URBAN DEVELOPMENT
Introduction 13.1 Urbenisation is a natural consequence of economic changes that take place as a country develops. At the same time, urbenisation helps to contribute to the growth process at large. This is manifest in the increasing contribution of urban sector to rational income. For in- stance, in 1950-51, the contribution of urban sector to India's GDP was estimated at only 29 per cent which increased to 47 per cent in 1980-81 and is likely to rise to 60 per cent by the turn of the cen- tury.
13.2 The positive role of urbenisation is often over-shadowed by the evident deterioration in the physical environment and quality of life in the urban areas caused by widening gap between demand and supply of essential services and infrastructure. This results from increasing population pressure on urban centres, most of which are financially and organizationally ill-equipped to respond to infrastructural needs. Public investment in urban infrastructure has also been less than adequate. The challenge of reorienting the urbanisation process, thus, lies in overcoming the infrastructural deficiencies and taking the best advantage of economic momentum inherent in urbanisation.
The Urban Scene 13.3 The urban population of India according to the Population Census 1991 was 217.18 million spread over 3768 urban agglomerations/towns. The urban population has been growing at a much higher rate than the total and the rural population and as a result, its proportion in the total population has increased from around 11 percent in 1901 to about 26 percent in 1991. Also, the rate of growth of population has steadi- ly risen from decade to decade except during 1981-91 when it was lower than the earlier decade.
Table-1
Growth of population in India: 1901-1991
Census Population (Million) Percent Variation No. of % contribution
Year Total Urban Rural Urban Towns of urban population
Class I Class
Towns II & III
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1901 238.40 25.85 - - 1916 26.0 26.9
(10.84)
1911 252.09 25.94 6.40 0.33 1908 27.5 27.9
(10.29)
1921 251.32 28.09 -1.29 8.27 2048 29.7 26.4
(11.17)
1931 278.98 33.46 9.98 19.12 2220 31.2 28.5
(11.99)
1941 318.66 44.15 11.81 31.97 2427 38.2 27.8
(13.85)
1951 361.09 62.44 8.79 41.43 3060 44.6 25.8
(17.29)
1961 439.24 78.94 20.49 26.41 2700 51.4 28.2
(17.97)
1971 548.16 109.11 21.86 38.23 3126 57.2 26.9
(19.90)
1981 683.33 159.46 19.68 46.39 4029* 60.4 26.0
(23.34)
1991**844.32 217.18 19.71 36.19 4689 65.2 24.2
(25.72)
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* Includes 80 provisional towns of Assam. ** Provisional Population Census of India 1991, Paper-2.
Source: Census of India 1981 and Provisional Population census of India 1991.
Note: (1) Figures in brackets are percentages.
(2) Decrease in the total number of towns in 1961 compared to 1951 was due to the application of uniform and rigid definition of urban areas adopted for the 1961 Census.
13.4 There are wide variations amongst regions/States in the level of urbenisation (Table-2). The Union Territories of Delhi (92.73%) and Chandigarh (93.63%) are the most urbanised in the country, and the urban proportion is the lowest (8.47%) in Dadra & Nagar Haveli. Among the major States, Maharashtra is the most urbanised with 38.7% per cent of its population living in urban areas, followed by Gujarat (34.40%) and Tamil Nadu (34.20%).
13.5 Inter-state variation in the annual rate of growth of urban popu- lation and urban-rural growth differential (URGD) is more revealing. Except in Kerala, Gujarat and Maharashtra, the URGD is lower in all other states during 1981-91 than in 1971-81 (Table-2). Conspicuous deceleration of urban growth during 1981-91 was noticed in Bihar, Orissa, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh.
