A STUDY OF SLUMS IN HYDERABAD — SECUNDERABAD*

RATNA NAIDU**

Drawing on the analysis of data collected by the Department of Urban Community

Development, Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad and other secondary sources, this paper
discusses (1) locational factors in slum growth, (2) congestion and (3) social and shelter profile
of slum dwellers in Hyderabad. In the final section a critical analysis of policies on slums
in this city is presented.
Ratna Naidu (nee Dutta) is Senior Fellow, I C S S R , University of Hyderabad, Hydera-
bad 500 001.

One hundred and six slums were identifi- 25 per cent of the total population res-
ed in Hyderabad-Secunderabad in 19621, pectively (Government of India 1975: 14).
the number increased to 283 in 1972, and
74 new slums were added to the list at In so far as growth of the slum pheno-
the end of 1976.3 Since 1962, therefore, mena as is known today is associated with
there has been a threefold increase of slums growth of modern industries, we need to
in the twin cities. While the city popula- remember that Hyderabad until recently,
tion increased by 43.72 per cent during the was the capital city of a feudal state and
years 1961-71, the slum population during industrialisation is a recent development.
1962-72 increased by 132.3 per cent. The The phenomenal growth of slums in recent
slum population in 1962 was 10 per cent years can therefore be taken as a pointer
of the total city population and it is now to the much more serious slum situation
19 per cent of the city population. This which is likely to develop if left uncon-
percentage of course is much higher for trolled.
other metropolitan cities such as Bombay, In the first part of this study on slums
Calcutta, Madras and Lucknow where it is in Hyderabad, we present the analysis of
25 per cent, 34 per cent, 24 per cent and data collected by the Department of Urban
* This report is a part of the project on "Optimal Metropolitan Development of Hyderabad",
administered by the Indian Institute of Economics and financed by Hyderabad Urban
Development Authority.
**The author is indebted to Dr. Surya Rao, Director, Urban Community Development
Project of the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad for permission to use the data
collected by their office through a survey in 1972 and to Prof. V. L. S. Prakash Rao for
allowing to dip into his rich experience from time to time to solve research problems
encountered on this project. Thanks are also due to Mrs. Renu Khator for her valuable
assistance in the collection and the analysis of data, to Mr. K. Ramchander for his
research assistance and to Mr. Ashoke Banerjee the cartographer for the map.
1. For 1962 data on slums see Report on the Socio-Economic Survey of Slum-Dwellers in
Hyderabad City, 1964, Bureau of Economics and Statistics, Hyderabad, (mimeo).
2. The 1972 survey of slums was made under the supervision of Dr. Surya Rao, Project
Director, Department of Urban Community Development, Municipal Corporation of
Hyderabad. The Bureau of Economics and Statistics did a survey of slums in Hyderabad
in 1962. See the reference in the footnote above. They are currently (March 77) doing
another survey and we are able to obtain the data on the identification of new slums
since 1972 from this source. However, for all the Surveys, the Bureau of Economics and
Statistics identify and obtain the list of slums through" the Municipal Corporation of
Hyderabad.
Definition and identification of slums stem from the Slum Act of 1956. Essentially the
Act defines slums in terms of sanitation and inability of houses in terms of human
habitation (that is ventilation, structural conditions and so on). Further, the definition
applies to a cluster of houses rather than to single or isolated buildings which may happen
to be in poor condition. Since the definition stems from sanitary conceptions slums are
identified by the Sanitary Inspectors employed by the health authorities of the Municipality.
 298 RATNA NAIDU

