases when male head of thehousehold was not convinced, thefemale counterparts wereapproached for the purpose. eresult was that residents, led bywomen, came forward andvoluntarily removed theirencroachments. is changed theface of the colony and Ramdarbargot back its breathing space (see thetransition of an encroached park inPicture-3).

Residents of the area contributedtowards construction of boundarywalls and railings of the parks.Councillor sourced the balancefinances from Councillor‘s WardDevelopment Fund and MP’sConstituency Development Fund.About 90 parks have beendeveloped in Ramdarbar which hasenhanced greenery and beauty inthe area. Similarly, people removedencroachments voluntarily fromtheir houses on repeated appeal ofthe Councillor, which resulted inwidening of streets and roads. e

Councillor also got the localdharamshala vacated from theunauthorised possession of CentralReserve Police Force (CRPF) andgot it repaired, so that it can be usedby local residents for organisingtheir social functions.

Plantation and Greening ofbuilt-up area

e local Ward Councillor, Mrs.Kamlesh took the challenge ofbringing greenery to Ramdarbar onthe lines of Chandigarh. Shemobilized local community for anextensive plantation drive. e firstplantation drive was started fromthe local dharamshala. Next targetwas the local government school ofRamdarbar, where about 200 plantswere planted. en about 250 plantswere planted in the GovernmentModel Senior Secondary Schooland thousands of plants wereplanted in all the 90 parks ofRamdarbar.

use of derelict Land

A large parcel of land was lyingunused in the area sandwiched

between Ramdarbar and IndustrialArea Phase-II. It acted as a virtualdumping ground for industrial/factory waste. e place used tostink due to decay of garbage andaccumulation of filthy water. It wasalso a health hazard for Ramdarbarand the community living in nearbyareas. Taking cognizance of thisproblem the Ward Councillor, witha team of local residents, met thethen Advisor of the UnionTerritory, Chandigarh, with aproposal to develop this land as agreen area. e Administrationinitially had reservations to convertprime land into the green area. Butaer a lot of persuasion andpressure of local residents, it wasclarified that being in closeproximity to the air force station noconstruction can be done on thisland and the only option is to planttrees and keep this area green andalso free from futureencroachments, by the slumdwellers. e Governmentsupported this idea and instructedthe forest department to takepossession of this land and planttrees. e forest department plantedabout 20,000 trees in the vacant


CASE STUDIES

Picture 3 :development of Parks in Ramdarbar From le to right: Far le: An encroached park; Second from le:beginning of removal of encroachments; ird from le: Local people working for development of a park;Far right: A fully developed lush green park.

land, resulting in further valueaddition to the green initiatives ofRamdarbar and its people (Picture-4 shows enhanced greenery onvacant land).

development of cactus Park

Another dirty and filthy land parceladjoining Ramdarbar has beentransformed into a Cactus Park(Picture-5). e area where peopleused to throw garbage and debris, istoday one of the most beautifulparks of Chandigarh and manypeople come here for a walk. It hasbecome a centre of attraction notonly for the residents of Ramdarbarbut also for outside visitors. A visitto this park by UT Advisor andCommissioner le them impressedand they praised the efforts of theWard Councillor and residents ofRamdarbar.

door to door Waste collection

e work of garbage collection wascontracted out to a privatecontractor but the services wereinadequate and residents weredissatisfied. e Ward Councillortook the challenge to improve thisservice and met the municipalofficials several times but nothingconcrete was done and deficienciesin sanitation activities continued.She then prepared an action planand met the Commissioner forsupport to the idea of undertakingsanitary work in Ramdarbar, withthe help of locally employed maleand female sanitary workers. eCommissioner agreed and a Societywith the name Mohalla SudharCommittee (MSC) was constitutedfor the purpose of undertakingsanitation related works inRamdarbar.

MSC recruited 32 part time sanitaryworkers and 4 supervisors for thework of collection and segregationof household waste fromRamdarbar itself. Of the total staffstrength, half of the workers werefemale. Municipal Corporation ofChandigarh (MCC) extendedfinancial support of Rs.1,500/- peremployee through MSC constitutedfor the purpose and another Rs 500per employee was contributed bythe residents in the form of monthlyuser charge. Initially, collection ofuser charge from the residents wasa difficult task but aer gettingconvinced about the benefits, theCouncillor could make them agreeto participate in this process. Topurchase essential equipment andmanual-carts etc. required for thepurpose of collection andtransportation of waste/garbage andto provide sanitation services, MCCagreed to pay a grant of Rs. 51,000/-per annum. Since this amount wasalso inadequate to meet theexpenses on sanitation work, it wasdecided to collect an additionalamount of Rs. 10/- per householdper month. e work of door todoor household waste collection


CASE STUDIES

Picture 4 :development of Greens in vacant Land From le to right: Far le: UT Advisor and Local Ward Councillorplanting trees on vacant land; Second from le: Enhanced greenery on vacant land; ird from le: A greenpark; Far right: Children playing in the park.

Picture 5 : cactus Park in Ramdarbar Le: Before initiative; Right: Aerinitiative.

was taken over by MSC on 15thFebruary 2003 and has resulted incomplete transformation of the area(Picture-6). To make this schemesuccessful, ‘garbage bin free’ schemehas been implemented and

throwing of garbage in open placesand road-side pits is nowprohibited. A Campaign waslaunched through loudspeakers andseveral small hoardings, to makethe residents aware that throwing of

garbage is prohibited in open placesor in the road side and please throwyour garbage at the demarcatedplace or give it to the personemployed by the MSC.

According to the Ward Councillor,this initiative has resulted in netsaving of about Rs. 1,000/- peremployee for the MCC, whichcomes to about Rs. 35,000/- permonth for about 30 sanitaryworkers and five supervisors, earlierposted in Ramdarbar. e area isnow clean and no garbage can beseen outside the dustbins, which arecovered. e officers of publichealth department and municipalcorporation inspected various sitesin Ramdarbar and appreciated theefforts by the MSC and the localpeople in upkeep of Ramdarbar.Press/ Media have also covered thisand appreciated the efforts of theWard Councillor, local residentsand MSC. e author of this articlealso carried a study of localinitiatives for urban regeneration inRamdarbar. Some news clippingson this initiative, are shown inPicture-7 below.


CASE STUDIES

Picture 6 :

door to door waste collection (clockwise) 1) Garbage litterednear houses; 2) Garbage thrown near the bins; 3) e cleanarea near the bin aer initiative; 4) Door to door collection ofwaste in progress.

Picture 7 :

newpaper clippings on Ramdarbar From le to right: Far le: Showing voluntary initiatives by people forremoval of encroachments; Second from le: Residents of Ramdarbar show MC the way; ird from le:MSC makes Ramdarbar from Hell to Heaven; Far right: Author in a separate study highlights Ramdarbar asmodel of urban regeneration.

1

2

4

3

ImPact of the InItIa-tIves

e impact of the initiatives isvisible. Improvement in the leveland quality of urbaninfrastructure/municipal services,wide and pucca roads/ streets,availability of open/ play area forchildren and enhanced greenery inand around Ramdarbar, hasresulted in substantial improvementin the housing stock and people arenow investing money to upgradetheir houses. e initiatives basedon dynamism of people’sparticipation in environmentalrevitalization are sustainable andcan be replicated in otherrehabilitated colonies. eimportant message is that voice ofpeople is important and successfulleaders assimilate such movementsfor constructive improvements. Inthe case of Chandigarh, local leaderplayed a crucial role in mobilizingpeople and ensuring they getrecognized when it comes todistribution of resources from MCCand Chandigarh Administration.

e environmental condition inRamdarbar has improvedconsiderably. e colony hasvirtually been transformed from‘Narak ka dwar! (Gateway to Hell!)

to Swarga ka dwar! (Gateway toHeaven!)’. Urban transformation isvisible in almost all spheres of life.e dynamism of people hasregenerated living conditions in thecolony. e fragmentation of urbansettlements has reduced withimprovement in overallenvironmental infrastructure in thecolony. e immediate impact ofinitiatives are not only visible in theform of improvement of physicalurban environment but alsothrough betterment of social,economic and health conditions ofthe poor people.

concLusIons

e paper illustrates that dynamicsof people’s participation is crucialfor the success and sustainability ofenvironmental revitalizationinitiatives, essential for sustainabledevelopment of human settlements.e participatory initiatives by thelocal people, supported by the areacouncillor, has changed the face ofRamdarbar from a very congested,encroached and polluted habitationto open, clean and green settlement.e environmental infrastructure ofthe colony has improvedconsiderably aer voluntaryremoval of encroachments,development of 90 parks, plantationdrives and the neighborhood

sanitation programme. einitiatives are sustainable and canbe replicated in other rehabilitatedcolonies. Ramdarbar’s participatorymodel of environmentalrevitalization has broken the publicsector monopoly. It could pave theway for a much needed policyaimed at participatoryenvironmental management, anecessary condition for sustainabledevelopment of urban humansettlements in the country.

acKnoWLedGements

Photo credit: Mrs Kamlesh Banarsidass, FormerWard Councillor and two times Mayor,Municipal Corporation Chandigarh.

RefeRences

Centre for Research in Rural and IndustrialDevelopment (CRRID 1999), Report onBaseline Socio-economic Survey ofUnauthorized and Rehabilitated Colonies ofChandigarh, submitted to the UTAdministrator, Chandigarh (unpublished),Chandigarh: CRRID

Kalia, Ravi (1987), Chandigarh: e Making ofan Indian City, Oxford University Press, NewDelhi,

Sarin, Madhu (1982), Urban Planning in theird World: e Chandigarh Experience,Mansell Publishing Ltd: London

Teotia, Manoj Kumar (2013), Planning for theUrban Poor in Northwestern India: EmergingPolicies, Practices and Issues (A Case Study ofChandigarh), an Unpublished report carriedunder HUDCO Research Grant: ChandigarhCRRID.

