SLUM AS A SOURCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION

Social pollution is becoming a scrious problem in the cities. Due to the industrial

growth and expansion of commercial activities. urban-rural migration has given rise to

the growth of a large number of slums. The location of slums arc generally relegated to

sites that are lease desirable from the habitat point of view - low lying area that arc

susceptible to inundation, quarry pits, tank beds, along railway lines, near cemeteries,

slaughter houses etc., making the city unhealthy. Social and economic problems arc also

impartant in inducing social pollution. Inadequate income has led to an increase in crime

as well as prostitution in slums. Practices such as the intake of alcohol, use of open

spaces or drains as latrines and improper disposal of garbage in front of dwelling places

are aspects of social and visual pollution. Most social problems arise from low-income

ilrciis illid slums.

Definition Of Slums

Slums have been said to be 'nothing but an area of substandard housing' and slum

problem is. there fore essentially the problem of shelter for the poor (Desai and Pillai,

1072). According to an UNESCO document "a slum is a building, a group of buildings or

nil urcn charnctcriscd by over crowding. deterioration, unsanitary conditions or absence of

facilities or amenities, which because of these conditions or any of them endanger the

health, safety or morals of its inhabitants or the community". Hence as a working

definition of slums one can say that slums are ' contiguous and yet at times physically

separated geographic spaces within the legal urban limits of a city that are characterised

with scrious lack of basic amenities and sanitation with dense and over crowded housing

conditions where dwelling units range variously in terms of the use of building materials

for walls and roofs available rather than cheap with substantial contribution of one's own

or very cheap labour for the shaping of such dwellings and surrounding*' (Das,1991).

Chatkt Abrebun a well-known authority on housing problems says "Slum lifi is the first

advance from homeless into shelter'.

Spatial distribution of slums in Bangalore metropolitan

Bangalore Urban Agglomeration covers an area of 451 q.km and has population

of 4.086 million as per 1991 census. Nearly 65 percent of h e population lives within

Bangalore City Corporation limits. With the rapid growth of population the number of

slums have increased from 159 in 1971-72 to 290 in 1978 to 444 in 1990-91. The total

slum population is approximately 1.12 million, Thus 20 percent of the population ( I 99 1 )

of Bangalore Urban Agglomeration can be considered as slum population. The area

occupied by thc slums is 3451 acrcs (National Sample Survey, 1980).

Location and pattern of slums

The location of 444 slums of Bmgalorc Metropolitan area can be broadly divided

into three zones namely city core. intermediate and periphery, each zone in one way or

tlrc othcr rcprcscnts a distinct physical paltcrn of thc slunls of that part of the city. The

area covering thrce major commercial centres of (a) City market (b) Majestic area 1 City

railway station and (c) Russell market IShivajinagar together covering an area of 6 s q . h

is treated as the con. The area falling between this core and approximately the city

corporation boundary is treated intermediary zone and area beyond this defined as

periphery. 'The present location and distribution of slums indicate that the largest

concentration occurs in the intermediate zone of the city that is between the city core and

thc pcriphery. Out of 444 slums 32 are in the core 246 in the intermediary and the

remaining 166 in the periphery. The slums in tire core are developed by commercial and

rosidc~rtilrl urcus und tlrc slutrrs in t b intcrmccliutc zone arc cnvclopcd by tlrc expanding

residential nrcils of the intermediate zone. The slums in the periphery are in proximity to

lhc ~~cwly growing induslrial arcs.

Bangalore City covers 134.43 sq.km. of area, it has together 237 slums with total

population of 3,28,072 constituting 61,351 households and area occupied by the slums

is 401.80 acrcs (KSCB, 1997). A mFul study of the table NO. 8.1 gives the details of

the range wise spatial distribution of slums in Bangalon city.

Table No. 8.1 Range Wise Distribution Of Slums And Their Chaructcriatics In Bangalorc City- 1997

Source: Karnataka State Slum Clearance Board (KSCB)

MNCE WISE CHARACTERlSTICS OF SLUMS : Basavanagudi

This zone lies towards the southern parts of the city with 6,5 pertent of the total

city arca. 'This range has l l slums covering 22.71 acres of land with P density of 380

persons per acre and 1753 housel~olds with 2.63 pcrccnt of total Slum population.

Bharathinagar

Ttiis is a residential area lies towards eastern part of the city vith 7.5 percent of

the total city area. This range has 24 slums covering an area of 24.12 acres of land with a

~ i t y of 720 persons per m and a total of 3 108 households with 5.30 prremc d

slum population.