Community Development, Municipal Cor- classes remain near the central business
poration of Hyderabad through its survey district, and land values around these areas
in 1972. Dr. Surya Rao, Project Director remain perhaps highest in the metropolis.
for the Department of Urban Community And yet we find that slums have invaded
Development designed the survey and even such areas in Hyderabad at an acce-
supervised the collection of data. We have lerated rate in recent years.
tabulated some portion of the data gene-
rated by that survey. Basing ourselves on The commercial belt stretching from
those tabulations we select the following Charminar through Afzalgunj across the
topics for discussion: (1) locational factors Musi and into and beyond Abids (with
in slum growth; (2) congestion, and (3) bifurcation into Nampally road) have been
developing over many decades. This con-
social and shelter profile of slum dwellers.
gested commercial complex has developed
In the final section we present a critical
in a compact form along arterial roads,
analysis of policies on slums in this city
while just behind and parallel to these are
in the context of the ongoing debate on
residential quarters and vacant land. These
policy alternatives available in the literature.
stretches of vacant land have been slowly
absorbed by the growth of slums. The 1962
I. Locational Factors in the Growth of
survey indicates only two slums around
Slums
this commercial belt, one in Sultan Bazar
and another in Irani Galli near Pathar
The shortest possible distance from the
Gatti area. The 1972 survey registered
place of work is a major determining
more than a dozen slums around this com-
factor in the choice of location of housing.
mercial belt (ten of these being on govern-
In the technologically advanced affluent
ment land). Whereas there were no slums
societies the upper classes violate this
around Abids and Nampally Road, the
principle in their search for pleasant areas
survey taken in 1976 shows that slums
of residence. Earnest W. Burgess in his
have emerged just off these roads.
classic studies of American cities (Burgess,
1925) found that early in the development It is obvious that the reasons for the
of a city, the central business district is growth of slums around these business dis-
the home of the upper classes. But as tricts have to be attributed to a different
these neighbourhoods become increasingly set of factors relative to what is known
infiltrated with industrial operations and usually from studies of cities in the West.
with low-income housing for labourers and It is more likely that the employment gene-
migrants, the more well-to-do search out ration from these areas put tremendous
for their residence more pleasant areas. In load on the housing capacity especially for
the course of time low income groups low income groups in the area, and willy-
become the exclusive inhabitants of the nilly occupation of vacant land and the
neighbourhood around the dominant com- process of slum formation have taken place.
mercial and industrial districts of the city.
Industrial growth was initiated in Hydera-
In the poor countries where infrastruc- bad much later than in other metropolitan
tural facilities for transportation, school- cities in the country. The first industrial
ing, shopping, amusement and so on re- estate was initiated as late as in 1931 on
main low in spite of accelerated growth of a 120 acre site in Azamabad. A decade later
the city peripheries, the middle and upper another 120 acre industrial estate was
 A STUDY OF SLUMS IN HYDERABAD — SECUNDERABAD
developed in Sanathnagar. The Chandular
Baradari Industrial Estate was set up in
the south, more recently. A number of
industrial units came up in Secunderabad
but they are not concentrated in any one
ward. The early starters and especially the
factories in Azamabad area (sugar, tobacco,
and cigarette factories, leather industries,
steel works, spinning mills and so on)
received a boost from the wartime boom.
However, post-war industrial stagnation in
the country affected industrial growth in
the city negatively for many years and the
tempo of industrialization in Hyderabad
picked up momentum only after 1956, after
the Second Five Year Plan had been
launched3.
This chronology of locational growth of in-
dustries is also reflected in the chronology of
the growth of slums. The 1962 survey shows
extensive slum housing in Azamabad (ward
1) and only a very few in Sanathnagar area
(ward 7) and none in Chandulal Baradari
area. The 1972 survey indicates that slums
have mushroomed around all the industrial
concentrations mentioned above. The 1962
survey indicates only one slum area in
Sanathnagar. By the time of 1972 survey
these areas had increased to a dozen.
Besides commercial and industrial com-
plexes, the other major establishments which
spawn slum areas are railway stations,
railway workshops, wholesale markets for
fruits, vegetables etc. Kachiguda Railway
Station has spawned two slums in ward
number 2. Dwellers in eleven other slums
in different wards find employment in
Khairatabad, Nallagutta, Hyderabad and
Begumpet Railway Stations. Similarly slums
give shelter to hundreds of people who
find employment in the vegetable markets
3. For details see "Industrial Structure and Trends" in Metropolitan Hyderabad And Its
Region, A Strategy For Development by S. Manzoor Alam. Asia Publishing House, New