----------------------- (2003) Urban Regenerationthrough Environmental Revitalization inRehabilitated Colonies of Chandigarh: RamDarbar Shows the Way, an unpublished report,Chandigarh: CRRID.


CASE STUDIES

Slums are an integral part of a cityscape indeveloping countries. However, the condition ofslums vary from one location to another.Planning norms for townships prescriberesidential neighbourhoods for different incomegroups, but incorrect priorities for developmentmanifest in the form of slums, which remain achallenge for urban professionals. ere havebeen many attempts to address the problems ofslums and to integrate them in the developmentprocess, however, the process of this integrationis complex and cannot be addressed throughconventional planning systems alone. Newapproaches are being adopted to tackle theproblem of slums-from relocation to in-situdevelopment, from site and services to fullydeveloped neighbourhoods. e success storiesin slum upgradation process are those, whichare able to address the needs of slum communitythrough robust planning, combined with socialempowerment. is paper examines the processof slum upgradation in two projects in Delhi. Itcompares the satisfaction level of residents, interms of approach of different stakeholders, inthis process. e findings are based on rapidassessment survey and interviews with fewfamilies and key stakeholders in the area.

INTRODUCTION

Cities are considered engines ofeconomic growth because theygenerate wealth for the nation andprovide employment opportunitiesfor skilled and unskilled workers.Cities are centres of education,culture, health and innovation andprovide opportunity forentertainment, good infrastructure,housing, job opportunities, medicalfacilities, etc. ese attributes ofcities, attract many from rural areas.

e agencies are unable to copewith the large-scale influx ofpopulation, resulting inmarginalization of migrants fromthe main stream. In developingcountries, it has been furtherestablished that even thoughurbanisation may increase incomes,the phenomenon has led to increasein urban poverty because qualityurban housing is costly. emigratory unskilled ruralpopulation, adds to the labour forcebut is unable to access the formalhousing, and is thus constrained tolive in slums and squattersettlements that are crowded andunhealthy. ese slums are alsopoorly serviced with basic publicutilities including safe water andsanitation facilities, on account ofthe haphazard nature of theirphysical environment.

is paper focuses on ‘Voices ofFamilies’ from two resettlementcolonies in Delhi. e two colonieshave different typology, locationand set of facilities but have onething in common, that in both casesthe families have been relocatedmore than 25 kms from theiroriginal slum locations. e issuesaddressed in this paper are based onpersonal interaction with themembers of resettled families in


WhiSpeRS to voiceS

Meeting the Aspirations of Slum Communities

CASE STUDIES

Most oen, the communitydevelops strong ties withlocation, which bring asense of security, and unitesthem to fight for a commoncause. is sense ofcommunity feeling ismissing in the relocatedsites.

Shri Rajiv Sharma([email protected]) is Fellow withthe HUDCO’s Human SettlementManagement Institute (HSMI), NewDelhi.

Rajiv ShaRma

December 2013.

Savda Ghevra, Delhi

Savda Ghevra (SG) was developedby the Delhi Urban ShelterImprovement Board (DUSIB),about 40 km west of New Delhi tore-house the families evicted fromslums in Lakshmi Nagar (EastDelhi), in 2006. ere are currentlyabout 8,500 families with 42,500people living in plots allotted by theMunicipal Corporation of Delhi(MCD). Each family was allotted asemi-serviced plot on the basis ofeligibility- 18 square meters tosquatter families who could prove,on the basis of their ration and votercards, to have lived in Delhi pre-1990, and 12.5 square meters tofamilies possessing ration cardspost January 1990 up to December1998. Despite formal planning, thesite has not developed in aconsistent manner–partly becausethe infrastructure provisioned bythe government remains un-built orincomplete, but also because therelocated families have mostly builtthe houses themselvesincrementally– a processcharacterized by individualdecisions. e area is characterizedby poor quality housing rangingfrom one-storey chattai or chadarhouses to consolidated two-levelreinforced concrete construction,built incrementally over time. isprocess is in response to availableskills, economic capabilities,materials and resources occurringwith little or no external assistanceor intervention. e housing stockthus created does not conform to

the engineering standards and poserisk to the nearby structures.

Bawana, Delhi

Bawana, located about 35 kmnorth-west of New Delhi, wasdeveloped by Delhi Urban ShelterImprovement Board (DUSIB) andhas two types of settlements. efirst phase started in 2004 andlargely housed people evicted fromYamuna Pushta and some otherslum settlements from north-eastDelhi. In this phase, plots weregiven to the beneficiaries on thesame criteria as Savda Ghevra. esecond phase which started in 2010comprises of resettlement of peoplefrom slums settlements in southDelhi, in 1184 flats constructed asG+3 structures by the Delhi StateIndustrial and InfrastructureDevelopment Corporation(DSIIDC). However, less than 300flats have been occupied so far.

THE RELOCATION NIGHT-MARE

e problems due to relocation aremanifested in terms of livingconditions, distance from theirplace of work, if employed orengaged in vending activities,employability in the relocated site,loss of income due to home basedeconomic activities etc. eemotional attachment andaccessibility to quality civic servicesat the previous site cannot bequantified but has a serious bearingon the decision to relocate. Mostoen, the community develops

strong ties with location, whichbring a sense of security, and unitesthem to fight for a common cause.is sense of community feeling ismissing in the relocated sites.Moreover, children and elderly areunable to utilise their timeproductively, in the relocatedpockets. Some of the issues whichemerged during interactions withthe community, are explained in thecontext of the two projects:

Savda Ghevra

e process of relocation in SavdaGhevra is not complete and hasbeen faced with lot of problems, asdescribed below:• e civic services were not

developed as per norms, thuscausing hardship to the lives ofrelocated families.

• e livelihood opportunitieshad reduced aer relocation.Women in the household, girls,young boys and elderly now donot have the opportunity toparticipate in income generationactivities.

• Water was supplied throughtankers and collection of waterhas become a daily chore of life,which results in loss oflivelihood/ absenteeism fromschool/ unpleasant incidents offight for collection of water atthe tanker site.

• Sanitation was through septictanks and community toilets,although open defecation alsoprevails. e condition of drainswas bad and water stagnates infront of houses.

• ere was no system of solid

CASE STUDIES

waste disposal and residentsthrow their waste in open land/parks.

• Poor street lighting and roadconditions make the area unsafeaer sunset.

• e transportation connectivitybetween Savda Ghevra andearlier site is not good and about3-4 hours is spent in travelling.As a result, people have stoppedcommuting to the earlier siteregularly.

• Civic services like education andhealth facilities are inadequate.ere are no parks and childrenplay areas and communitycentres in the locality.

• People are constructing houseswithout technical knowledgeand through local contractor.e result is unsafeconstruction, which has resultedin collapse of a few houses.

• e inferior construction

material and poor qualityconstruction technology is used,as they feel that designedstructures are far moreexpensive.

• Moreover, incremental housingwas preferred for which theyborrow money from relativesand private lenders at 18-20 percent interest rate.

• People are looking at theirhomes as an asset to contributeto increase their income throughrental and home based economcactivities.

Savda Ghevra has been able totackle many problemsincrementally, starting with fewpockets. is has been madepossible with the intervention of anNGO (CURE- Centre for Urbanand Regional Excellence, NewDelhi) which started working withthe community of Savda Ghevra, to

address the problems. e NGOfelt the need of communityintegration and communityparticipation before undertakingany improvement scheme. So,resident’s awareness workshopswere conducted and membersparticipated in these workshops tooutline their problems, as well assolutions.

Bawana

e area had fully developed flatswith facilities like water supply,sewerage, electricity, drainage,neighbourhood park, circulationarea and street lights. e area wasin the neighbourhood of BawanaIndustrial area, thus providing jobopportunities to the relocatedfamilies in the vicinity. However,the families were not able to breaktheir linkage with the earlierlocation. As a result, men travel


“….the facilities are not enough and those exists, are not in good condition. We are helpless to live in this condition because no other option is available…” owners of spice shop from SavdaGhevraoption is available…” owners of spice shop from SavdaGhevra

e are condition. W We are helpless to live in this condition because no other “….the facilities are not enough and those exists, are not in good

option is available…” owners of spice shop from SavdaGhevrae are helpless to live in this condition because no other

“….the facilities are not enough and those exists, are not in good

option is available…” owners of spice shop from SavdaGhevrae are helpless to live in this condition because no other

“….the facilities are not enough and those exists, are not in good

“…the condition of poor sanitation increases the risk of health problems…”Shama residing close to open parkproblems…”Shama residing close to open park“…the condition of poor sanitation increases the risk of health problems…”Shama residing close to open park“…the condition of poor sanitation increases the risk of health “…the condition of poor sanitation increases the risk of health

…the area is also unsecured for womenespecially, for working women. Isolatedarea is the threat for anyone..” Seema

working in an IT firm in North Delhi. “Connectivity is not good. Buses are few andovercrowded during rush hours...” a residentfrom Savda Ghevra

every day to the earlier site forlivelihood activities, with increasedtravel time and cost due to poorpublic transport connectivity. erelocated families were dissatisfiedwith the project and theircomplaints could be categorised inthree categories. First, is about thelocation of this project, secondabout the civic services and thirdabout the quality of construction.Although Bawana is within anindustrial area, the members of therelocated families do not work inthese industries. e reasons couldbe that they do not possess requiredskills or they have consolidatedtheir position in the earliersettlement. ere is very littleinteraction within this community,probably due to the flats system,which they are not used to.