Table-2
Level of Urbenisation, Average Annual Exponential Growth,
URGD, Rank in Major
STATE LEVEL OF AVERAGE ANNUAL URBAN RURAL RANK
URBANISA- EXPONENTIAL GROWTH
TION GROWTH (URBAN) DIFFERENTIAL
1991 % 1971-81 1981-91 1971-81 1981-91 1981 1991
INDIA 25.72 3.83 3.09 2.05 1.29 - -
ANDHRA PRADESH 26.84 3.96 3.55 2.39 1.88 7 7
ASSAM 11.08 3.27 3.27 1.27(est) 1.29 16 16
BIHAR 13.17 4.37 2.65 2.49 0.62 14 15
GUJARAT 34.40 3.47 2.90 1.46 1.51 3 2
HARYANA 24.79 4.67 3.58 2.67 1.73 8 9
HIMACHAL PRADESH 8.70 2.98 3.11 0.92 1.46 17 17
JAMMU & KASHMIR 23.83 N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. 9 10(est)
KARNATAKA 30.91 4.10 2.55 2.35 0.97 4 4
KERALA 26.44 4.19 4.76 1.73 4.44 12 8
MADHYA PRADESH 23.21 4.45 3.71 2.69 1.71 11 11
MAHARASHTRA 38.73 3.36 3.27 1.74 2.92 1 1
ORISSA 13.43 5.22 3.08 3.76 1.49 15 14
PUNJAB 29.72 3.68 2.56 2.07 1.00 5 5
RAJASHTHAN 22.88 4.62 3.31 2.19 1.07 10 12
TAMILNADU 34.20 2.47 1.76 1.25 0.56 2 3
UTTAR PRADESH 19.89 4.74 3.29 2.94 1.27 13 13
WEST BENGAL 27.39 2.76 2.54 0.91 0.47 6 6
13.6 The urban areas in the country, excluding Assam, Jammu & Kashmir, consist of 300 Class I urban agglomerations/cities, 345 Class II urban agglomerations/towns, 947 Class III urban agglomerations/towns, 1,167 Class IV urban agglomerations/towns, 740 Class V urban agglomerations/towns and 197 Class VI urban agglomerations/towns, making in all 3,696 urban agglomerations/towns (Table-3). The distri- bution of urban units among States and Union Territories is quite uneven. A comparison of decadal growth rate of urban population by size classes suggests significantly higher growth rate (46.9%) in class I towns compared to negative growth rate in
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class V and VI towns. However if adjustment is made for re-classific- ation of towns in different size classes in 1981 censuses the differ- ence in the decadal growth rate among the different size classes of towns is less marked.
Table-3
Increase/Decrease of Population in each size Class
during 1981-91 - INDIA*
Size No. of Population increase/ Contribution to India's
Class UA/Towns decrease during 1981-91 total urban population
in 1991
Decadal growth
Absolute Percent 1981 1991
a b
1 2 3 4 5 6
All Classes 3696 56,447,569 36.09 32.81 100.00 100.00
I 300 44,298,200 46.87 34.49 60.42 65.20
II 345 5,119,439 28.14 31.60 11.63 10.95
III 947 5,670,186 25.30 29.57 14.33 13.19
IV 1167 1,600,797 10.72 28.41 9.54 7.77
V 740 -70,982 -1.27 30.02 3.58 2.60
VI 197 -170,071 -21.70 NA 0.50 0.29
* Excludes Assam and Jammu & Kashmir
a For all towns as recorded in 1991 cansus
b For those towns which are common both in 1981 & 1991 census.
13.7 The Class I urban agglomerations/cities accounted for 65.20 per cent of the urban population of the country in 1991. A further breekup of the population of cities indicates that a majority (505%) of the population of Class I urban agglomerations/cities lives in 23 metro- politan urban agglomerations/cities with a population of more than a million each. These cities account for roughly one-third of country's urban population. Furthermore, in India there are four mega cities namely Bombay, Calcutta, Delhi and Madras, with a population of more than five million each in 1991. Almost one-fourth of the population living in Class I urban agglomeration/cities in the country lives in mega cities.
13.8 The population in Class I urban agglomerations/cities has contin- ued to increase at a faster rate (46.87 per cent) during 1981-91 than other towns. Considering the common set of towns, the decadal growth rate is 34.5%.
13.9 Growth of employment (main workers) in urban India during 1981-91 is recorded at 38.0% as against 26.1% in the country as a whole. The population growth in urban areas (36.2%) is close to that of employ- ment growth. As the growth rate of labour force during the same period is expected to be higher than that of total population growth in urban areas, unemployment/underemployment rate might have gone up. With regard to the composition of main workers for which only four broad categories (cultivator, agricultural labour, household industry and other workers) are available, there is no perceptible change between 1981 and 1991 as can be seen from Table 4. However, percentage em- ployed in Household industry has increased to 5.6% from 4.9% in 1981.