It is a zone of industrial workers and lies towards western put of UF city ~ i *

9.6 percent of the total city area. This rage has 17 slums covering an area of 25.72 acres

of land with a highest of 2253 persons per acre and a total of 7995 households. This

range ranks 2* in the number of slum population of 17.66 percent. The highest density

and largest population is mainly due to the migration of low income job seekers from

different parts of the state as well as neighbouring states.

Jayamahal

This zone lies towards the northern part of thc city. In terms of area it ranks 4th

with 10.2 percent of the city's total area. Though much of the area covered by the upper

class rcsidcntial localitics it has 15 slun~s covering an area of 22.55 acrcs of land with a

density of 803 persons per acre and constituting a total of 3248 households. This range

accounts 5.52 percent of total slum population.

Chamarajpet

'Ibis zone lics to the southern portion of old core of city accounting for 3.1

percent of total city area. This range has 2"d highest number of slums covering an area of

29.01 acrcs of land with 1 180 persons pcr acrc and a total of 6875 households. This range

ranks 4Ih in population size with 10.43 percent of total slum population. This high

population is mainly duc to thc location of city's major vegetable market and bus

terminals.

Cliikpct

Chikpet is one of the major commercial centres of the city, accounting for a high

floatingpopulation. Being a smallest range in size with 1.8 percent of the total city area,

there arc 8 slums coveting an area of 7.76 acres of land with 1070 persons per acre and a

total of 1626 households. n i s range accounts 2.52 percent of total slum population.

Gandhinagar

it occupies central part of the city with 2.7 percent of the total city area, Being a

commercial and residential area this rangc has 20 slums covering an arca of 25.08 acrcs

of land with 745 persons per acrc and total of 363 1 households with 5.70 pcrccnt of total

slum population.

Jayanagat

In terms of area Jayanagar is the second largest zone with 14 percent of the total

city area. Though it is well planned with better class residential localities it has highest

tiumber of 46 slums covering a larger area of 90.06 acres of land with a density of 71 3

persons per ace. This range also constituting highest number of 12501 households and

19.60 pcrccnt of total slum population.

Malleshwaram

'I'his rangc lies to the wcstern part of Ihc city with 11.4 pcrccnt of total city arca.

Being one of the oldest residential areas, it has 25 slun~s covering an m a of 46,08acrcs

of land with a density of 553 persons p r acre. All these slums together constitute 4548

liauscholds with 7.78 percent of total slutn population.

Rajajinagar

One of the major residential arcas in thc city. this zone ranks 5th in terms of area

with 9.8 percent. There are 19 slums covering an area of 57.21 acres of land with a

density of 545 persons per acre and constituting a total of 5094 households. This range

accounts 9.5 1 percent of total slum population.

Shanthinagar range lies towards the southeastern part of the city. Being a

residential area it tanks 1' in size and it covers a vast area of 16.5 percent of total city

area. There are 17 slums with en area of 46.39 acres of land with a density of 880 persons

pet acre. This range amtiwing s c m d highest number of 10,405 howholds and ranks third with 12.45 percent of total alum population.

Shivajinagar

One of the major commercial centres. with a small arm of 6.6 percent of total city area.

This range has only 6 slums covering an area of 5.1 1 acrcs of land with a density of 574

persons per acre. This range constituting 487 households with lowest 0.90 percent of total

slum population.

Table - 8.2 Distribution Of Slums By Ownership Of Land

Source : Compiled from the records of KSCB.

LAND OWNERSHIP .- Private

Uangalore City Corporation

Bangalore Development Aulliorily

Ciovemment

Total

In Bangalore City the largest proportion 48.10 percent of slums are on privalc

land. Thc study area covers whole urban tracks, a considerable number of 33.75 percent of

slums are found on Bangalore City Corporation land (BCC) and 10.55 pcrcent on

Bangalore Development Authority land (BDA). About 7.60 percent of the slums are found

to be on government land.

SAMPLE STUDY OF SOCIAL STRUCTURE OF SLUMS - METHODOLOGY

NUMBER OF SLUMS

114

80

25

18

237

To study the physical and cultural characteristic of slums in Bangalore City, 12

slums each representing a range have been selected. It was decided to study 120

households by taking 10 households from each slum. All the 12 slums have been studied

by pcrsonal fieldwork and questionnaire survey.

