- Urbanisation in India is measured by the percentage of the urban population to the total population.
- India's urbanisation level was 31.16% in 2011, which is low compared to developed countries.
- Urban growth is driven by expanding cities and the development of new towns.
- Southern states like Goa, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, and Kerala are more urbanised than northern states.
- India has a long history of urbanisation, with ancient cities like Harappa, Varanasi, and Indraprastha.
Definitions [1]
How would you define a settlement?
A human settlement is defined as a place inhabited more or less permanently. It may include temporary camps of hunters or herders and also the permanent settlements called villages, towns, cities, large agglomeration.
Key Points
Key Points: Urbanisation in India
Key Points: Types of Rural and Urban Settlements
- Types of rural settlements depend on the extent of built-up area and distance between houses, influenced by physical, cultural and security factors.
- Clustered (Nucleated) Settlements: Houses are closely built together and separated from farms. Common in Northern Plains and fertile areas.
- Semi-Clustered Settlements: Part of the population lives slightly away from the main village, often due to social or caste differences. Found in Gujarat and Rajasthan.
- Hamleted Settlements: A large village is divided into small units (like panna, para, dhani, etc.) due to social and ethnic reasons. Found in Ganga Plains and Chhattisgarh.
- Dispersed Settlements: Houses are scattered or isolated, usually in hilly, forest or rugged areas like Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.
- Urban settlements are larger and compact, and people mainly work in non-agricultural activities like trade, industry and administration.
- According to Census 1991, a place is urban if it has:
i. Minimum 5,000 population
ii. 75% male workers in non-agriculture
iii. Population density of 400 persons per sq km
iv. Municipality or similar local body.
Key Points: Evolution of Towns in India
- Towns have existed in India since prehistoric times, especially during the Indus Valley Civilization, with examples like Harappa and Mohenjodaro.
- Indian towns are classified on the basis of evolution into Ancient, Medieval and Modern towns.
- Ancient towns are more than 2000 years old and mainly developed as religious and cultural centres, e.g. Varanasi, Prayag (Allahabad), Patna and Madurai.
- Medieval towns developed as fort towns and headquarters of kingdoms, often built on the ruins of ancient towns, e.g. Delhi, Jaipur, Agra, Lucknow and Hyderabad.
- Modern towns developed mainly during British rule and after independence. Examples include Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata (British centres), industrial towns like Jamshedpur, and planned administrative towns like Chandigarh and Gandhinagar.
Key Points: Urbanisation in India
- Urbanisation means the percentage of urban population to total population. In 2011, India’s urban population was 31.16%, which is low compared to developed countries.
- Urban population has increased rapidly due to growth of cities and emergence of new towns, though the rate of urbanisation has slowed in recent decades.
- Towns are functionally classified based on their dominant activities, such as administrative, industrial, transport, commercial, mining, cantonment, educational, religious and tourist towns.
- Examples include:
Administrative – New Delhi, Chandigarh
Industrial – Mumbai, Jamshedpur
Transport – Kandla, Agra
Religious – Varanasi, Amritsar
Tourist – Shimla, Ooty - The Smart Cities Mission aims to develop cities with better infrastructure, a sustainable environment and improved quality of life using modern and smart solutions.
Important Questions [9]
- Which among the followings is NOT the correct feature of rural settlements?
- Match the Column I with Column II and choose the correct option: Column I Column II (i) Clustered (a) Isolated settlement (ii) Semi-clustered (b) Units are locally known as Panna, Para, Palli etc.
- Which of the following is an example of Medieval town?
- Which of the following is an example of ancient town?
- On the given political outline Map of India, locate and label any five of the following geographical features with appropriate symbols:
- Which of the following is an example of an 'educational town'?
- Choose the correct pair from the following: (a) Industrial town - Vishakhapatnam (b) Transport town - Satna (c) Commercial town - Bhilai
- Choose the correct pair of the following types of towns:
- Which one of the following is garrison cantonment town?