York, 1972, pp. 195-227.
299
of Khairatabad, Chintal Basti, Charminar,
Secunderabad, Begum Bazar and so on.
Other major establishments which have
spawned slums in Hyderabad are notably
hospitals whose low-income employees find
shelter in slums (such as the slum near
the Victoria Hospital) and the Nehru
Zoological Park whose low-income emplo-
yees live in a nearby slum.
With the exception of the slums in
Azamabad, the 1962 survey indicates that
until that date the slums in this city appear-
ed almost exclusively near grave-yards, in
difficult terrain as in hill and rocky areas,
and along water flows and railway tracts,
all places where land was easily available.
Water of course is essential for slum dwel-
lers who lack piped water and latrine
amenities, and so the choice of wafer-front
is in any case easily explained. The rocky
and inferior land at Naubat Pahar and Pahar
Jahannuma were occupied by the slum
dwellers some decades ago. These of course
have now become choice locations. The
grave-yards in Hyderabad are located in
residential areas. The poor of the city found
shelter around these grave-yards, locations
which would be normally rejected by the
more well-to-do. One might say that during
the earlier decades the location of sub-stan-
dard houses, as are the slums, were mainly
the spin-off of the general locational pattern
of housing in the city. Since 1962 as the
tempo of industrialization increased, and
the agglomeration of large numbers of people
near the industrial areas increased, the rate
of growth of slums near such work-centres
also increased. In the same measure, as new
residential areas spread over the city, the
slums inevitably followed first to provide
cheap labour for construction and then to
provide labour for the households, shops
300 RATNA NAIDU
and so on. Thus it is that even Banjara
Hills, a relatively new residential area, has
now its share of slums.
Slum growth since 1972 does not reveal
any specific pattern. The survey taken by
the Bureau of Economics and Statistics last
year reveals the appearance of slums near
water flows: Tallabasti slum (ward 1,
block 3), Nallakunta huts (ward 1, block 8).
Yadgar Hussain Kunta (ward 20, block 1),
Motilal Nehru Slum (ward 6, block 1), near
industries as Viveknagar slum (Ward 1,
block 1) Sineari Kunta slum near D. B. R.
Mills ("ward 1, block 3) Zinda Tilasmath
slum ("ward 2. block 3). near shopping centre
as Zebabaeh slum (ward 12, block 3), Jala
Kowtha slum (ward 20, block 3), and in the
heart of congested residential areas as
Saidabad slum (ward 16, block 1), Feroz
Gandhi Nagar slum (ward 2, block 2), Sukh
Dev nagar slum in Banjara Hills. However,
a comparison of the '62, '72, and '76 surveys
certainly indicate one trend, that is, the
more frequent occupation of choice land by
slum dwellers in the metropolis.
II. Congestion
According to the Urban community
Development Project Survey (1972), the
average slum density in the twin cities is
about 400 persons per acre. The density
figure goes up to as high as 3,571 persons
per acre in Yousufnagar (Tappa Chabutra)
slum where there are 750 persons living in
1,000 sq. yds. This slum is located in Ward
No. 13 and Block No. 5 of Old Hyderabad
near Sabjimandi which is a large wholesale
market. The density in 10 per cent of the
slums in the twin cities is more than 1,000
persons per acre. These are 26 in number, of
which 5 are located south of the Musi river,
17 north of the Musi river and 4 in Secun-
derabad. Table I shows the frequency distri-
bution of slums simply according to
population, and Table II gives the frequency
distribution of slums according to the num-
ber of persons per acre.
The survey also yields figures on conges-
tion of people per house and congestion
of houses per acre of land. (See Tables IV
and V). The average slum-household size
in this city is 5.88. The average house-
hold size seems to have increased over the
decade. According to the 1962 survey, it
was 4.7. There are 13 slums in the twin
cities where the average household size is
10 or more members. In Wadder Basti
Slum of Old Hyderabad (Ward No. 1,
Block No. 2), on an average, more than
20 persons were living in a single house.
The 1972 survey data indicate that there
are more than 300 houses on an acre of
land in the case of 12 slums. Eleven of
these are located in Hyderabad and 1 in
Secunderabad. In Yousufnagar slum (Ward
No. 13, Block No. 5), there are 125 houses
so that the density works out at 595 houses
per acre which means that on an average,
less than 75 sq. feet of land is available
for each house. Nearly 13 per cent of the
slums have more than 150 houses per acre.
In the twin cities, on an average, there are
70 slum houses on an acre of land. Some-
times congested slums are found in areas
having high density figures. Twelve out of
the 22 slums in Hyderabad which have
density of more than 1,000 persons per
acre are located in those areas of the city
where the ward density is more than 76
persons per acre; 6 slums are situated in
areas where the ward densities are more
than 150 persons per acre. Moosanagar
slum (Ward No. 16, Block No. 2), Chan-
danwadi slum (Ward No. 14, Block No. 2)
Suryanagar slum (Ward No. 1, Block
No. 8), Nallakunta slum (Ward No. 2,
Block No. 1) and Bazar Ghat Slum
(Ward No. 11, Block No. 4) are few exam-
ples of congested slums in congested areas.
 A STUDY OF SLUMS IN HYDERABAD — SECUNDERABAD 301