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Table - 4
Percent Distribution of Main Workers by broad categories in
All India Urban (excluding J&K, Assam)
Year Total Main Worker Cultivator Agricul- HH Others
Workers Partici- tural Industry
(in million) pation Labour
Rate (%) (%) (%) (%) (%)
of population)
1981 45.72 29.23 5.13 6.05 4.94 83.88
1991 63.08 29.63 4.63 6.66 5.57 82.78
Review of urban development policies and programmes in the seventh five year plan and annual plan 1990-91 and
1991-92
13.10 Thrust of Urban Development Policy
The Seventh Plan asserted that planning of urban development should essentially be supportive of the economic development in the country. It urged making use of industrial location policy to subserve regional and urban planning and suggested that a concerted effort should be made to channelise private industrial investment in the vicinity of small and medium towns to check migration of population to the metro- polises. The identification of regional urban systems was suggested on the basis of regional characteristics and needs and functions of each town in its regional context. More explicitly, the needs of the poor were to be taken into account in all physical planning exercises.
The following were identified as the major constituents of a compre- hensive plan for urban development:
(i) Planned and integrated development of small and medium towns and cities along with slowing down of growth of the big metropolises;
(ii)Revitalisation of civic bodies;
(iii) Thorough reforms of municipal tax systems and municipal adminis- tration in general;
(iv) Concentration on the improvement of slums and the provision of basic municipal services;
(v) Working out measures for regular revolution of funds from State Governments; and
(vi) Establishment of the necessary institutional framework for chan- neling capital funds for the improvement of urban infrastructure.
Programmes in the Seventh Five Year Plan 13.11 The Plan emphasised the following major programmes:-
(a) Environmental Improvement of Urban Slums (EIUS) Scheme has been in operation in the State sector since 1974. The scheme benefited about 10 million slum dwellers during the Seventh Plan and another 3.3 million during the Annual Plan (1990-91 and 1991-92).
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(b) A Centrally Sponsored Scheme known as Urban Basic Services was introduced in 1986, with the primary objective of enhancing the sur- vival and development of women and children of urban low income fami- lies. During 1990-91, the scheme was revised to bring about functional integration with EIUS and came to be known as Urban Basic Services for the Poor (UBSP) with 100% Central funding.
(c) Scheme for Integrated Development of Small & Medium Towns (IDSMT) to provide complementary infrastructural support of critical signifi- cance was continued. During the Seventh Plan period 145 addition towns were covered.
(d) Development of National Capital Region around Delhi was aimed at providing infrastructural support to priority towns and the region as a whole.
(e)In the State sector, provisions were made for infrastructure facil- ities civic amenities, and development of State capital projects.
(f) The Nehru Yojana was launched in October, 1989.
It is targeted towards persons living below the poverty line in urban areas. It has three components viz. Micro-enterprises, Wage employment and Shelter Upgradation.
13.12 A significant source of funding in the urban development sector during Seventh Plan and the Annual Plans 1990-91, 1991-92 was external assistance. Total utilisation of external aid in 1990-91 alone was approximately Rs. 280 corers.
An overview of Plan outlay in the Urban Development sector 13.13 Tables 5 and 6 indicate the approved outlays for Urban Develop- ment during the Seventh Plan and the Annual Plans, 1990-91 and 1991-92 for States and the Central Sector. Major features of the Plan outlay are summarised below:-
a) In financial terms the Annual Plans 1990-91 and 1991-92 showed a marked increase over the average expenditure per annum during the Seventh Plan, primarily due to introduction of NRY in 1989. However, the Annual Plan outlay in the central sector showed a decline in 1991- 92.
b) EIUS continued to be the most significant programme in the urban sector with Seventh Plan outlay of Rs. 65.3 corers and Rs. 63.4 corers in 1990-91 and 1991-92 respectively.