Some of the problems pertaining tocivic services in this area are: • People are not used to living in

flats, they complain of having togo up and down the stairs manytimes a day.

• ere is no RWA, and sincemany flats are still vacant, theprocess of registering a RWAwill take some time. Once theRWA get registered, it would

empower them to negotiate withthe government for their ownwell-being.

• Education and health facilitiesare not available in the vicinity

• Public transport is inadequate,as a result it takes many hours toreach the city centre or theirearlier work place.

• ere is no home basedeconomic activity, as a resultwomen and elderly do not findthemselves engaged during daytime. is has reduced theirmonthly income.

• ere is no possibility ofsupplementing their incomethrough rental or vendingactivities.

• Boys, and in some cases bothboys and girls, prefer to go withtheir father or parents, ratherthan going to school.

• e quality of construction inBawana was much better thanSavda Ghevra, howevercomplains of seepage, cracks,minor repairs etc. were reported

by the residents.

PROCESS OF TRANSFOR-MATION

e process of transformation isvery difficult, since it’s a matter ofuprooting people from one placeand moving them to another. Sucha process is accompanied withissues like emotional attachment tothe area, livelihood, security,transportation, access to civicservices and most importantlyuncertainty about the profile of thenew community.

Today, the housing condition inSavda Ghevra is good and physicalinfrastructure is improving. earea is well connected by road andpublic transport is available,although at low frequency. Peopleare consolidating their housingunits as per their needs. Some havebuilt G+3 structures, while othersare happy in ground floor only. But,families feel elevated. e message

CASE STUDIES

“…There I used to work but here there is no work for me.. “ a street vendor in Bawanavendor in Bawana“…There I used to work but here there is no work for me.. “ a street vendor in Bawana“…There I used to work but here there is no work for me.. “ a street “…There I used to work but here there is no work for me.. “ a street

“…we have no livelihood here… our means of earning has reduced….”a old man in Bawanareduced….”a old man in Bawana“…we have no livelihood here… our means of earning has reduced….”a old man in Bawana“…we have no livelihood here… our means of earning has “…we have no livelihood here… our means of earning has

being that when people get all thebasic amenities, they try to adjust asper the opportunities.

e community could avail thesefacilities because they cametogether as a group rather thanindividuals. In Bawana, thehousing typology being ready tooccupy flats, the opportunity forexpansion was limited. Although,the quality of construction andinfrastructure was better in Bawanabut satisfaction level was low. Also,the opportunity for people toparticipate in the planning of theirown well-being was limited.

Some of the lessons from these twoprojects are summarised below, fortaking advantage in similar projects,in future:

Community empowermentand engagement

e first initiative was taken byformulating a Resident WelfareAssociation (RWA), which wasregistered under the SocietiesRegistration Act, 1860. isinitiative has empowered thecommunity and elevated theirstatus as a group, which could haveaccess to funds earmarked undervarious schemes of Government ofIndia and Delhi Government. eRWA are working effectively inmany other colonies of Delhi, forthe welfare of the society. eyprovide an opportunity to interfacewith the government, for theprosperity of their communities.

e NGO has shown theimportance of empowerment inslum community. People are nowhappy living in Savda Ghevra andknow whom to approach formeeting their demands. Now, theyare in a position to ask thegovernment for their rights, withdignity. However, there are stillsome problems, as mentionedbelow:• Not all households are members

to RWA, so some areas are notcovered by the programmesinitiated by RWA. However, thenumber of members isincreasing with time.

• e elderly feel that they do nothave any activity in this area.

• e health facilities areinadequate for the number ofhouseholds.

• ere is no sports andentertainment facility for theyouth.

Improvement in quality ofservices

e earlier settlements from wherethe communities were relocatedhad a locational advantage, in termsof connectivity to schools, hospitalsand livelihood activities. Although,

residents had to compromise onservices like water supply,sanitation, drainage, congestion etc,but benefits were rated as far highercompared to disadvantages, by amajority of residents. However, thenew location was also marred byproblems related to inadequatebasic services and facilities.

e NGO- CURE, helped RWA ofSavda Ghevra to systematicallyidentify the key issues in theresettlement colony and find asolution to these problems withinthe community itself. Tools weredesigned to capture the voice of thecommunity, so that subsequentaction is taken in the rightdirection. Some of the outcomes ofthese interactions are given below:

• Water supply through tanker,has been streamlined by theRWA, which has made specificpoints for parking of tankers.From these points, water istransported inside each lane,through flexible plastic pipeswith specific collection points.e pipes are inserted in 6outlets of the tanker and thesepipes pass through 6 differentlanes. e access to water is thus


CASE STUDIES

Picture 1 : Water supply system aer community initiative

provided to each householdwithout much inconvenienceand fight. is way people getmore water, and get it in front oftheir house.

• e drinking water is still aproblem. is issue was broughtto the knowledge of the localMLA and now water vendingunits are being installed, whichwill supply RO purified water tothe residents at a cost. Tokenscan be purchased for use inthese machines and treatedwater can be collected in acontainer.

• Community septic tank, withtreatment facility of effluent, hasbeen built by residents with thesupport of NGO-CURE,benefitting 322 households.

• Local councillors and MLA havecome forward to use theirdevelopment funds to repairdrains and make drains at placeswhere they are missing.

• Street lighting has beeninstalled, making the area safe atnight.

• Frequency of bus service hasbeen increased during peakhours, thus facilitating travel tothe place of work, not anightmare.

• Government is routing itsprogrammes through RWA,thus accelerating the process ofoverall development of this area.

Addressing the issue ofincremental income

e beneficiaries feel dissatisfiedwith relocated projects on two

counts. First, increase intransportation cost on livelihoodactivities, education, health etc.Second, loss of income due to lessopportunity for home basedeconomic activities, lack ofparticipation of children and elderlyin incremental income generationetc. As a result, the communitylooks forward to various ways ofincreasing income, especially theuse of rental income from thehouse. erefore, a lot of emphasisis given to construction of multiplefloors which can be let out for rentalpurposes. e communities ofSavda Ghevra and Bawana have lotof potential for forming Self-HelpGroups under the National UrbanLivelihood Mission.

Technical advice for construc-tion and maintenance

e construction of houses is doneby the community on the plotsprovided by DUSIB in SavdaGhevra, whereas Bawana had readyto move flats, thus requiring noconstruction. e communityconstructs the house, either on itsown or through local mason/contractors. Construction is oendone, partly utilising materialrecovered from previous house andpartly by procuring new or usedbuilding material from the market.e greed of maximising usablespace and lack of money oenresults in unsafe structures. e useof cheap building material anduntrained manpower has resultedin poor quality of construction. Asa result, some cases of house

collapse were reported from SavdaGhevra. us, some intervention interms of trained manpower isrequired for quality construction.e building centres, promoted byHUDCO, could be involved in thisprocess. e government officialsshould keep a vigil on the type ofconstruction and prevent anyencroachment, what so ever.

Micro-credit for housing andother needs

Communities borrow from relativesand friends for construction ofhouses, health problems, marriages,social requirements, livelihoodactivities etc. Since they do not haveaccess to formal borrowing, theyborrow money from informalmoney lenders at exorbitant interestrates. Consequently, people find itdifficult to repay even the interest,as the marginal increase in incomeis oen less than the interestliability. Majority of familiesrelocated to Savda Ghevra havetaken loan for construction ofhouses for their own living, rentalpurpose or for making space forhome based economic activities. Inthe absence of formal lendinginstitutions like self-help groups,thri & credit societies, micro-finance institutions etc.,communities face difficulty toaccess cheap funds. erefore, roleof these institutions needs to beencouraged to strengthen theinformal credit market in suchlocations.

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CASE STUDIES

Convergence of other socialdevelopment programmes

RWA has an important role toapproach the government forimplementing various social/physical development schemes inthe identified locations. estrength of RWA is an asset forimplementation of governmentfunded schemes and manydepartments interface with themfor effective implementation ofthese schemes, However, it isimportant that the process ofprioritising local needs andimplementation is done in antransparent manner. Some of theinitiatives in this regard are:

• Establishment of self-helpgroups to help those womenwho want to work from home.

• e NGO has also helped togenerate home based economicactivities in the area, invocations which are amenable tothe community.

• e NGO has also mobilisedlocal youth in door-to-doorcollection of waste, segregationand treatment at theneighbourhood level. erecyclables fetch a value to thecollectors, whereas manure isalso sold to the nearby areas. eNGO is constantly monitoringthis process and training theyouth in aerobic composting oforganic waste.

CONCLUSIONS

A viable solution to the problem ofresettlement colonies rests on threepillars: adaptive design, innovativefinancing and communityparticipation. In this context, thestudy of Savda Ghevra and Bawanais a good learning example, whichseeks to upli the lives of urbanpoor through communityparticipation and retrofittingsystems.

In case of slum upgradationprogramme, the issue pertaining tolivelihood is paramount. Second isthe need for improved servicesfollowed by housing and otherattributes of improving quality oflife. To address the issue oflivelihood slums should not berelocated and if so, they should berelocated in close proximity of

existing layout. If this is notpossible, the earlier and relocatedsites should be well connected withfast and reliable public transportsystem, so as to achieve minimumdislocation in terms of livelihoods.We must remember that relocationsgenerate employment opportunitiesin a variety of professions. eemployment generation potential ofrelocation projects can overcomelivelihood issues, if correct planningis perceived to institutionaliseemployment within community, tocater to the needs of thesecommunitites.