The most congested slums are • in Ward TABLE II

No. 20 where the slum density is 1869 NUMBER OF PERSONS PER ACRE IN SLUMS**
persons per acre, in other words only No. of Persons Frequency %
23.3 sq. feet of land is available for one per Acre
person. These slums are near Panch 0- 50 1 0.37
Mahal Palace, Makka Maszid and Char- 5 1 - 100 16 5.99
minar. Ward density in this area is more 1 0 1 - 150 21 7.87
than 76 persons per acre. The density in 1 5 1 - 200 20 7.49
Block 1 and 5 of this ward is as high as 2 0 1 - 250 21 7.87
150-300 persons per acre. These slums are 2 5 1 - 300 20 7.49
very old and it seems that migrants have 3 0 1 - 350 21 7.87
been attracted there over many decades 3 5 1 - 400 13 4.87
because of the existence of religion, caste 4 0 1 - 450 10 3.75
and /or blood relations. Density figures for 4 5 1 - 500 27 10.11
5 0 1 - 550 8 3.00
Ward No. 6 of Secunderabad (Kavadiguda
5 5 1 - 600 9 3.37
and Bansilalpet) also indicate more than
6 0 1 - 700 18 6.74
76 persons per acre, and predictably the 7 0 1 - 800 15 5.62
slum density figure is as high as 807 per- 8 0 1 - 900 13 4.87
sons per acre. Congestion in the slums in 901-1000 8 3.00
this area is high also because of employ - 1001-2000 16 5.99
2001 & Above 10 3.75
TABLE I Total 267 100.00
POPULATION OF S L U M S *
** The minimum number of persons per acre
was 49 and the maximum was 3571 in the
Population of Frequency % twin cities. Information about the number
Slums of persons per acre was available for only
267 slums out of the total 283 slums which
0 - 100 14 5.09 were identified by the survey.
1 0 1 - 200 31 11.27
2 0 1 - 300 .24 8,72... TABLE III
3 0 1 - 400 19 6.91 NUMBER OF . PERSONS PER H O U S E IN S L U M S *
4 0 1 - 500 20 7.27 No. of Persons per house Frequency
5 0 1 - 600 22 8.00
6 0 1 - 700 8 2.91 1-2 3
7 0 1 - 800 16 5.82 2- 3 4
8 0 1 - 900 10 3.64 3- 4 11
901-1000 15 5.45 4 - 5 69
1001-1500 41 14.91 5-6 82
1501-2000 28 7.27 6-7 52
2001-2500 13 4.73 7-8 24
2501-3000 8 2.91 8-9 10
3001 & Above 14 5.09 9-10 9
10 & Above 13
Total 275 100.00 Total 277

* The Minimum number of population in slums
was 50 and the maximum 9958 in the twin
cities. Information about population was avai-
lable for 275 slums out of the 283 slums
identified by the survey.
The minimum number of persons per house
was 1.5 and the maximum 20.6 in the twin
cities. Information about household size was
available for 277 slums out of the 283 slums
identified by the survey.
302 RATNA NAIDU