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Table - 5
Approved Outlays - Urban Development
State - Sector
(Rs. in
Lakhs)
STATES 1985-90 1990-91 1991-92
Seventh
Five Year
Plan
1 2 3 4
1 Andhra Pradesh 9000 3757 3540
2 Arunachal Pradesh 50 20 30
3 Assam 1200 363 378
4 Bihar 1900 1580 1734
5 Goa 665 144 200
6 Gujarat 13105 2295 3196
7 Himachal Pradesh 925 435 480
9 Jammu & Kashmir 3907 6791 6820
10 Karnataka 3000 1429 1786
11 Kerala 2500 529 989
12 Madhya Pradesh 7760 2826 3944
13 Maharashtra 16000 3600 7500
14 Manipur 755 540 141
15 Maghalaya 500 260 600
16 Mizoram 550 300 459
17 Nagaland 800 360 283
18 Orissa 650 1650 1710
19 Punjab 4075 4472 6866
20 Rajashthan 2371 815 1358
21 Sikkim 150 90 100
22 Tamil Nadu 16000 4296 4916
23 Tripura 700 327 350
24 Uttar Pradesh 24700 8350 6810
25 West Bengal 23220 8079 9360
Total - (States) 136483 53580 64002
UNION TERRITORIES
26 A & N Island 300 123 155
27 Chandigarh 6113 1550 1970.61
28 D & N Haveli 7 2 6.6
29 Daman & Diu - 35.2 15
30 Delhi 19770 10925 11000
31 Lakshdweep 0 25.1 3.5
32 Pondicherry 655 184 224
Total - (UTs) 26845 12844.3 13374.71
Total - (States & UTs) 163328 66424.3 77376.71
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Table - 6
Approved outlays on urban development: Central Sector
(Rs. in lakhs)
St. Name of Scheme Seventh Plan
No. 1985-90 1990-91 1991-92
1 2 3 4 5
URBAN DEVELOPMENT
1. I.D.S.M.T. 8800 2500 1500
2. Equity Support to HUDCO 3500 200 450
(Infrastructure)
3. Contribution to NCR Planning Board 3500 1000 1400
4. Research & Training in Urban & Regional
Planning 200 - 40
5. Development of Displaced Persons 150 32 10
6. Urban Basic Services 500 2500 2300
7. Urban Transport Consortium Fund - 200 500
8. Nehru Rozgar Yojana* - 12000 11300
9. Scheme for Educated Employment - - 200
Generation in Urban Localities
10. Grants to urban local Bodies - - 200
throw
HUDCO/LD&UWS Financing Corporation
11. Removal & Collection of cattle in 150 - -
Calcutta
Total 16800 13432 17900
* Nehru Rozgar Yojana was started in 1989-90 and funds released in 1990-91.
Emerging Issues 13.14 The review of urban policy framework in historical perspective indicates that until the Sixth Five Year Plan (1980-85), the urban policies mainly addressed problems like housing, slum clearance, slum improvement and upgradation, preparation of Master Plans, development of small and medium towns, strengthening of municipal civic adminis- tration etc. The Seventh Plan made a new beginning by explicitly recognising the problems of urban poor which were seen to be linked with creation of employment opportunities. It is now being recognised that urban policies can directly contribute to achieve the goals poverty reduction and removal of unemployment and under-employment. During the last decade, the growth rate of employment in the urban areas averaged around 3.3% per annum, while the employment growth rate in the rural areas dropped to about 1.6 per cent for males.
13.15 Thus, urban areas have to be enabled to absorb larger increments to the labour force. Further, promotion of non-agricultural activi- ties, upgradation of skills and infrastructure development of smaller towns will need added impetus.
13.16 The most glaring problem has been the high incidence of marginal employment and urban poverty. It is estimated on the basis of NSS 43rd round (1987-88 data) that 41.8 - million people are below the poverty- line. It is recognised that the incidence of marginal and low income employment is mostly in the informal sector, which accounts for large share of total employment in metropolitan cities. What is needed is upgradation of informal sector occupations and their integration with the urban economy at large.
13.17 The gap between the demand and supply of infrastructural serv- ices has been continuously widening. Increasing pressure of popula- tion, particularly the skewedness of distribution of urban population in large cities and metros and escalating per capita cost of providing urban services account for deterioration of infrastructure services and amenities. The worst sufferers are the poor, whose access to the basic services like drinking water, sanitation,
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education and basic health services is shrinking.
13.18 Unabated growth of urban population has made the problems of urban housing more severe. The accumulated backlog in the urban hous- ing along with the housing needs for the additions to the urban popu- lation has aggravated the problem further, resulting in proliferation of slums and squatter settlements and decay of city environment.
13.19 Fast growth of urban population, spread of urban areas and spurt in secondary and tertiary activities have led to urban transport problems like severe traffic congestions, slowing down of vehicular movement, high air and noise pollution, longer journey hours, increas- ing costs of travel etc. Urban transport is an important service sector and plays a crucial role in the development of the urban econo- my and the time has come to take stock of the urban transport scenar- io.
13.20 In the context of the growing demand for urban services, the rationalisation and the augmentation of revenue system have not made commensurate progress resulting in increasing dependence of urban local bodies (ULB) on the financial assistance from the States and Central Government. Own revenues of the local bodies are not adequate even to meet operation and maintenance expenditure. In the case of the of smaller ULB's, the week financial position is also combined with lack of organisational and technical capabilities.