Community participation is adevelopment strategy that has beentested and adopted as a useful toolthat would assist people not only toidentify priority needs, but also topart take in planning,implementation and evaluation of


CASE STUDIES

“… Delhi is a city that takes everyone in. Twenty years ago it was anundeveloped place; today it shines like a mirror..”.Sirajuddin, chicken supplierin Savda Ghevra.”…people used to called jhuggiwala, but now we are plot owners…”Mohammad, a resident of Savda Ghevra

community projects that areexpected to improve the lives ofsuch communities. So it is the dutyof individuals also to work in acommunity. It means that anydevelopment project meant for acommunity must prompt thecooperation and absoluteinvolvement of all the stakeholders.

Community participation inplanning and decision makingprocess from “up-rooting” ofsettlement to relocation should bewell-thought-out. People areattached to their habitatsemotionally as well as due to theirjob necessity. e post-relocationcommunity development andempowerment process is veryimportant and should precede theimplementation of anydevelopment scheme. Somesuggestions for communityempowerment include:• Community to engage in self-

help initiatives to operategovernment/ NGO-assistedprojects such as door-to-doorwaste collection, wastecomposting, septic tankmanagement etc. Self-helpgroups and lane managers couldbe trained for regular inspectionand up-keep.

• Promote women’s savingsgroups i.e. thri and creditsocieties for cash loans at cheapinterest.

• Train potential teachers fromthe community.

• Encourage welfare committeesand community counsellingcenters to address issues ofwomen’s security, family

disputes etc.• Collective transport options for

weekly trips to wholesalemarkets, recreation and highereducation for youth etc.

It is felt that giving full housing/landtenure rights would encouragefinancial inclusion of people in thecity (right to the city). egovernment must set and meetminimum living standards for slumupgradation/ relocation (access towater, sanitation, and electricity andinfrastructure management). Anydeviation in these standards shouldnot be encouraged and projects notconforming to these standardsshould not be approved.

In the case of site and servicesscheme, each household should beprovided with approved plansindicating various constructionoptions, specifications andconstruction costs. Local trainedmasons should be deployed initiallyfor few years, to undertakedevelopment of sites and alsotransfer skills to local workers.Linkages with local building centreswould be very useful in this regard.e government should incentivizethe setting up of industries andsocial amenities (hospitals etc) inthe resettlement areas. A databaseof all land transactions made byflat/land owners, post-relocation,through biometric system orregistration, should be created andregularly monitored. Any change intitle should lead to the cancellationof allotted land and passing on thebenefit to the next beneficiary in thelist.

Banks should be encouraged toextend loans for account holders ofPradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana(scheme for financial inclusion ofpoor) to offset high interest loans(@17 to 23 per cent interest) forhouse construction and extension.Micro-finance institutions andthri & credit societies could playan important role in this regard.

NOTES1 A kind of thin mattress, which is also used as

curtain.2 Bed sheet

ACkNOWLEDGEMENTSWe thankfully acknowledge the support renderedby Dr. Renu Khosla, Director, CURE inorganising a visit to Savda Ghevra and facilitatingthe interaction with the community. We are alsothankful to Mr. SK Mahajan, Officer on SpecialDuty, Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board(DUSIB) for his untiring effort of coordinatingthe visits to Bawana and Savda Ghevra.

REFERENCESCenter for Urban and Regional Excellence

(2013), “Decentralized Sanitation Systems inSavdaGhevra: Improving Access of Womenand Children to Household Toilets”, Center forUrban and Regional Excellence, New Delhi.

Himali (Sri Lanka), Rabia Khan (Pakistan),Mahesh (Nepal), Rupa(Sri Lanka), Sukanya(Sri Lanka), Akshaya (India), Aditi(India),Musharraf (Bangladesh) andArun(India) (2013), “A rights-based approachto Resettlement, (inter) national standards andLocal Practices”, I.H.S. Refresher Course,HUDCO’s HSMI, New Delhi.

Sehgal, Prashansa and Narain, Jayati (2010),“Volunteer Report of Celebrating Lives inBawana”, Hazards Centre, New Delhi.

Puri, Eshaan and Bhatia, Tripti (2009),“Commonwealth Games 2010: Displacementof Persons”, Working Paper No 213, Centre forCivil Society, New Delhi.

https://maps.google.co.in/

http://delhishelterboard.in/main/

http://dda.org.in/planning/slums_jj_rehabilitate.htm

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Development in India is placing continuedsocio-economic pressures on urban landscapesto meet the growing needs of an expandingurban population. With a proposed 100% risein India’s urban population over the next thirtyyears, planners are questioning the preparednessof the nation’s cities to successfully integrate suchproposed growth(McKinsey Global Institute,2010). One alternative method of achieving thisis through investment in Smart City principles.In May 2014 the Indian Prime Minister ShriNarendra Modi announced INR 7060 crore tofund one hundred new Smart Cities; aninvestment programme that is being proposedto integrate the innovations of ICT with anunderstanding of India’s unique urbandevelopment context. e viability of such aprocess of investment is though underresearched, requires further analysis to highlightits appropriateness in India.

INTRODUCTION“Estimates suggest that India’surban population will grow by up to18 per cent annually to 590 millionby 2030 and to approximately 700million by 2050 (Government ofIndia: Ministry of Home Affairs,2011). Such a rate of growth, whilsteconomically imperative to fosteryear-on-year development, placesadditional pressures on an alreadylimited urban environmentalresource base (McKinsey GlobalInstitute, 2010). Furthermore, rapidgrowth restricts the ability ofservice providers, i.e. water,electricity, banking and other socialservices, to maintain an effective

level of provision(McKinsey &Company, 2005; McKinsey GlobalInstitute, 2001). It can, therefore, bequestioned whether the continuedexpansion of urban areas in Indiacan be managed to effectivelymaintain the current human-environmental balance. Failure toachieve this goal would raise doubtson whether India could provide thesocial and economic resources tosupport its growing population(e High Expert Committee(HPEC) for Estimating theInvestment Requirements forUrban Infrastructure Services,2011).

Whilst it could be argued thatIndian cities have historicallyshown an ability to adapt to change,the current rate of growth bringsinto question whether such anapproach is feasible in the twenty-first century (McKenzie & Ray,2009; Nagendra, Nagendran, Paul,& Pareeth, 2012). A reliance oninnovation, foresight and theresourcefulness of the nation’speople, developers and thegovernment can, as a consequence,no longer be relied upon, especiallywhen considered against thechanging climatic, social andeconomic influences, being


SMart CItIeS

What Value will they bring to Urban Development in India?

FEATURE

Smart Cities must addresskey performance indicatorsthat promote economicgrowth, socio-cultural de-velopment and interactionwith the environment, in-cluding improved mobility,and establish a more refinedand accessible governancestructure.

Dr. Ian Mell ([email protected])is a Lecturer in Planning and Civic De-sign at the University of Liverpool, UK.Ms. Sejal Patel is Associate Professor,Faculty of Planning at CEPT University,Ahmedabad and Mr. Saswat Bandy-opadhyay is a Professor, Faculty ofPlanning at CEPT University, Ahmed-abad

Ian Mell

Sejal Patel

SaSwat

BandyoPadhyay

witnessed in India (Drèze & Sen,2013; Roy, 2009). As a result of thisgrowing concern, in May 2014 theIndian Prime Minister ShriNarendra Modi outlined hisgovernment’s proposals to fund onehundred new Smart Cities to helpalleviate the chronic shortage inhousing, boost economic prosperityand develop greener and moreliveable cities. Shri Modi’sannouncement raises a number ofkey issues in Indian development:

1. What is the most appropriateform of investment in urbanenvironments?

2. Where should investment beallocated – new towns, urbanextensions, or in retrofittingthe existing urban settlements?

3. What should be emphasised inurban development –technology/ICT, housing,transport or environmentalresource management?

4. How should development bemanaged, and who should leadthis process?

Each of these issues permeatesdevelopment debates in India,querying whether there is a singleor unified approach to investmentthat could be considered asappropriate for Indian cities (Das,2007). Shri Modi’s declaration thusprovides a platform to assess thepotential value of investments inSmart Cities in India through anevaluation of how the principlesand application of the concept have

been adopted globally.

e following paper examinesSmart City discourse in theory andin praxis, debating its value withinan Indian context, and exploreswhether the rhetoric of moreinnovative investment in smarterICT, environmental resourcemanagement, e-governance andsocial mobility can be applied inIndia. Examples from theestablished Smart City users, i.e.Europe, North America and morerecently the Gulf States, are used toillustrate the complexity of applyingthe concepts and principles inIndia.

INTRODUCTION TOSmaRT CITy CONCepTSaND pRINCIpleS

e research literature posits anumber of definitions of whatSmart Cities are (Giffinger et al.,2007). Each shows variation in theterminology and focus of theirdiscussions, illustrating aninculcation of principles which canbe classed as being geo-politicallyspecific (Hollands, 2008). eSmart City discourses developed inthe USA, Europe and more recentlythe Gulf States propose alternativeinterpretations of what the conceptmeans, how they should bedeveloped, and, importantly, whatthey are aiming to achieve(Caragliu, Del Bo, & Nijkamp, 2011;Greenfield, 2013). is paper doesnot propose to take a specificconceptual position on SmartCities, rather, it assesses the

additional complexity associatedwith the lack of consensus on whatconstitutes a ‘Smart City’, and howthese issues can beapplied/translated in an Indiancontext.