. PERCENTAGE

48.10

33.75

10.55

7.60

100.00

The slum rrady schsdulea includcd blocks of questions peruining to 1) Slum location

2) Areal expansion 3) Demographic characieristics such as Population size, Occupation,

Income. Religious composition. Linguistic composition and Economic status. 4) Housing

structure 5) Amcnitics in slums such as Availability of walcr, Drainage, Latrine and

Dustbins 6) Environrncntal conditions and its impact on health of the slum dwellers and 8)

Crimc and Violence in slums.

In keeping with the objectives of the study the following criteria were kept in mind:

1. Suficiently old slums

2. Suflicicnlly smaller slums

3. Suff~cienty larger slums

4. Slums with as nlony caste, regional. religious and linguistic groups

5. Slums suf?iciently close to industrial, residential and comniercial areas and

0. S~UIIIS sufticicntly closc to thc railway lincs and roads.

Table - 8.3 Characteristics of 12 san~ple slums selected in Bangalore -

City

01

02

03

SI No

04

05

06

07

Ownership of Iht land

Name of the Slum

Vcnkatatamana lluts

Muniyapp Garden

lndira Colony

08

09

- - -

12 Swcepers Colony 1 BCC 2.10 173 1095 52 1 I

Anandapuram

Anjanappa Garden

Arasu Huts

Ashoka Talkies

10

I I

Sourcc : Karnataka State Slum Clearance Board ( KSCB ), Bangalore.

Area in Acres

Private

Private

Private

Nakalu Oandhai

Mahuaia Mills

Private

Private

BCC

BCC

Agrahara Dasarahalli

Rajcndhranagar

Total No. of hub

6.30

1.00

3.36

Private

Privatc

2.05

2.27

1.00

1.20

Govt.,

BCC

Total Populallon

347

270

103

3.00

0.36

Dcnrity

866

392

91

135

2.20

4.00

I550

1450

500

360

283

246

1450

148

4330

2134

550

273

387

2500

21 12

940

550

227

2040

I674

680

4638

2246

9000

I020

2250

Demographic Characteristic Of 12 Sample Slums Selectcd in Banalore

city

Or thc total 764 persons distributed in 120 households covering 12 sample slums,

53.2 percent are male and remaining 46.8 percent are females, with an average of 5.30

persons per household. Arasu huts, Maharaja mills and Smcpcn colony slums arc

having an average of more than seven persons per household.

A majority of 42.5 percent of the slums are dominated by Tamilians followed

Kannada speaking people 37.5 percent, Urdu speaking 11.7 and Telugu speaking 8.3.

Perccnt. This shows that more than 50 percent of the slum dwellers migrated from

neiyhbouring states like Tamil Nadu and Andrapradcsh. Some of them had migrated two

generations ago and now they consider Bangalore as their home. Their grand parents had

come to Bangalore in search of jobs and gradually the entire family shifted to the slums,

In samc families males migrated for en~ployment and thcir families joined them after

thrir marriugc.

Tl~c majority religious group is undoubtedly Hindu 72.2 percent followed by

Muslims 17.5 percent and Christians 10 percent.

A large proportion 58.62 percent of slum population belongs to SC and ST, apart

from the above caste groups remaining 41.38 percent of the population belong to various

castes including Muslinis there are Lingyaths and Gowdas.

Occupation

Most of the slum dwellers, locals and migrants are drawn into work in the

unoryaniscd scctors. A significant proportion of 38 pcrcent of slum's working population

work as coolic, 23 pcrccnt arc cngagcd as construction labourers, 21 perccnt rolc

agarbathis another 13 percent engaged in ptty shop keeping, 10 percent in workshop, 8

percent as tailors and remaining 7 percent as vegetable vendors (Table No. 8.4).

Table 8.4 : Occupation Structure

Source : Compiled from the field survey.

03

04

05

06

07

08

09

10 - I I

12

Description Of House

A nlajority of 88 percent of the slum dwellers living in their own houses and the

rcst arc staying in rented houses. Out of 120 huts 55 percent has brick walls and

remaining 45 percent have mud walls. While 50 percent of the huts have tiled roofs 39

pcrccnt hnvc roofs of asbestos or aluminium shccts. About I 1 pcrccnt of the hut roofs

werc nmdc of thatch and plastics. Around 65 perccnt of the slum dwellers have used

cement for flooring, while 35 percent used stone and lime mix for the floors.

lndira Colon).