13.21 The week financial and organisational base of ULB's has, in turn, led to highly subsidised and inequitable supply of various urban services with critical dependence on State grants.
13.22 Much of the ills of urban housing and resource mobilisation in larger urban areas can be perhaps attributed to the problems inherent in the urban land market. While urban development programmes have to depend largely on a well coordinated land development programme, the existing legal and administrative machinery has impeded supply and development of serviced land. Also, very little efforts have been made to mop up the large appreciation in values of real estates particular- ly in metropolitan cities.
13.23 The role of ULBs has weakened progressively over the last two or three decades. In recent years, some of the functions performed earli- er by the ULBs have been transferred to State level bodies, including Urban Development Authority and Functional Bodies. This process needs to be reversed so as to foster stronger and more responsive local governments, reflecting local initiatives, perceptions and priorities.
13.24 A corollary to the above process is exploration of avenues through which private initiatives can find a greater role in urban development programme. The role of private sector needs to be expend- ed. The extent and the manner in which private developers can contrib- ute to urban renewal and squatter settlements and peripheral areas in metropolitan regions (including residential and trunk infrastructure development) needs assessment.
13.25 Attention needs to be focussed not only on the growing challenges of urbanisation but on the relationship between urban and rural devel- opment. The rapid transformation in the country's urban scenario must be taken into account and provided for, in order that urban growth becomes compatible with healthy socio-economic development of the nation. It will be necessary to take note of the prevailing dichotomy in rural and urban development and evolve a mechanisms for bringing about rural-urban cohesion in the management of growth. This can be achieved through the process of spatial planning, which is an inte- grating concept that makes it possible to achieve the composite devel- opment of human settlements while stimulating economic growth. Spatial development plans would need to be prepared keeping in view the "growth centre" concept. This will provide a framework for identifica- tion of "growth centres" and "lower order centres" where investments could be attracted, depending upon their infrastructure level and growth potential.
The Perspective 13.26 Population projections made by the Expert Committee, indicate doubling of India's urban population in two decades i.e. 1981-2001. Growth rate of labour force in urban areas is expected to be even higher. However, the 1991 census recorded significantly lower urban population than that projected. Yet, it may not be prudent to be guided by this transitory trend. Population projections, have been made on the basis of a longer term trend of annual growth of urban population with base year population corrected on the basis of 1991 census. Estimates worked out are presented in Table-6. The overall level of urbanisation by the turn of the century is likely to be less
357
than that projected earlier, but absolute addition will still be quite large (148 million during two decades). Moreover, a higher share of population in "million plus" cities imply proportionately higher burden of demand for urban services and also higher per capita cost in real terms.
Table-6
Urban population projection - 1991-2001
year Total Urban Population % Urban % share or
(in million) population million plus
cities to urban
population
Committee Now
of Experts Projected
(A) (B) (A) (B)
1991 235 217 27.5 25.7 32.5 (23)
1997 - 267 - 28.3 -
2001 332 307 33.0 30.5 35.8 (40)
Figures in the bracket indicate Number of million plus cities.
Thrust areas in the eighth five year plan 13.27 In the light of experiences gained during the Seventh Plan and the two Annual Plans and also taking into consideration the emerging issues and perspective as indicated above and as elaborated in the Report of National Commission on Urbanisation (1988), the thrust areas for the Eighth Plan will consist mainly of more effective implementa- tion of the strategies adopted during the Seventh Plan and partly in formulation of new strategies. The overall Seventh Plan strategy of urbanisation being supportive of economic development with appropriate location of industry and other employment generating activities will be continued. The programmes for the urban poor and for the small and medium towns will have the same focus, but the content and manner of implementation of these programmes will be made more comprehensive and compatible with the overall strategy at the State level. Resource mobilisation and programmes aimed at strengthening of institutions will be given a concrete shape. The distinctive features of the Plan are as follows:-
i) Spatial and economic dimension of planning for the urban sector needs to be consolidated ad operationalised.
ii) Convergence of all related programmes to create the desired impact in small and medium towns beyond the threshold level is necessary.
iii) The key to success of urban development strategy lies in taking measures-legal, financial and organisational -- for enhanced and equitable supply of urban land.
iv) Private and public sectors have to act in tandem of urban infra- structure and housing, Innovations in funding pattern and role of private developers in specific areas need to be explored.
v) In view of the deteriorating environmental conditions caused by both natural and man-made factors, the conventional city plans should be modified to incorporate the measures needed for restoration of healthy environment.
vi) Programmes to deal with the problem of urban poverty should be developed in integrated manner emphasising both employment generation and access to basic services involving community level organisations.
