India has one-third less slums in 2012 than 3 years back

Around 8.8 million households live in 33,510 urban slums

One may find it difficult to believe, but there were less number of slums in urban India in 2012 than three years ago. The number of slums came down by 32.34% to 33,150 in urban parts of the country in 2012, compared to 49,000 in 2009, official data released today showed. However, at least 12% of urban population still lived in slums in 2012.

The figures are based on the National Sample Survey Organisation (NSSO) report (69th) covering the period between July 2012 to December 2012. The previous survey was based on 65th round of NSSO covering the period July, 2008 to June, 2009.

The period 2008-09 was the one when India had witnessed ripple effects of global financial crisis, so economic conditions could have been worse that time. But, experts find it difficult to believe that the number of slums got reduced in urban India.

Shaibal Gupta, founder Member-Secretary of Asian Development Research Institute in Patna, said at the outset the data seem to be doubtful. However, given the fact that it is rolled out by NSSO, one cannot rubbish it as well, he said.

Gupta said one possible reason for the decline could that urban India is now a powerful constituency, unlike 30-35 years back. As such, all efforts are to reduce the slum areas, he said.

when contacted, NSSO officials said the organisation has given the number, which is a raw fact.

In a statement, NSSO said at the all-India level 24% of slums benefited from welfare schemes such as Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) or any other scheme run by the Central government or state government or any local body.

Slums, according to the NSSO definition, are identified by the presence of features of living conditions that are undesirable ---overcrowding, lack of hygiene and sanitation, inadequacy of drinking water, and poor construction, etc.

"Any compact settlement with a collection of poorly built tenements, mostly of temporary nature, crowded together, usually with inadequate sanitary and drinking water facilities in unhygienic conditions, provided at least 20 households lived there, was considered a slum for the survey,"it said.

About 41% of these slums were notified and 59% non-notified. Notified are those slums which are recognised by the concerned municipalities, corporations, local bodies or development authorities. Other slums, not notified by these bodies, were also covered in the survey. At all-India level 44% of slums – 48% of notified slums and 41% of non-notified slums – were located on private land.

Maharashtra, with an estimated 7,723 slums, accounted for about 23% of all slums in urban India, followed by Andhra Pradesh, accounting for 13.5%, and West Bengal, which had a share of about 12%.

Of the 19,749 non-notified slums estimated to exist in urban India, Maharashtra accounted for about 29%, West Bengal for about 14 per cet , and Gujarat for about 10%.

Out of an estimated 13,761 notified slums in urban India, Andhra Pradesh had about 23%, Maharashtra about 14%, and Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal and Tamil Nadu about 9% each.

According to the report, an estimated 8.8 million households lived in urban slums. Considering household to be consisting of 5 members, almost 44 million lived in slums in urban areas. This amounts to 11.7% of India's total urban population at 377 million. The percentage could be more since a household generally has more number of persons in slum areas.

About 5.6 million households put up in in notified and 3.2 million in non-notified slums. The notified slums formed 41% of all slums but housed 63% of all slum-dwelling households in India.

The phenomenon of absence of electricity in slums appeared to be largely confined to non-notified slums. At all-India level only 6.5% of all slums had no electricity – the corresponding figures being 11% for non-notified slums but only 0.1% for notified slums.

In about 60% of all slums, the majority of houses had 'pucca' structures. The proportion of such slums was 85% among notified slums but only 42% of non-notified slums.

At the all-India level 71% of all slums had tap as major source of drinking water, the figure being 82% for notified slums but only 64% for non-notified slums.

The survey was carried out in 3832 urban blocks spread over all states and Union Territories. At the all-India level, 881 slums were surveyed in urban blocks.