In short the fluidity of the SmartCities concept highlights two keyissues: first, concepts such as SmartCities are spatial by contextualised,as a result their focus and meaningvaries between locations, andsecondly, Smart City discussionsoffer a more pluralistic response tourban development narratives thatpromotes an integration of socio-economic, technological,environmental and politicalinfluences (Datta, 2012). Althougha number of these factors arediscussed in the explorations ofsustainable city debates (Campbell,1996; Guy & Marvin, 1999;Kenworthy, 2006), the centralassumptions implicit within SmartCities thinking focus firmly onmore efficient and effectivedecision-making. erefore, whilstsustainable cities provided anunderstanding of thecomplementarity of social,economic and environmentalresource management, Smart Citiescan be conceptualised as creating analternative horizontal approach toinvestment that uses ICT as anoverarching conduit fordevelopment, whilst socio-economic and environmental issuesare influences which key into theeffective contributing of technology(Smart Cities Council, 2013).

78 hUdCo - hSMI Publication

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WhaT IS a SmaRT CITy?

Defining a Smart City requires aninitial reflection on what they areproposed to do. In India the growthof Smart Cities is seen as amechanism to bring order in adynamic urban context. As aconsequence, to fully engage withSmart Cities, the Indiangovernment, planning professionalsand the nation’s citizens will have torethink the ways they view urbandevelopment (Narain, 2014).Although Narain’s reporting of thedevelopment ‘bigger picture’ for the100 Smart Cities highlights anumber of the inherentcomplexities of engaging with anebulous concept, it is equallyimportant to identify what makes aSmart City. Narain posits that‘smart is, as smart does’highlighting one of the keyprinciples of the concept: raising thequestion of who the generation ofknowledge and expertise is for andhow this can be translated intoappropriate application.

e label ‘smart city’ is, as aconsequence, a fuzzy butfashionable concept. Loosely, SmartCities are viewed as cities whichemploy information andcommunications technology (ICT)to improve the liveability, economiccompetitiveness, workability andsustainability of an urbanenvironment. One of the mostglobally accepted definitions of aSmart City is provided by Hollands( 2008:308), who defines them as‘the utilization of networked

infrastructure to improve economicand political efficiency and enablesocial, cultural, and urbandevelopment’. Drawing oncomparable ideas, Giffinger etal.(2007) reported that Smart Citiesmust address key performanceindicators that promote economicgrowth, socio-cultural developmentand interaction with theenvironment, including improvedmobility, and establish a morerefined and accessible governancestructure. ey, thus, highlight alineage to the working definition ofSmart Cities proposed by theEuropean Union who state that: ‘ASmart City is a city seeking toaddress public issues via ICT basedsolutions on the basis of amunicipality driven multistakeholder partnerships’(EuropeanCommission, 2014). Both Hollands and Giffinger et al.can therefore be considered tohighlight how the conceptualisationof Smart Cities varies acrossregions, especially in the GlobalNorth and in the Middle-East.More recently the Britishgovernment’s Department ofBusiness, Innovation and Skills(BIS) outlined what it consideredSmart Cities to be, and as thedefinition below states, they appearto have amalgamated the previousdiscussions into a clearly focussedrationale for Smart Cities. eyseethe ‘smart city’as a term denotingthe effective integration of physical,digital and human systems in thebuilt environment to deliver asustainable, prosperous and

inclusive future for its citizens (BSI,2013).

Despite the fluidity of conceptualdiscussions presented in theresearch and literature, in praxis,the main focus of Smart Cities hasbeen to promote the use oftechnology/ICT as the key driver ofurban development. In each of themain Smart Cities investmentlocations, i.e. the USA and Europe,and potentially most visibly in theMiddle-East, ICT has been affordedas the most prominent feature ofSmart City investments (Caragliu etal., 2011; Hollands, 2008).erefore, the ongoing applicationsof the concept in the context ofglobal South have been framed bythis principle. However, there havebeen calls for a more subtleapproach to Smart Citydevelopment which goes beyondtechnology (Narain, 2014).In suchcases transport, social housing, andecological mechanisms have beenpromoted as key elements thatprovide additionality to the benefitsthat Smart City can deliver. us,within the literature there is aplurality to the discussion of thenetwork capabilities of effectiveinvestment in Smart Cities, whichhas not necessarily been extendedacross the globe, in practice(Greenfield, 2013; Tranos &Gertner, 2012). Whilst this providesscope to address a range of urbandevelopment issues, it alsoillustrates the potential ambiguity ofthe concept, and therefore, theproblems of implementation1 .


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One criticism levelled against SmartCities has been the use of structuredsets of criteria, standardisedassessments and benchmarkingtools to evaluate whether a locationcan be considered smart(Greenfield, 2013). Whilst,standardised techniques canpromote continuity to approachesbetween locations, and can beconsidered to highlight effectiveinvestment, the use of suchtechniques can also lead tolocationally specificimplementation problems. eseinclude the application ofconceptual processes which maynot translate effectively betweenlocations or a lack of opportunitiesfor developers to incorporateadditional contextual criteria whichmay be absent from the Smart Citytools (Hollands, 2008).Consequently, as noted above,Smart Cities are effectively beingemployed within a pluralisticinvestment framework which mayor may not take into account thespecific context of a location. e

application of Smart Citybenchmarking may therefore belimited, as methodologies thatpromote an overarching approachto assessment cannot be universallyapplied.

To address this issue, Europeanapproaches to Smart Cityinvestment have discussed the needto adapt more locally sensitiveforms of development. isincludes assessing the micro-scaleapplication of service provision(and management), such as waterand sanitation, to lower the relianceon external resources (Allwinkle &Cruickshank, 2011). Whilst inNorth America, the issue of scale isnot considered as such a centraldriver of Smart City investment dueto the alternative approaches tourban-suburban investment. As aconsequence, in North America,there is a greater emphasis placedon the role that ICT holds ineffectively managing the deliveryand efficiency of services includinge-governance mechanisms (Smart

Cities Council, 2013). However, anumber of cities including Portland(Oregon), Philadelphia(Pennsylvania) and New York areall utilising smarter urbanmanagement practices to moderatethe negative impacts of growth(Netusil, Levin, Shandas, & Hart,2014; New York CityEnvironmental Protection, 2010;Philadelphia Water Department,2011). More recently theapplications of Smart Cities in theGulf States has seen an extension ofa combination of these twoapproaches to ensure that thecapacity of the environmentalresource base is sufficient to supportsocio-economic and ICT ledmanagement strategies (Lazaroiu &Roscia, 2012). Discussions of SmartCities in Europe and NorthAmerica may therefore differbecause the criteria associated withthe designation of Smart Cities varydrastically between locations. As aconsequence, planners need tothink more critically about how thevarious human - environmental


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Figure 1 : CepT Student conceptualisations of Smart Cities

interactions that exist in urbanareas, impact upon the framing ofSmart City developments.

WhaT IS a SmaRT CITyNOT?

Much of the academic andpractitioner (grey) literature onlyfocusses on what the authorsconceive Smart Cities to be.However, there is less written aboutwhat cannot be considered smart inurban development discourses.Whilst, there are authors whocriticise the assumptions made inthe Smart City rhetoric (Greenfield,2013), there is a limited level ofcritical analysis to support thesediscussions within the literature.e simple retort of what a SmartCity isn’t would also need to reflecton what they are. erefore ‘Un-Smart Cities’ are less efficient, theydon’t place long-term emphasis ondevelopment goals, they approachinvestment from singularperspectives (i.e. water or sewage)not as an integrated process, they donot promote inclusivity in theplanning process. ey also lack theforesight to apply a more refineduse of systems (technological,social, economic and ecological) tosupport growth and they do notoffer a healthy and safe living to theresidents (Datta, 2014; Kenworthy,2006; Williams, 2010). Each of theseissues, along with a range of others,can be identified in most urbandevelopment contexts, includingIndia (Das, 2007). is does notthough imply that all cities are un-smart, rather it identifies the

parameters presented above, a pre-requisite for the development ofSmart Cities.

From a reading of the Smart Cityliterature a number of themes arerepeatedly discussed questioningthe validity of investment in theconcept. ese not only includereflections on the lack ofconsistency in the use anddefinition of Smart Cities, asdiscussed above, but also identify anumber of further investmentissues which also need to beaddressed. ese include:

• A lack of locationally specificcontext integrated into thediscussions of Smart Cities. islimits the inclusion of anunderstanding of thedevelopment problems, and thehistory of urbanism within agiven location.

• Smart City guidelines place toomuch emphasis on ‘efficiency’and potentially offer aninappropriate model ofoptimisation of urban systems.

• e proposed upgrades to urbansystems could be considered tobe exclusively for the benefit ofadministrators, which couldlead to increasedauthoritarianism withinlocal/city government.

We can therefore question whetherwe, as planners and developers,have a grounded understanding ofwhat Smart Cities are and how theyshould be planned. e discussionpresented above highlights the

fluidity of meaning associated withthe concept of Smart Cities, and theways that we choose to view futureurban development. However,where there is an additionallystrong political and financial will toinvest in Smart Cities, the outcomesfrom North America and Europeindicate that positive collaborationsbetween government, industry andlocal communities can bedeveloped. However, there is a needfor strong leadership to beassociated with this process toensure the investment is structuredand focussed on key deliveryprinciples. is interpretationshould also include a review ofwhether the discussions of SmartCity discussions simply offer newurban development rhetoric or auseful approach to investment inurban areas? Given the complexityof defining what is and is not aSmart City, and how they should beinvested in, the following sectionsoutline how the concept of SmartCities is being applied globally andwhat characteristics cansubsequently be applied in India. .

applICaTION OF ThemaIN ThemeS OF SmaRTCITIeS glObally

In 2011 the EU opened its ‘SmartCities and Communities’ researchprogramme with €420million offunding. e initial focus of thisprogramme was to look at howcommunities and IT-enhancedgovernance could be integratedacross Europe. is was followed bythe launch of the European


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Innovation Partnership for SmartCities and Communities in 2013,which combined ICT, energymanagement and transportmanagement to develop innovativesolutions to the majorenvironmental, societal and healthchallenges facing European cities(Giffinger et al., 2007). esePartnerships aimed to overcome theresistance impeding the changeoverto Smart Cities, to co-funddemonstration projects and to helpcoordinate existing city initiativesand projects, by pooling itsresources together. e long-termobjectives of the process were toestablish strategic partnershipsbetween industry and Europeancities to develop the urban systemsand infrastructures of tomorrow.