13.28 Specific thrust areas of Eighth Five Year Plan
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(a) Macro strategy for urban development with explicit recognition of rural-urban linkages has to be evolved. In particular, the benefits of accelerated pace of agricultural development should be taken advantage of through appropriate utilisation of backward and forward linkages. This, together with appropriate location policy for development of industry and other major employment generating non-agricultural activ- ities, can provide an effective avenue for absorption of surplus rural labour force.
(b) As a corollary to the above macro level strategy, an integrated plan of hierarchy of rural and urban settlements needs to be evolved. This will imply introducing explicit spatial dimension.
(c) Particular emphasis will be placed on the development of small and medium (S&M) towns which serve as an important link between the vil- lage and the large cities. In order to realise the objective of more balanced distribution of urban growth both in terms of its distribu- tion over space and also by size class of urban areas, the small and medium towns have to act as important centres of attraction, in terms of economic opportunities, to the potential migrants not only from villages but also from urban areas to large cities. To operationalise this planning approach, the integration of this strategy for develop- ment of small and medium towns in a spatial context with the existing district planning process may be attempted. The concept of GEMS as identified by the National Commission on Urbanisation will be kept in view for this purpose.
(d) The programme implementation approach has accordingly to undergo a change from the present practice of implementing urban development programme in an ad-hoc and isolated manner. Not only the physical infrastructure but also the economic infrastructure should form part of urban development programme. The policy of locating industries in rural areas only at a short distance away from the metropolitan or large cities is only symbolic of dispersal policy. Instead, it will be worthwhile to locate industries in small and medium urban centres having the desired impact on decentralisation of urban growth. It would also be necessary to plan for more efficient land use and eco- nomic regeneration of old city areas in the metro region in keeping with the new Industrial Location Policy which aims at more flexible approach to location of industries in the metro region. Similarly, the programmes of the Ministries of Agriculture, Rural Development and Telecommunication need to be oriented to small towns which primarily serve as Rural Service Centres.
(e) In order to achieve better co-ordination of various related pro- grammes within the Ministry of Urban Development, the programme of IDSMT, housing and infrastructural development programmes of JUDCO, and also employment generation scheme under NRY can be suitably inte- grated. Identification of towns and cities should be made on a selec- tive and priority basis and the investment plan properly coordinated and placed above the threshold level to have the desired impact. Prioritization should be done in the first instance, with regard to primary economic functions (eg. rural growth centres, service towns, tourist towns, tourist towns, industrial towns, etc.) and later inte- grated with service level deficiency in the urban areas.
(f) Increasing reliance on institutional finance which needs to be dovetailed to an overall plan of infrastructure support in the urban areas is necessary.
(g) With regard to the problem of urban poverty and unemployment, the NRY can be made more effective by identification of potential and more appropriate activities, and by suitable organisation at the district/local level and people's participation.
(h) With regard to the access of the urban poor to basic services like water supply, sanitation, health and education, a combined package of UBSP and EIUS may provide effective means of overcoming the problems.
(i) Resource mobilisation measures of the metropolitan Governments, including rationalisation of existing tax and non-tax resources, and the need for devolution of funds from the State to the Local Govern- ment need an urgent plan of action.
(j) Legal bottlenecks (for example, Urban Land Ceiling and Regulation, Transfer of Property, Land Acquisition and Rent Control Acts) need to be removed. This aspect has been examined in detail by the National Commission on Urbanisation and also incorporated in the draft National Housing Policy. A time bound action to effect necessary amendments to these Acts is now called for Rationalisation of regulatory framework is also necessary as a
359
complementary measure.
(k) A decentralised framework of urban Government with necessary par- ticipation of local communities and opinion leader in planning, imple- mentation and monitoring of urban development programmes is another prerequisite for the success of urban development strategy. In addi- tion to the enactment of the Nagar Palika Bill, which is a necessary but not a sufficient condition for efficient urban development, other normal management improvement schemes, including national and local level training programmes and delegation of administrative functions and responsibilities, will help the process. In case of large city government, shift from one centralised authority to a system of small- er area-based committees may be more effective in delivery of urban services.