Anurdrpuram

Anjanappa Garden

Arasu I lua

Ashoka Talkies

Nakalu Bandhri

Maharaja Mills

Agnham D~sarahalli

Rajandhn nagar

Sweepers Colony

Total

Percentage

3

4

6

3

4

4

2

6

2

38

31.6

I

2

I

2

2

5

3

2

3

23

19.2

1

I

I

I

1

I

07

5.8

6

2

2

1

I

I

2

2 l

17.5

I

3

I

1

I

I

I

I

13

10.8

1

1

I

I

I

1

08

6.6

I

I

2

I

I

I

1

10

83

Household Amenitk

Drinking water for households is mainly from two sources: - ( I ) Municipal

Co~rrniunity taps and (2) tlmd pumps. No housc has installed a watcr tap on its premises.

While 55 percent filled water from the municipal community taps, the rest of thc

dwcllers use both municipal communilj taps and hand pump to draw water for domestic

putposes.

Socio Economic Status :

I ncomc

It is evident from the study that about 12 percent of the households have an

annual income of less than Rs. 5000 and 44 percent between Rs. 5001 to Rs. 10,000. 35

pcrccni between Rs. 10,001 to Rs 15,000 and only 9.2 percent enjoys more than Rs. 15,000. The low standard of living is bccausc of low income and most of the slum

dwcllcrs arc daily wagc clvning labourcrs ('lhblc 8.5).

Table No. 8.5 : Annual Income

Source : Compiled from the field work.

223

Sl.no

0 1

02

03

04

,05 06

07

08

0

10

I I

12

Namc of the slums

Vcnkataramana Huts

Muniyappa Garden

lndira Colony

Anandapunm

Anjanappa Garden

Arasu Huts

Ashoka Talkies

Nnkalu Bandhai

M l~a ra ja Mills

Agnhara Dasarahalli

Rajandhra napr

Swcr?penColony

Tom1

Pcrccnlagc

Btlou 5000

04

03

04

0 1

0 1

01

I4

11.1

15000 rbovt ,

01

01

01

03

02 ,

01 . 02

I 1

9.2

5001-10000

01

05

04

03

06

07

08

02

02

05

07

03

53

44.1

1001-15000

04

02

01

05

04

03

0 1

04

06

05

02

05

42

35.0

Toilet Facilities la Slums

No slum has proper toilct facilities and no housc owns a private toilet. Thcre are

very few public toilet found in these areas and thcy ranp from 8 to 16 in each slum.

There are 132 public toilet provided for both males and females with an average of om

toilct for 203 persons. which is highly inadequate. Hence people tend to use sewage

lincs, opcn spaces and railway h c k s for defecation. Most of the slums use open spaces

as public toilct. Anjanappa garden, Arasu hut, Ashoka talkies and Maharaja mills slums

u x both open spaces and areas close to railway lines for defecation and lndira colony,

Agrahara dasarahalli use sewage lines for defecation. Almost all the slwns children use

drainage and streets for defecation.

ENVIRONMENTAL ASPECTS OF SLUMS :

Composition of Garbage in Slums

Garbage from slums contain vegetable wastes, cooking wastes, paper, plastic,

glass. rubber, metals. street waste, construction wastes and animal wastes. All the twelve

slums surveyed have a luge amount of compostable matters like vegetable wastes,

cooking wastes, papers, leaves, litters etc.. and non-compostable substances like plastic.

The lndira colony, Anandapurarn, Anjanappa garden. Nakalu bandai, Maharaja mills and

Agrahara dasarahalli Slums generate a large amount of animal wastes, mainly due to the

rearing of cattles and pigs. The Venkatarmana huts, Muniyappa garden, Anandapuram

and Swecper's colony slums have a large amount of construction wastes. It is mainly due

to demolition of old structures and reconstruction of new buildings in these areas, Only

few slums have broken glasses, rubbers and metal wastes.

Disposal and collection of Garbagc in Slums

No slum has a proper garbage disposal system, very few corporation dwtbins are

found in most areas. They range an average from 8 to 12 dustbins in each slum, which is

highly inadequate. Hence people tend to throw their wastes in to sewage pits and streets.

Almost all the slums have the problcms of accumulated garbage thrown on the streets.

The slums like lndira colony, Ashok talkies and Agmhara dasarahalli have a poor

garbage collection system hence pcoplc throw their waste into sewage md open drains , which causes water pollution and coagulation in pipes.