TABLE IV able. This seems to be the reason for con-

NUMBER OF SLUM HOUSES PER ACRE**
gestion in Kavadiguda, Nallagutta and
Nampally slums. In Ward No. 1, the job
No. of Houses Frequency % potentiality is very high due to lots of in-
Per Acre dustries and factories, but since land is not
that easily available here, degree of conges-
1 0 - 20 22 8.08
tion in the 5 slums is more than 1,000
2 1 - 30 18 6.62 persons per acre. These slums are Gandhi-
3 1 - 40 28 10.29 nagar, Harinagar, Suryanagar, Ramnagar
and Jamistanpura. Generally, the slums
4 1 - 50 31 11.40 near vegetable markets, shopping centres
5 1 - 60 20 7.35 and business complexes are relatively over-
6 1 - 70 17 6.25 crowded. There are 3 slums near Nampally
railway station which are highly congested.
7 1 - 80 27 9.93 The slums in Charminar area such as
8 1 - 90 15 5.51 Kamala Yadgar Huts and Macca Maszid
huts are badly overcrowded (the former
91-100 13 4.78
had the density of 3500 persons per acre).
101-110 10 3.67
111-120 6 2.21 On the other hand, if jobs are difficult
121-130 10 3.67 to get but land is available, then there is
low congestion in the slums such as those
131-140 8 2.94
near railway tracks and around grave-yards.
141-150 11 4.04 In Hyderabad, grave-yards also happen to
151 & Above 36 13.24 be in residential areas. The Bandika Adda
Slum (Ward No. 22, Block No. 3) and
Chadarghat Darwaza slum (Ward No. 22,
Total 272 100.00
Block No. 1) are along the boundary of
** The minimum number of houses per acre grave yards. These slums have very low
was 10 and the maximum 595 in the twin density, less than 60 persons per acre. In
cities. Information about the number of houses
per acre was available for only 272 slums Secunderabad, there are 3 slums near grave-
out of the total of 283 slums identified by yards in Ward No. 12, Block No. 1 which
the survey. had the density of less than 65 persons
per acre.
ment potential in industries and the near-
by railway station. Slums are also congest-
ed in Ward No. 7 (Sanathnagar, Amirpet) Old slums are generally more congested
and Ward No. 23 (Moghalpura, Lal Dar- as these slums get more and more migrants
waza). The densities are 725 persons per due to religion, caste and blood relation-
acre in Sanathnagar and 750 in Lal Darwaza. ship of the slum dwellers. A survey con-
ducted by the Indian Institute of Econo-
Slums are more congested in areas where mics* shows that 20 per cent of the migrant
there are more jobs but less land is avail- households received some kind of financial,

4. The Indian Institute of Economics, Hyderabad did a sample Survey of Socio-Economic

Conditions of Slum in 1975-76. The project was sponsored by National Buildings Orga-
nization, New Delhi. The report of this survey is available with the Indian Institute of
Economics, Hyderabad,
 A STUDY OF SLUMS IN HYDERABAD — SECUNDERABAD
accommodation, boarding or lodging help
from earlier slum dwellers. Moreover 38
per cent of those who received help from
other slum dwellers in the city, have now
settled down with them in the same slum.
Seven out of 22 most congested slums in
Hyderabad were in existence before 1962.
Three of those, i.e. Kamala Yadgar huts,
Suryanagar and Fathe Sultan Lane now
have density of more than 2,000 persons
per acre. Bholakpur slum in Secunderabad
is also very old and now has the density
of 2760 persons per acre (the slum has
8249 persons living on 3 acres of land).
The increasing congestion in the slums
in the twin cities is due to the population
explosion in the last few decades, the rela-
tive lag in house construction, and related
amenities. In the next section we look at
the socio-economic profile of this popula-
tion and the profile of their shelter
condition.
III. Social and Shelter Profile of Slum
Dwellers in Hyderabad
As is to be expected scheduled castes
and scheduled tribes constitute the majori-
ty (59%) of the slum-dwellers in the city.
34.46 per cent of the slum population are
Muslims.5
Whereas 53 per cent of the Hyderabad
urban population are literates according to
the 1971 census only 23 per cent of the
slum dwelling population are literate. If we
compare this data with the data from the
survey carried out in 1962 by the Bureau
of Economics and Statistics, we find that
the literacy level of the slum population
5. The Muslim slum population in the twin-cities consist of economically depressed com-
munities such as the laddafs (cotton weavers), mehtaras (sweepers), mochis (leather
weavers) julahas (weavers), mewa faroosh (fruit sellers) and so on.
303
has remained the same whereas that of
the city population has increased during the
decade. According to the 1961 census the
level of literacy in Hyderabad was 47 per
cent whereas the 1962 survey indicates
that 23 per cent of the slum dwellers were
literate.
For comparison we may note that the
level of literacy of the slum population in
Hyderabad is lower than in Delhi where it
was 32 per cent (Bharat Sevak Samaj,
1958: 78) and Madras, where it was 34
per cent (Nambiar, 1970: 183) according
to surveys taken in the fifties.
According to the 1972 survey the average
monthly income of the slum dwellers in
the twin cities is Rs. 155/- per month,
nearly 1 per cent of the slum dwellers earn
more than Rs. 400/- per month, 58 per
cent earn upto a maximum of Rs. 150/-
(See Table VI). Whereas according to the
1962 survey (Bureau of Economics and
Statistics, 1964) 20 per cent of the slum
dwellers earned less than Rs. 50/- per
month, the survey a decade later shows
only 4 per cent of the slum dwellers
earned less than Rs. 50/- per month.
The survey in 1972 indicates that only
10 per cent of the houses in slums are of
pucca material (as defined by the census)
and 42 per cent are huts (see Table VII).
The kacha and hut classification of houses
in the M.C.H. survey may be combined to
make the categories comparable with other
cities. Whereas in Chandigarh (D'Souza,
1970: 230), kacha houses are only 52 per
cent of the total slum houses, for Hydera-
bad the figure is 64 per cent and in Madras
(Nambiar, 1970: 191) the figure goes up to
79 per cent.
304 RATNA NAIDU