(l) In view of the large size and the complexity of urban development programmes, institutional support and delivery systems at town and area level (for large cities) need to be developed in the immediate future.
(m) It is necessary to examine the feasibility of developing appropri- ate specialised organisations at the Centre and State level to deal with financing and development of urban infrastructure.
Major plan programmes in the eighth five year plan 13.29 Given the above thrust areas of the Eighth Plan, the Plan pro- grammes, covering both the State and the Central sectors have been worked out in detail. while most of the programmes are extension of those of the Seventh Plan and 1990-91/91-92 Annual plans, the content, physical coverage and funding pattern have been revised in most cases in accordance with the thrust areas of Eighth Plan. The major/priority programmes are discussed in detail in the subsequent sections:
Integrated Development of Small and Medium Towns 13.30 The Integrated Development of Small and Medium Towns (IDSMT) scheme was initiated by the Govt. in 1979-80 with a view to reducing the migration of population from rural areas to large cities, to generate employment by creating resource generating ventures in the small and medium towns and also to provide sufficient infrastructure facilities in these towns. The scheme provided for central assistance on matching (50:50) basis with a ceiling of Rs. 40.00 lakhs, which assumed the form of a loan repayable in 25 years. Until March 31, 1991 a total of 457 towns had been covered under the scheme for which the loan assistance released was Rs. 162.73 corers.
13.31 the scheme has broadly served its objective, but it has not had the desired impact on the hinterland. Delays in land acquisition and development and inadequate counterpart funding by the States/UTs have been identified as major bottlenecks in the scheme.
13.32 Therefore, the Eighth Five Year Plan envisages a fresh approach to the development of the towns, dovetailing the activities under the employment generation programmes into the supportive infrastructure development programme with a view to:-
i) generating employment opportunities to reduce the rural-urban and urban-urban migration;
ii) developing growth centres for the betterment of rural hinterland adopting a regional approach;
iii) providing infrastructural facilities to support such employment generation activities; and
iv) evolving resource generating schemes for local bodies for the purpose of proper operation and maintenance of the infrastructural facilities so created. The IDSMT scheme is intended to cover objec- tives (ii), (iii) & (iv) and objective (i) forms part of large frame- work of employment generation.
13.33 To overcome the financial constraints inherent in the original IDSMI, the reformulated approach envisages that the scheme should not depend solely on budgetary finance but should seek support from insti- tutional finance. The budgetary provisions should be used mainly for the provision of seed capital to the State Corporation/local bodies for generation of funds and for critical infrastructure which does not have any direct return.
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13.34 The coverage of the scheme will be in towns with population between 20,000 to 3 lakhs as follows:
Population Categories
20,000 - 50,000 A
50,000 - 1,00,000 B
1,00,000- 3,00,000 C
Less than 20,000 X
The guidelines for the scheme indicate the criteria and the order of priorities for selection of towns. The actual selection of the towns is, however, being left to the State Governments.
13.35 The scheme will make the towns with a population of 20,000 to 50,000 the prime target, while the inclusion of towns in 50,000 to 3,00,000 category and less than 20,000 category will be on a selective basis.
13.36 The schemes eligible for central assistance will depend on the category as well as special characteristics of the town. Central assistance will be available in general for the following activities:
i) Strengthening of link road facilities;
ii) Provision of bus terminals;
iii) Development of market yards;
iv) Industrial sheds;
v) Water supply;
vi) Construction/upgradation of road and side drains;
vii) Development of Shopping Centres;
viii) Provision of tourist facilities; and
ix) Localised drainage works.
Land acquisition and development have been a bottleneck. The modified scheme seeks to tackle this problem by excluding payment of land acquisition cost from the Central share and by stipulating that land for the scheme is to be made available within a year of approval. Access to institutional funds need not be limited to local bodies and urban development authorities. Moreover, the borrowers are expected to adopt a basket type approach so that the expenses incurred on the non- remunerative side and for the weaker sections are made up through adequate returns from the remunerative components. The projects under the scheme will have to be comprehensive covering all facets of devel- opment including social service and amenities, and be based on the long term Master Plan/Development Plan of the town within its district or regional context.
Financing Patter A summary of the financing pattern is presented in the following table:
(Rs. in lakhs)
Category Maximum Central State HUDCO loan/
project Cost Assistance share other sources
Permissible (loans)
A 200 72 48 80
B 500 120 80 300
C 1000 180 120 700
X 100 36 24 40