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Urbanisation
3.1 Trends and Data
India's urbanisation has been historically slow but is accelerating:
| Year | Urban Population | % of Total |
|---|---|---|
| 1901 | 25.8 million | 10.8% |
| 1951 | 62.4 million | 17.3% |
| 1991 | 217.6 million | 25.7% |
| 2011 | 377.1 million | 31.1% |
| 2036 (projected) | ~600 million | ~40% |
Key urban facts (Census 2011 + post-2015 data):
- India has 8 mega-cities (population > 5 million): Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Pune.
- 53 million-plus cities (Census 2011).
- AMRUT (Atal Mission for Rejuvenation and Urban Transformation): Launched 2015, covers 500 cities; upgraded to AMRUT 2.0 in 2021 with ₹2.77 lakh crore outlay.
- Smart Cities Mission: Launched 2015; 100 cities selected; focus on ICT-led governance and infrastructure.
3.2 Causes of Urbanisation
- Rural-urban migration: Agricultural distress, unemployment, drought, lack of social services drive migration.
- Natural increase: Birth rate in cities exceeds death rate.
- Reclassification: Census reclassifies large villages as towns (3,784 census towns in 2011).
- Industrialisation: Factories and service sector jobs concentrate in cities.
3.3 Problems of Urbanisation
| Problem | Data Point |
|---|---|
| Slums | 65.5 million slum dwellers (Census 2011); 17.4% of urban India |
| Housing shortage | Urban housing shortage of 18.78 million units (2012 HPEC report) |
| Water stress | Only 43% urban households receive piped water supply for >12 hrs/day |
| Traffic congestion | India loses ₹1.47 lakh crore/year in productivity due to traffic delays (IIM Kolkata, 2018) |
| Air pollution | 14 of world's 15 most polluted cities are in India (IQAir 2023) |
| Urban unemployment | Urban unemployment rate: 8.2% (PLFS 2022–23) |
3.4 Urbanisation and Social Change
- Weakening of caste: Anonymous city life reduces caste surveillance; inter-caste dining and socialising normalise.
- Nuclear families: Joint family gives way to nuclear family in cities.
- Women's employment: Urban women's workforce participation = 23.8% (PLFS 2022) vs. 30.5% rural.
- New class formations: Urban middle class (defined as household income ₹5–30 lakh/year) estimated at 30% of urban population.