Another second key project in theEuropean context was conducted bythe Centre of Regional Science atthe Vienna University ofTechnology (VUT)in 2007,whichconceptualized six maindimensions of a ‘Smart City ’. Toassess the performance of cities asper these dimensions, VUT appliedthese characteristics to aninvestigation of 70 middle sizedEuropean cities (Giffinger et al.,2007). ese proposed dimensions,as shown in Figure 2, are: a smarteconomy; smart mobility; a smartenvironment; smart people; smartliving; and smart governance. eseclassifications connect withtraditional regional and neoclassicaltheories of urban growth anddevelopment (Caragliu et al., 2011),and are based, respectively, on

theories of regionalcompetitiveness, transport and ICTeconomics, natural resources,human and social capital, quality oflife, and the participation of societymembers in cities. e dimensionsestablished by VUT were dividedfurther into thirty-one factors andagain into seventy-four measurableindicators. Collectively, theindicators gave a smartness index ofa city.

Since its publication, the

conceptualization of Smart Cities,presented by VUT, has gainedincreasing acceptance, and can beconsidered to have helped to createconsensus, globally. e SmartCities Council of USA, a forerunnerin the sector and a for-profit,partner-led association for theadvancement of the Smart Citybusiness sector in the USA hasadopted similar dimensions toVUT, whilst also re-defining SmartCities as a city which use ICT toenhance liveability, workability and


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Figure 2 : VUT Six Dimensions of Smart Cities(giffinger et al., 2007:12)


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Sector Factor Indicators in eU (TU vienna) Indicators of Smart city council

ec

on

om

y

Innovative Spirit R&D expenditure in % of GDP R&D

Employment Rate in knowledge-intensive SectorsInnovation

Patent apllications per inhabitant

Entrepreneurship self-employment rate New startups

New businesses registered Employment levels

Economic Image & trademarks Importance as decision-making centre

Productivity GDP per employed person GDP per capita

Flexibility of Labour Market Unemployment rate

International embeddedness Proportion in part time employment

Companies with HQ in the city quoted on national stock

market

Air transport of passengers

Air transport of freight

Local and Global Connection Exports

International events held

Pe

oP

le

Level of qualification Importance as knowledge centre (top research centres, univer-

sities etc. )Secondary education

Population qualified at level 5-6 ISCEDUniversity graduates

Foreign language skills

Affinity to life long learning Book loans per resident

Participation of life-long-learning in %

Participation in language courses

Social and ethnic plurallty Share of foreigners

Share of nationals born abroad

Fiexibillty Perception of getting a new job

Creativity

Share of people working in creative industries

Foreign born immigrants

Urban living lab

Creative industries

Cosmopolitanism / open

mindedness

Voters turnout at European elections

Immigration-friendly environment

Knowledge about the EU

Participation in public life Voters turnout at city elections Secondary education

Participation in voluntary work University graduates

Go

ve

rn

an

ce

Participation in decision making City representatives per resident

Political activity of inhabitants

Importance of politics for inhabitants

Share of female city representatives

Public and social services Expenditure of the municipal per resident in PPS

Share of children in day care

Satisfaction with quality of schools

Transparent Government Satisfaction with transparency of bureauocracy Open data

Satisfaction with fight against corruption Open apps

Online services

Online procedures

Electronic benefits payment

Infrastructure Wi-Fi coverage

Broadband coverage

Sensor coverage

Integrated health+safety operations

Contd....

Figure 3: Smart Cities Council Criteria

sustainability (Smart Cities Council,2013). Given this definition, theSmart Cities Council proposes aSmart City index constituting samesix dimensions i.e. smart economy,mobility, environment, people,living and governance. e Smart

Cities Council criteria are shown inFigure 3. It further details thesedimension through a set of forty sixmeasurable indicators whichbroadly align with VUT’sconceptualisation.

Whilst, the VUT and Smart Cities

Council conceptualisations havebecome accepted norms in globaldiscussions, there are furthervariations in how these principlesare being applied globally. EvolvingSmart City markets such as those inthe Middle-East are drawing


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mo

bIl

ITy

Local Accessibility

Public transport network per inhabitant

Public transportSatisfaction with access to public transport

Satisfaction with quality of public transport

International accessibility International accessibility

Availability of ICT infrastructureComputers in households Smart cards

Broadband internet access in households Access to real-time information

Sustainable, innovative and safe

transport systems

Green mobility share

Traffic safety

Use of economical cars

Efficient Transport Clean-Energy transport

en

vIr

on

me

nT

Attractivity of natural conditions Sunshine hours

Green space share

Pollution Summer smog

Particulate matter

Fatal chronic lower respiratory diseases per inhabitant

Environmental protection individual efforts on protecting nature

Opinion on natural protection

Sustainable resource managementEfficient use of water (use per GDP)

Energy

Carbon footprint

Efficient us of electricity (use per GDP)

Air quality

Waste generation

Water consumption

Smart Buildings Sustainability certified buildings

Smart homes

Sustainable urban planning Climate resilience planning density

Green space per capita

lIv

InG

Cultural facilities Cinema attendance per inhabitant Life conditions

Museums visits per inhabitant Gini index

Theatre attendance per inhabitant Quality of life ranking

Health conditions Life expectancySingle health history

Hospital beds per inhabitant

Doctors per inhabitantLife expectancy

Satisfaction with quality of health system

Individual safety Crime rate Crime

Death rate by assaultSmart crime prevention

Satisfaction with personal safety

Housing quality Share of housing fulfilling minimal standards

Average living area per inhabitant

Satisfaction with personal housing situation

Education facilities Students per inhabitant

Satisfaction with access to education system

Tourism attractivity Importance as tourist location

Overnights per year per resident

Social cohesion Perception on personal risk of property

Poverty rate

Source: Tabulated by author

inspiration from the VUT andSmart Cities Council criteria but areapplying more localisedconceptions of how these should beused. In the United Arab Emirates(UAE), Masdar has beenchampioned as a model of SmartCity development in the Gulf States.Conceived as a zero-carbon, car-free and 100 per cent solar poweredcity, Masdar encapsulates a numberof key themes discussed previously:alternative approaches to energyproduction and consumption, anda more effective and efficient formof resource management (Kirby,2014). e masterplan for Masdaralso identifies that innovative ICTinvestment in a centralised controlsystem is the most effectivemechanism for managing the socio-economic and environmental needsof the city. is includes theprovision of services, and flow ofpeople and transport, to establishthe most efficient use of resourcesby citizens, businesses andgovernment (Sennett, 2012).erefore, although the masterplanning of Masdar may not haveproduced additional criteria forinvestment in Smart Cities, theyhave drawn heavily on the globaldiscussions of what makes a SmartCity.

Singapore has also been reported asbeing a world leader in applyingSmart City ideas. e nation’sgovernment has promoted thecountry as an ‘Intelligent Island’where ICT has been used to manageand monitor the island state’sresources. is has included the

provision of high-speed fibre opticinternet connections to citizens andthe use of ICT to control the qualityof the urban environment(Mahizhan, 1999). To ensure thesuccess of this programme theSingaporean government hasworked with private technologyproviders to ensure that the ICTsystems they have developedprovide sufficient scope to managethe city. Although the scale ofSingapore, 791km2, is relativelysmall, its population density(approximately 7,669 people perkm2) indicates that more efficientgovernance of environmental andsocial resources can, and has,increased the perceived quality oflife (Bagchi, 2014).

e application of Smart Cityprinciples in the UAE andSingapore, therefore, highlight thatit is only with an effectiveinvestment arena, that innovativeforms of development can occur.However, the politicalised nature ofdevelopment in both these locationscould be considered contextuallyspecific and unlikely to bereplicated in the USA or Europe.We, therefore, need to assess howwe rationalise the control of top-down city developmentprogrammes, against the moredynamic approaches witnessed inother locations. e application ofSmart City ideas in India mayprovide a lens through which to theinteractivity of these alternateviewpoints can be assessed.