Garbage in slums is not regularly collected as in other a m s of the city. Some

times it is collected once or twice a month by cotporntion lomu. Sometimes rag pickers

also play a major role in collecting the non-eompostable wastes like plastic, broken

glasses. rubber, metals etc. In this process thty scatter garbage around the bins and

unknowingly subject themselves to several health hazards.

Environmental Impacts :

Congestion: Slums generally spring up in sites that are limited in size and

undesirable from the habitat point of view - railway tracks, lank beds, quany pits, near

markets, industries etc., and hence they are over crowded tending to subject itself to other

I'onns ol' pollution. Almost all thc twclvc slunls llovc thc scvcrc problcm of conpstion.

A fanlily consists of more than 5 members and hence it is highly impossible for them to

live in a small area that has hardly one or two rooms. As a result they spend most of their

time outsidc the premises even during night times. For bathing purpose men use the

spacc at the public taps or outside their dwellings and women at the corner of the

dwvclliny. In most of the slums a ditch is made in the corner of tlrc dwelling and the wastc

water collected which leads to severe health hazards (Table No. 8.6).

Air Pollution : Air pollution is severe in Anandapurarn, Anjanappa garden,

Aslloka talkies, Rajendra nagar and Swveepers colony. This is because these slums gre

located along the roadsides. But on the wllole other slums are moderately subject to air

pollution. A majority of households usc traditional fuels such as firewood, cattlc dungs

ctc., Tor cooking which gcncrate air pollutants likc particulate matter, sulfur dioxide,

oxide of nitrogen, carbon monoxide, hydro carbon etc, The use of traditional fuels emit

an unplcasant smell all these cause watcring of eyes, headaches, respiratory disorders and

skin irritations.

Wntcr Pollulion: Watcr is a dominant problcm in all thc slums. In most slums

scwagc and water pipes rue laid ncxt to each other and when leakage occurs the drinking

wakr is o k n wntasnirratd. Slums which arc fou~rd in low lying mas Imvc u problam of sugnrrtion or drains ;mcl nin watcr a d bcxomc a b d i n g ground for mosquitoca

\vlriclr curry vcvturs uf ~rruluritl ulrd lilitriu. Ilr ultrrost ull (IN YIUIIIY EXCCPL TCW wuter

pollution is moderate to indifferent. It is very severe in Anandapuram and Ashoka

Talkies slums because sewage lines pass directly into these slums and cause water

pollution.

Noise Pollution: Ranging from local activities and mc, noise pollution is

severe in Anandapuram. Anjanappa garden and Sweepers colony. Noise pollution due to

railways is cxtrcmcly sevcrc in Arasu huts slum which located on the Bangalore - Mysorc

route, Ashoka talkies slum located on the Bangalore - Chcnnai route and Maharaja Mills

slum, located on the Bangalore - Twnkur route. The rest of the slums are moderate to

indifferent to noise pollu\ion.

Solid Wastc: Gcncrntion of solid wllslcs is a scvcrc to modcratc problcms in

alrnost all the slums. The slums like Muniyappa garden, lndira colony, Anandapuram,

Anjanappa garden, Ashok talkies and Nakalu bondai have the severe problem of solid

waste, which is mainly due to inadequate distribution of dustbins, improper disposal and

lack of civic sense among the slum dwellers. If composting is practised, manure can be

produced and thc environment could bc healthy. Composting can be resorted to as most

ol'thc waste in slums is in the form of vcgetablc matter,

Residential Hcalth: Slums arc the arcas of diseases and high rate of infant

mortality. The personal hygiene is too poor in almost all the slums, which is reflected in

clothing and living conditions of the slum dwvellcrs. Hencc slums are the sources for the

health hazards both acute and chronic diseases. The diseases, which are very common in

slums arc dyscntcry, intcstinnl disorders. cough, cold, fevcr ctc, Chronic discascs like

tuberculosis ('TB), nerve weakness, asthma, cancer, heart attack and blood pressure are

also reported in Anandapuram, Ashoka talkies, Maharaja mills and Agrahara Dasarahalli

slums among old people. Residential health is severe to moderate problem in almost all

the slums.

