Slum Redevelopment is an essential requirement for urban rejuvenation and making cities sustainable.
Reasons for growth of slums in India:
> Regional disparities in development has led to unchecked migration to a few urban centres. This has created high pressure of population on infrastructure.
> Scarcity of land in urban areas amidst rising population in urban areas leads to formation of congested communities.
> High price of land and rent in urban areas creates dearth of affordable housing forcing people to move to slums. Prevalence of black money in real estate sector is a factor that inflates prices and rent.
> Urban Planning is poor in India. City development plans fail to take into account future expansion of cities. Corruption in local bodies lead to delay in development projects related to housing.
> Slums have become contesting grounds of politics with many redevelopment projects been caught in party politics over role of big real estate developers.
Issues associated with Slums:
> Basic Amenities: Slums lack basic amenities like access to clean drinking water, sanitation, waste collection systems, sewerage, electricity and hospitals leading to poor living conditions. Lack of sanitation leads to diseases (like malaria and cholera) and poor health outcomes especially among children (hunger, malnutrition, high mortality rate etc.).
> Overcrowding has been linked to low space per person, high occupancy rates, different families living together, and a lot of oneroom units. Most slum units are too crowded.
> Slum areas have a high number of substandard housing structures (non-compliant with building standards). Many structures are unsafe for habitation.
> The slum dwellers lack ownership title to the land. They are under perennial risk of evacuation and harassment by land-mafia.
> Poor living conditions, lack of economic opportunities, presence of illegal migrants etc. provide fertile ground for criminal activities.
> Slum-dwelling women and children are at a higher risk of falling victim to social ills such as prostitution, beggary and trafficking.
Challenges in Slum Redevelopment:
Unmet Demand: Government reports there is a shortage of about 19 million homes in urban India, 56% of which are from Economically Weaker Section (EWS) households with monthly income less than INR 25,000.
Access to Finance: The urban poor lack the access to formal financial resources to help them purchase new homes even when subsidy is provided by the Government under Rehabilitation schemes. Housing Finance Companies are reluctant to serve the urban poor due to perceived risks.
Lack of available urban land: According to UN-HABITAT, 675 million Indians (~43%) will reside in urban areas by 2035. Land is in high demand due to urbanisation. Stringent control over land development generates an artificial urban land shortage, leading to urban sprawl and corruption in land licensing. Lack of transparent land transaction records add up the search time and costs for developers. A lot of state-owned entities are located in the middle of cities, limiting available land for housing.
Rising Construction Costs: Over the last decade, construction costs have risen by ~80%. With rising material and labour costs, private developers may be unable to supply inexpensive housing to the market on their own.
Regulatory Constraints: Development projects are subject to long approval process regarding different aspects from both State and Central level, which brings about postponement in tasks.
Litigation: The nature of informal settlements leads to complicated and disputed land rights, leading to litigation and delays. Entities opposed to redevelopment projects also resort to litigation e.g., a PIL has been filed against Dharavi Slum Redevelopment Plan, arguing it will impact Mahim Nature Park, a protected area.
Illegal subletting: According to Slum Rehabilitation Agency (SRA), many redeveloped units are illegally subleased. In the long run, this is counterproductive to the goal of creating slum free cities.
Environmental sustainability: There are concerns about adding additional housing on an already overconstrained municipal systems. Without investing in adding capacity to existing civic infrastructure for the city, such policies could put undue burden on the city’s civic amenities, in particular, utilities directly provided to households, such as water and electricity.
Approach for Slum Redevelopment:
A report by the National Institute of Urban Affairs (NIUA) has made several suggestions.
Administrative Sustainability: One-size-fit-all model may not work at a pan-India level. There is a need to adjust slum redevelopment models according to the local needs. There is need to examine demand (growth) and supply (density), as well as financial incentives. Financial incentives, Floor Space Index (FSI) and Transferable Developmental Rights should be customised according to local conditions.
Decentralized Systems: Municipalities have typically centralised public services (sanitation, energy etc.). Slums lack access to essential services due to high investment costs, lack of resources to meet development and demand, and low-income groups’ refusal to pay taxes and fees. Decentralized systems have the ability to alleviate these challenges since they are more cost efficient.
Financial Sustainability: Giving out free housing to slum households under slum redevelopment scheme (SRS) results in issues of illegal subletting, illegal sales of housing, and people returning to slums. There should be stringent measures to prevent sub-letting. Financial support should be provided to the poor families in order to pay for the cost of the house.
Micro financing: Scaling up micro-finance can be effective in delivering housing funds for the urban poor.
Land Ownership: Securing land tenure and formalizing land ownership can encourage investment in housing and infrastructure, mitigating slum conditions.
Inclusive Urban Planning: Inclusive and sustainable urban planning can prevent displacement and gentrification, protecting vulnerable communities. Bodies using data and technology are pivotal in tracking the progress and outcomes of transformation initiatives, identifying areas that need further interventions.