In the Indian context, the proposedSmart City of Dholera attempts tointegrate each of the objectives

noted in Europe, the USA and inthe Gulf States. Dholera is beingpromoted as a comprehensivelyplanned city to ensure that citizensand the environment are syncedthrough ICT and central commandcentre management (DNA India,2013). e ‘smart’ branding of thecity has been established to setDholera apart from otherdevelopments, such as Lavasa,through the inclusion of moreefficient city-wide managedsystems. e scale of thedevelopment, 903 km2, would makethe investment twice as large asMumbai (and bigger thanSingapore), and provide scope totest/apply a range of water,sanitation, e-governance and ICTbased transportsolutions (Datta,2014). Furthermore, Dholera islocated along the Delhi-Mumbaiindustrial corridor and wouldpotentially act as a key centre ofeconomic influence in India, henceits promotion as a key Smart Citysite. Currently though thesediscussions are hypothetical, yet thesupport from the Indiangovernment suggests that Dholerawill become a test case in the SmartCity incubator.

e wholescale investment intechnological solutions, as seen inMasdar, may therefore enableplanners and developers to addressthe human-centered barriers toeffective management visible inIndia (Datta, 2012; Roy, 2009).However, as the discussions ofSmart Cities have developed, therehas been a realization within theacademic and grey literature thatthe varying conceptualization of


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what can be considered a SmartCity across the globe may beproblematic to their use in India. Asa response in 2014, theInternational StandardsOrganization (ISO) evolved acommon performance yardstick forSmart Cities. ISO 37120 defines 100performance indicators that shall orshould be measured, along with amethodology to measure theireffectiveness (ISO, 2014).Specifically, ISO 37120 definesseventeen key themes (see Box 1),supportedby a further forty six coreand fiy-four indicators that citieseither “shall” (core) or “should"(supporting) track and report to bea smart city. If India is to progressits Smart Cities agenda, it will needto learn the global lessons of how toeffectively invest in Smart Cities, aswell as, showing an understandingof how ISO 37120 can beimplemented in the country.

pm NaReNDRa mODI’SaNNOUNCemeNT OF 100NeW SmaRT CITIeSReflecting once again on an Indiancontext, in his first national budgetas Prime Minister, Shri NarendraModi announced that the Indiangovernment was allocating INR

7060 crore to fund the developmentof one hundred new Smart Cities.Although the announcement wasnot accompanied by a detailedoutline of where or how these citieswould be developed, theproclamation does mark animportant stage in the developmentof India cities (Bagchi, 2014). Bypromoting investments in SmartCities, the Indian government isproposing an alternative approachto growth management, based onthe promotion of technologicallyfocussed Public- Private-Partnerships (PPPs), to managedelivery. e Indian governmentmay, therefore, be limiting thepotential for human interests todictate development debates andinstead promote a more functional,sustainable and smarter form ofurban expansion. Shri Modi’sannouncement, therefore, providesscope to utilise alternative deliveryoptions for decision-makers inIndia, proposed in Smart Citydiscussions. Based on theassumption that Smart Cities willdeliver more effective decision-making, efficient governance andmore appropriate investment, theconcept appears to be the polaropposite of existing urban growth

discussions (Datta, 2012; Roy,2009). Shri Modi’s proposal can, asa consequence, be considered as anattempt to move away from theestablished criticisms thatencapsulates development debatesin India (Das, 2007), and insteadlooks to make full use of the ICTand systems management expertiseestablished in India to drive growth.

India’s renown as a world leader inICT, and the focus of Smart Citydebates, shows a clear intention tointegrate these ideas withindevelopment discussions.Furthermore the move towardsuniversal ‘e’ and ‘m-governance’mechanisms to empower thenation’s population can also beviewed as supporting the use ofSmart Cities (Datta, 2014). ere is,though, scope within thedevelopment of Indian Smart Citiesto ensure that societal mobility andinclusivity are promoted as keydelivery principles. Social inclusionis oen downplayed, being replacedby development which excludessome members of society. SmartCities therefore have the potentialto rationalise the needs of allcitizens and to create moredemocratic places (Caragliu et al.,2011). However, to fully understandthe potential of Smart Cities aspecific contextual understandingof Indian growth is required, whichis currently lacking.

ere is, however, a noticeablecaution within the discussions ofSmart Cities, querying, whether itwould be possible to move from therhetoric of investment intomeaningful delivery. e


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eme1. Economy 10. Safety2. Education 11. Shelter3. Energy 12. Solid Waste4. Environment 13. Telecommunications & Innovation5. Finance 14. Transportation6. Fire & Emergency Response 15. Urban Planning7. Governance 16. Waste water 8. Health 17. Water & Sanitation 9. Recreation

box 1 : ISO 37120 Smart City emes(ISO, 2014)

complexities of growth debates inIndia suggest that myriadstakeholder influence can, and does,stymy effective growth (Mell &Sturzaker, 2014). erefore, thedevelopment of Smart Cities willrequire strong (and long-term)leadership from the centralgovernment, and their advocates, toensure appropriate delivery of thekey principles of the concept(Hollands, 2008; Narain, 2014). Asthe process of development suffers,somewhat, from an endemicinteraction of contrasting voices,the promotion of Smart Citiestherefore provides an interestingplatform to assess changes underthe new government.

Given the strength of the BJPgovernment in terms of controlover the Lok Sabha and at the sub-national level, we can expect that amore meaningful engagement withthe principles of Smart Cities couldoccur. Unfortunately, this processmay still be subject to individual orstakeholder pressures, which coulddilute the delivery of the concept(Datta, 2014). Over the next five-years it will therefore be interestingto monitor these discussions toassess whether the visibility of thegovernment’s support for SmartCities can actually outweigh theembedded dynamism ofdevelopment interests in India.

The FUTURe OF URbaNDeVelOpmeNT aNDSmaRT CITIeS IN INDIa

One could argue that the INR 7060crore allocated to funding SmartCity’s shows a clear commitmentfrom the government to approach

development from an alternativeperspective (DNA India, 2013).However, broken down into thefunding for one hundred cities, thelevel of funding for each city unitbecomes more constrained (Datta,2014). Moreover, there are alsoconcerns over how the funding willbe allocated, who will be financiallyresponsible for overseeingdevelopment, and who will beaccountable for ensuring thedelivery of the one hundredproposed Smart Cities? Each ofthese questions are yet to beanswered, however, the allocation ofthe funding is a major first step inmoving away from the conventionalIndian planning process.

e BJP government have statedthat the identified funding will beused to conceptualise and plan newdevelopment (or retrofit existinglocations) rather than fund fullinvestment programmes. us,although the level of funding percity may appear insufficient todeliver Smart City principles, theywill provide scope for planners anddecision-makers to identify whichcharacteristics they propose toinvest in. e fundingannouncement would furtherstimulate investment by engagingwith other potential funders, i.e.ICT businesses, retail business, andtransport operators to support PPP,which is deemed an essentialcomponent of effective Smart Cityinvestment. Furthermore, ithighlights a commitment from thegovernment to rethink and toposition the nation as a world-leader in urban development andtechnological innovation.

e future implication of SmartCities in India is currentlyunknown. Although the conceptproposes an alternative way ofthinking about urban development,there are still questions being raisedabout the relevance of Smart Citygovernance in India. Promoting aneffective form of managementwhich integrates governanceelements from both the centre andlocal will be a key for successfulapplication of Smart City principles.Several concerns have been raised,which focus on the management ofthe development process and thesubsequent delivery of efficient,high-tech and inclusive cities. Eachof these objectives has beenextensively critiqued in the researchliterature highlighting thedifficulties inherent in Indiandevelopment (Datta, 2014; Giffingeret al., 2007; Hollands, 2008). esecomplexities include the perceptionthat the government of India, andtherefore by extension thegovernance of its cities, are overlybureaucratic, litigious, and in manycases take a dynamic view onprioritising development objectives(Datta, 2012). e structuredcriteria based assessments for SmartCities proposed by the Smart CitiesCouncil, VUT and BSI couldtherefore be undermined by suchprocesses (BSI, 2013; Giffinger et al.,2007; Smart Cities Council, 2013).How the central government, andits agents at a state and local level,manage this process will play amajor role in evaluating whetherthe application of Smart Cityprinciples in India is successful.

However, the support allocated to


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Smart Cities highlights a change ingovernment understanding ofurban development. By promotinga more technologically led form ofinvestment, the government isengaging the country’s expertise inICT, to rethink how developmentshould occur. Furthermore, thecontinual growth of innovativeforms of engineering (social andmechanical/industrial) suggeststhat a number of the key objectivesof Smart Cities, namely: efficiency,innovation, inclusivity, andmobility, can all be delivered byprofessionals in India. e growthof Smart City thinking thusprovides a platform where each ofthese areas can be integrated into adelivery process.

One final question that can beposited is: what happens if theproposed investment in SmartCities fails to deliver the requisitechange in the development andmanagement of Indian cities? ismay be an INR 7060 crore question,as the implementation of SmartCities in India remains in itsembryonic stages. In case of afailure, the choice for developersand urban planners would be toreturn to the default normativeapproaches to investment or theymay attempt to look foropportunities beyond the formalboundaries of Smart Cityframework. What we could suggestis that the promotion of SmartCities as an alternative may providethe spark that architects, townplanners and government need tothink beyond the existing legal andadministrative limits that frameinvestment in cities. Alternatively, if

city planners defer to the status quothen we may not see a noticeablechange in attitude or delivery. epromotion of Smart Cities cantherefore be considered to act as apotential catalyst to integrate anadded fluidity to urbandevelopment debates. Over thecoming years, each of these issueswill be repeatedly discussed as therhetoric of investment in SmartCities moves on to scoping andfinally investment. Whilst it iscurrently unclear how successfulthe promotion of the concept willbe, it is possible to argue that anyreflections on the dynamics ofdevelopment will potentially lead tomore sustainable forms ofinvestment.

CONClUSIONS

As urban planners, the authorsquestion, the validity of anuncritical investment in SmartCities. Although the concept candraw on a growing literature ofinternational experiences, there is aneed to undertake a robustcontextualisation of their potentialvalue in India. Also, given thediverse agro-climatic zones, socio-economic and politico-administrative milieu in India, aone definition-fits-all approach willnot work. Hence a loose definitionwith broad characteristics will haveto be conceptualised, with theindicators or specificities of whichcan be varied as per the localcontext of the cities subject to SmartCity development.e specificdevelopment constraints, andopportunities, that make growth inIndia a unique process, need to beevaluated in conjunction with the

contemporary discussions of SmartCities, to ensure reciprocity of ideas,delivery strategies and monitoring(Caragliu et al., 2011; Datta, 2014;Narain, 2014). Furthermore,although the USA, UK and Europehave developed a set of normativeapproaches, criteria andbenchmarking systems to establishthe credentials of Smart Cityinvestment, such assessments haveyet to be tested in India. As aconsequence, a Smart Citiesinvestment framework should beadopted in India only when testsshow specific positive avenueswhere the balance of investmentcosts does not outweigh theestimated returns. Such aframework could be structured asfollows: • Identification within the central

government of the definition,scoping and objectives for SmartCities, with the possibility ofdeveloping a governmentportfolio for their development;

• Identification of a series of pilotsites to test the relevance andutility of this framing of SmartCities;

• Identification of pilot sites thatreflect the various agro-climaticzones, socio-economic andpolitico-administrativeboundaries across India.Regional pilots should beincluded as exemplar projects toassess the structure of thegovernment’s Smart City criteriain different locations;

• Establishment of a reflexiveprocess of monitoring for thepolicy-practice of Smart Cities atall scales, which should beindependent of the private


FEATURE

business agendas; • Greater dialogue to establish

Public-Private-Partnerships toshape the functionality of theSmart City development andevaluation criteria; and

• Subsequent, support from alllevels of government to integrateSmart City ideas in legislation,policy and practice.