CRIMES IN BANGALORE ClTY

Bangalore, oncc a peace-loving city has over thc last two to thm decades has

become a city affected by crime. Due to rapid urbanisation, industrialisation and

immigration then has becn a major transformation in the ethos of the city. Murders,

dacoity, robbery, how breaking, thefts, rioting, kidnapping and property disputes have

increased several fold over the years. White collared crimes too, like bogus transaction,

dubious chit fund and illegal transaction in nel estate have increased, particularly since

the begining of this decade. Real estate business boomed in Bangalore in the late 1980's

and 1990's. due to liberalisation and industrial investment in Karnataka. The nexus

attached to real estate also moved from Bombay and Delhi to Bangalorc, there by

infiltrating the crime of murder, dacoity etc., to the city. Besides the slum units

themselves breed a greater amount of criminals and crime has almost become a part of

tlrc cllanging socicty .

At present Bangalore has become safe hide out of the criminals, when under

prcssurc from thc police in othcr citics. Criminals shin their base to Bangalore for some

time before returning to their areas of operation. A major change in the crime scene in

Bangalore in 1990's is the use of firearms, which was unheard of earlier. The common

rllntl is i~tcrcasingly feeling insecurc due to the gun culture.

incidence Of Crime In Bangalore :

Bangalorc faces an alarming rate of increase in the incidence of murder, decoity,

robbery, house breaking, theft rioting, kidnapping, cheating and IPC cascs. During the

past 1 I years. there is a total of 2.86.456 criminal cascs recorded in Bangalore alone. The

nualbcr of crimcs has incrcwd by 28.63 pcrccnl from 21 807 in 1987 to 30555 in 1997

with an average of 26041 cases per year (John. P.Ommen, 1998). Table No.8.7 & 8.8.

The number of cases of murder have increased steadily from 108 in 1987 to 241

in 1997. with an average of nearly 163 murders per year and three person per week in the

past 1 I years. This stcady rise is largely as a result of socio-economic inequalities among

the people, rise of consumerism and property disputes.

Table No. 8.8 : Yearly Variation of Crime Incidence of Bangalore

Soi~rcc : Compiled from the records of Crime table.

Dacoity has increased four times from 13 cases in 1987 to 54 cases in 1997 with

an average of nearly 35 cases per year and 1 dacoity in 10 days. This much fold increase

is as a result of dacoits who come down mainly from the north and from other states to

rob form houses and bungalows.

Robbery ranges from a theft of stnall items like, pick pocking, chain snatching to

robbing houses. Case of robbery has gone up nearly two and half times in the past 11

years. it was 246 in 1987 and it increased to 608 in 1997 with an average of 392 cases

pcr ycar and at least one robbcry casc per day.

Burglary (House breaking) both during day and night times has increased at an

nlaniiiny ratc from 1744 in 1987 to 2549 in 1997 with an increase of 3 1.58 percent in past

1 1 years. An average of one house is robbed during day time and 5 houses robbed during

night times in every twenty-four hours. House breaking ranges from those at apartments

scantily occupied to attacking farm houses.

'The cwcs of pctty then have increased steadily from 7128 in 1987 to 8028 in

1997. with an average of 7727 then cases per ycar and at least 21 thefts per day.

The cases of rioting have gone up from 194 in 1987 to 497 in 1997 with an

increase of two and half times in the last 11 ycars. The riots spring up over sensitive

issucs whcnever communal riots arise due to social or political factors. The yew 1994

recorded Ihe highest number of 1041 riots, that arose due to the telecast of Urdu News

bulletins on Bangalore Doordhrshan, which turned into a full scale communal riot in the

city. There is an average of nearly 40 riots every month in Bangalon during the past 11

years.

Iu order to obtain money for ransom or other political demands kidnapping the

cllildrcn is vcry common in citics like Banplow. Pmscntly children arc kidnapped and

they are made to beg in the public places like, bus stand, cinema hall, market etc., by the

criminals, The other type of kidnapping is atrocity on females and selling them to

brothels. Although there was a significant fluctuation in kindapping during the last 1 1

ycurs, tlrcw arc 1203 cascs of kidnapping rcgistcrcd in 13angalorc with an avcmge of 1 10

cascs per year and 3 kidnaps is every 10 days. In most of the cases kidnapping occurs in

broad day light.

Cheating seems to be a common factor of the population of Bangalore. The rate

of this crime increased from 790 in 1987 to 1196 in 1997 with an increase of 34 percent

during the last decade. Statistics have also shown that there has been a fluctuation. This

could be duc to the nature of the crime itself or may have also indicated a lack of total

reporting of the cases.

Statistics of the past I I ycars suggest that there are a maximum number of

1,42558 IPC cases reported in Bangalore, with an average of 12,960 cases per year and

an increase of 29 percent.

Apart from crimes, prostitution and drug abuse are also affecting the cultural

environment of the city and they may be called as social hazards. There is no accurate

data available regarding prostitution, but there are number of brothels run by private

owners in city. Due to poverty, lack of good family back round and a large number of

industrial labourcrs who have no family in 13angalorc, prostitution has increased

significantly. In almost all the major bus terminals i.e., BMTC, K.R.Market and

Shivajinagar, prostitution is practised openly. Then are other localities also in slums

arcas where prostitution incidence rate is high. Due to poor law and order, prostitution is

increasing day by day in Bangalore.

Uangaiorc has become a strategic ccntre for drug trafficking in the South India. It

has become a transit cum consumer point between Mumbai and Goa on the one side and

some areas of Tamil Nadu on the other (Rao, 1993). lllicit cultivation of ganja in the

run1 tracks surrounding Bangalore is also compounding the probkm. Heroin (Brown

Sugar) is smuggled into Bangalore from Mumbai, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Cannabis is brought

to Banyolorc l'mm Kcrcla and Tmiil NaJu whcrc it is grown extcnsivcly. Drugs from

I lydribd rcick thc city by bus or train und from Mumbai by train, trucks or buscs, It is

in turn supplied to rerailen, Dhabhas on the outskins of the city and then distributed to

the local dealers (Rao, 1993). Drugs are sold in Dhabhas, Panshops, Petty Shops at

Railway Station, Bus Stands, Cinemas, Educational Instirutions ctc.

Use of drugs in huge quantides and consequenrly indulging in violence and crime

is on thc incrcase in Bangalore. Drugs are used variously, as an escape from poverty,

hardships, boredom and as a part of socio-relegious actividcs. Students h ~ n affluent

hackgrounds wcrc the nuin uscrs. In slums. drug uscrs wcrc youngsters, uncmploycd

and u~iskilled labourers. 'he use of drug has increased considerably in Bangalore as

birscd on seizurcs of drugs as it is cvidcnt from the 'Table No.8.8

Conclusion

A Study of a section of poor and low income housing, which tends to produce an

overall degraded cnvironment due to its social structure and way of life. This indicates a

Ibrn~ of pollution which broadly covcrs all environmental aspects of degradation namely,

poor water quality, unwanted noise from areas close to railway lines and people

tliemselvcs, ppor air quality and unorganised solid wastes and sewage lines leads to

pollution of sorts. A study is made in this direction as not only the physical and cultural

environmental is affected but social environmental impacts of congestion, poor amenities

and life style related small scale activities tend to create major aspects of social pollution

such as crimes. violence, drug trafficking, prostitution etc. In this chapter all these

aspects arc studied for 12 slums covering 12 ranges of the city. The environmental

perception study rcvealed moderate to severe impacts of pollution in most of thc slums.

'I'IKw rlu~~is havc hcncc bccomc cycs~rcs in un alwocly piclurcsquc gPntcn city. I t wus

c=nliaI to add this dimension of pollu~ion as indusuialisation and demographic growth

had greatly altered the environment of Bangalore City. The limitation here was the

constraint of selecting a larger sample but time and human resources limited the study to

12 slums. Ncvorthtltss this wimple has h w n some light on the degradation of

environment as a mult of poor and low-income housing.

Reference

RAMACHAN.H (1985). "Slumming of a mcttopolis", Essay in Bangalore", Vol. - 11, Karnataka State Council for Science and Technology, Bangalore, PP. 37-56.

SING1 l [IAUII' (1992) "Struclurc and corrclotcs in hgalorc" - A Case study of

Rangalore Slum, Unpublished paper presented at the slum cluster work shop IDPAD

Banyolore on July 16, pp.1 -1 1.

MACHADO T. (1994). " Cultural and Dmg abuse in Asian Settings", (CEC) pp. 140,

JOHN P. OOMMEN (1998) "At gunpoint", Deccan Herald (Spectrum), December 18, PP

17 & 20.

.An .,\real \'ir.w of' it Nakalu Ihndhui S lum Sprung on Qu;rrr-y I.;tnd 1)epictinp C'ongestion ;at .I;l?.an;rpar I\'th I%lor.k

Ikpict ion of I'oor Civic Amenities and <:ongestion in S\veepers Colony Slum