However, if it is concluded thatbenchmarking of Smart Cities lacksa more nuanced application inIndian context than those based oneco-city and sustainabilityprinciples, then we can questionwhether it is appropriate for theIndian Government to promote onehundred new Smart Cities. At thecurrent time Smart Cities offerIndian planners an opportunity torethink the trajectory of urbandevelopment, and can bring intoaction new forms of investment andpromote long-term improvementsin the quality of place and life,economic competiveness andresource efficiency. Looking atglobal discourse and practices inSmart City, mainly revolvingaround the use of ICT, we suggestthat most important aspect of ICTis not its capacity to build smartcities but its capacity to offeropportunities to be integrated intoa wider social, economic andcultural transformation.

NOTeS1 is variation is also shown in Figure 1, where

Master’s level students were asked toconceptualise what they considered SmartCities to be.

aCkNOWleDgemeNTS

e authors would like to thank the Mastersstudents for their visual conceptualisations to the

Smart Cities class at CEPT University. eircontributions highlight the diversity of thinkingon Smart Cities and the alternative ways it can beconceived.

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BSI. (2013). e Role of Standards in SmartCities. London.

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FEATURE

e activities of HSMI are carried out by thefour centres of excellence namely, Centre forUrban Poverty, Slums and Livelihoods(CUP), Centre for Project Development andManagement (CPD), Centre for SustainableHabitat (CSH) and Centre for AffordableHousing (CAH). Some recent initiativestaken by HSMI are:

Research and DevelopmentHUDCO is supporting innovative researchinitiatives in the housing and urbandevelopment sector through itscollaborative research platform. eresearch should lead to a tangible project orguidelines for improving a sector specificissue. e research grant is awarded tonational level institutions and universitiesof repute in the country. So far, grant to 30research proposals have been awarded.

Rajiv gandhi FellowshipHUDCO has instituted a ‘Rajiv GandhiFellowship’ to encourage students toundertake research in the habitat sector.is fellowship follows the norms of theMinistry of Human ResourceDevelopment/University GrantsCommission, and is awarded for pursuingM.Phil. and Ph.D. programmes at nationallevel premier institutions. e institutionshave to sign a MoU with HUDCO foravailing this Fellowship for its students.

hUDCO ChairsHUDCO Chairs have been reintroduced ina new format. e HUDCO chairs arefunctional at 18 institutions in the countryand are supported in terms of activitiesundertaken for improving the sector. echairs conduct skill developmentprogrammes, research & disseminationworkshops and documentation.

hUDCO best practice awardis award has been announced byHUDCO to promote innovative initiativesundertaken by urban local bodies. eseawards are given under seven categories,

viz., Urban Governance, Housing, UrbanPoverty & Infrastructure, Urban Transport,Environmental Management, EnergyConservation & Green Building, Sanitation,Urban Design & Regional Planning, InnerCity Revitalization & Conservation andDisaster Preparedness, Mitigation &Rehabilitation. e award is given to 10selected entries/ organisation and carries acash prize as well as a commemorativeplaque and commendation certificate.

Network of India, brazil and SouthafricaIBSA is a trilateral agreement betweenIndia, Brazil and South Africa to promotesouth- south cooperation and exchange onseveral mutually agreed areas of interest. Atthe fourth meeting of the trilateralcommission of the IBSA dialogue forum inDelhi in July 2007, ‘Human SettlementDevelopment’ was identified as an area ofcooperation between IBSA partners. eMinistry of Housing and Urban PovertyAlleviation (MoHUPA), Government ofIndia, has nominated HSMI, as the anchorinstitute to provide support to the ministryin carrying out various activities under thenetwork. A Working Group on Human Settlement(WGHS) was established and subsequentlya Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)on cooperation in the area of humansettlement development was signed at the3rd IBSA summit held in October 2008. AJoint Working Group (JWG) meeting wasorganized to finalize the strategy foroperationalization of IBSA activities,including discussions on strategy paper. Ajoint meeting of the IBSA working group onHuman Settlements was organized byHSMI in collaboration with Ministry ofHousing and Urban Poverty Alleviation,Government of India in New Delhi during17-18 May, 2013. Further, as anchorinstitution, HSMI was also represented byExecutive Director, Training at the recentlyconcluded International Seminar, organized

by IBSA at Sao Paulo, Brazil during 12-14March, 2014.

CITyNeT – National Chapter IndiaHUDCO is an Associate Member ofClTYNET since 1993. e purpose ofClTYNET is to promote exchange ofinformation, experience and skills throughvarious research and training activitiesamong members of CITYNET. e Indiachapter of CITYNET has been establishedwith HUDCO/HSMI as the lead institution,so that more Indian cities could benefitfrom HUDCO's vast experience in the areasof common interest.

Capacity buildingHSMI, being the research and training wingof HUDCO, has been imparting training toin-house professionals and national andinternational professionals in the sector.HSMI has made an impressive contributionin handholding of urban local bodiesthrough capacity building of professionalsand functionaries for national levelprogrammes.Evaluation studies have been undertaken byHSMI on the following five governmentschemes- Swarna Jayanti Shahari RozgarYojana (SJSRY), Interest Subsidy Scheme forHousing the Urban Poor (ISHUP),Integrated Low Cost Sanitation (ILCS)Scheme, Chief Minister BPL Awas Yojana ofRajasthan and Projects under the 10%lumpsum schemes for North EasternRegion, including Sikkim.

Networking

HUDCO and HSMI have signedMemorandum of Understanding withnational and international agencies towardssharing of knowledge through seminar/workshops, visits, documentation andtraining programmes.

For more information on the above, pleasecontact Executive Director (Training),HUDCO/HSMI, New Delhi.

INITIaTIVeS OF hUDCO’S hSmI

International Conference &Exhibition SMART CITIES - The key to a sustainable urban future in India?

FEBRUARY 2015 Venue:New Delh i

THE EVENT The conference would bring together national and international academicians, practitioners and policy makers with rich experience in the designing and planning of various elements of smart city development. Representatives from cities that have already adopted many of the ‘smart’ initiatives along with those which are in the preparatory stage of taking steps to develop smart cities would be invited to share their experiences. The exhibition will provide an opportunity for many of the organizations and service providers who have developed products/ techniques/ technologies’ to showcase and demonstrate their offerings. This would serve as a one stop shop for the city managers and administrators, from the various Indian cities, to better assess the options suitable to their cities and to network with the innovators and service providers to channelize the resources K E Y T O P I C S T O B E C O V E R E D :

S m a r t e r G o v e r n a n c e f o r C itie s A c h i e v i n g E n e r g y Effi c i e n t C itie s S m a r t T r a n s p o r t atio n S y s t e m a n d M o b i l i t y M a n a g e m e n t S m a r t s o l utio n s f o r S l u m R e d e v e l o p m e n t S m a r t T o o l s f o r P l a n n i n g C itie s F i n a n c i n g O ptio n s f o r S m a r t C itie s U r b a n Uti l itie s a n d I n f r a s t r u c t u r e M a n a g e m e n t S m a r t a n d G r e e n B u i l d i n g s

P A R T I C I P A N T S About 400 participants are expected to attend the conference. This will include Mayors and city administrators from cities, policymakers and regulators, academicians, financial institutions, urban sector professionals, real estate developers, technology solution providers etc. F o r c o n f e r e n c e r e g i s t r atio n a n d e x h i b itio n q u e r i e s :

H u m a n S ett l e m e n t M a n a g e m e n t I n sti t u t e ( H S M I ) H U D C O H o u s e , L o d h i R o a d , N e w D e l h i - 1 1 0 0 0 3 T e l : 0 1 1 - 2 4 3 0 8 6 0 0 , 2 4 3 0 8 6 3 9 , 0 9 8 9 1 4 2 5 4 3 9 F a x : 0 1 1 - 2 4 3 6 5 2 9 2 , 2 4 3 6 6 4 2 6 E - m a i l : h s m i c s h @ g m a i l . c o m W e b s i t e : w w w . h u d c o . o r g CIN:U74899DL1970GOI005276

HOUSING AND URBAN DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION LIMITED

HUDCO’s HUMAN SETTLEMENT MANAGEMENT INSTITUTETraining & Research Wing

HUDCO House, Lodhi Road, New Delhi- 110 003Tel: 24308600-631, After Office Hours-24308600, Fax: (011) 24365292, Email : [email protected]

(A Government of India Enterprises)CIN : U74899DL1970GOI005276

Core-7-A, India Habitat Centre, Lodhi Road, New Delhi - 110003Tel.:(EPABX)24649610-23, 24627113-15, Fax: (011)24625308, Email : [email protected], Visit us at : www.hudco.org

October 2014 Volume 15 No. 2 ISSN 2347 - 4912 …ISSN 2347 - 4912 Theme Paper Policy Review Case...

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