Certain kinds of amenities such as piped TABLE VI

water, sewerage-latrine facilities and paved INCOME AMONG SLUM DWELLERS
access into houses become essential when
shelter is built in the urban context. In Income per Total Households
rural areas lack of some of these facilities Month (in Rs.) %
does not lead to disproportionate hardship No Income 691 1.42
or insanitary conditions because of the
Below 50 1,059 2.17
generous spatial dimension around the
50—99 12,367 25.37
rural habitat. The villager is also used to
carrying water over long distances as a way 100—149 14,255 29.24
of life. But the urban dweller has neces- 150—199 11,108 22.78
sarily a different pace of work and a diffe- 200 — 249 5,598 11.48
rent value for time. 250 — 299 2,300 4.72
300 — 399 888 1.82
According to this survey, only 62 per
400 — 499 333 0.68
cent of the total slums in the twin cities
had communal water taps (compare this with 500 & Above 154 0.32
Calcutta's 54 per cent (Sen, 1970: 199) and
on an average 500 persons or nearly 100 Total 48,753 100.00
families were sharing a water tap. Thirty-
eight per cent of the slums have no com- TABLE VII
munal water facility at all. The dwellers
DESCRIPTION OF H O U S E S
in such slums have to get water from
Municipal taps located at some distance
Total Households Type of House %
outside the slums if they do not have their
own water connection. Lavatory facilities Katcha 11,103 22.77
at the slum level are in existence only in Pucca 4,652 9.54
32 per cent of the slums. 20,339 41.72
Hut
Mixed Type 12,659 25.97
TABLE V

RELIGIONS AND CASTE AFFILIATION OF SLUM Total 48,753 100.00

DWELLERS, 1972

Half the slums in the twin-cities are

Religion Total Households % without street lights (the figure was 68 per
cent for Madras (Nambiar, 1970: 197) in
Caste Hindus 3,282 6.73 the late fifties. On an average there is one
street-light post for 157 slum-dwellers.
Scheduled Castes
and Tribes 28,662 58.79 The data regarding the condition of roads,
Muslims 16,799 34.46 both within the slum area and approach-
ing the slums were tabulated from the
Others 10 0.02
1972 survey. Only half the slums in the
twin cities have cemented approach roads,
Total 48,753 100.00 23 per cent have kacha and 11.3 per cent
have asphalt approach roads. If the condi-
 A STUDY OF SLUMS IN HYDERABAD — SECUNDERABAD
tion of the roads linking the cluster of
slum houses is good then at least safe and
sanitary access to the house is possible.
The internal roads in the slums in the
twin cities are poor. According to the 1972
survey 2 per cent of the slums had cement-
ed internal roads, 11 per cent had shaha-
badi stone internal roads and 62 per cent
had kacha internal roads.
IV. Policy Issues
The slum can be seen as part of the pro-
blem of overall shortage of housing, but
it can be also seen as an aspect of the
socio-economic process of regional develop-
ment and the city-periphery or city-region
equation.
The process of slum formation will be
accelerated if house construction activity is
depressed, and demand for the existing
stock of houses is high. In such a situation
the more inferior quality houses will dete-
riorate into slums due to the occupation
by low income groups and the lack of
incentive among house-owners to renovate
since tenant turn-over is low.
The more frequent situation, however, is
the occupation of land by migrants who
build shelter of inferior quality which lack
amenities considered standard by the
norms of that city. Since such construction
activity is also unauthorised there is a
double loss of standards because of the in-
frastructure such as roads, drainage, water
and sewerage connections are not provid-
ed by the municipal corporation. The ge-
nesis of slums in this manner has to be
understood in the socio-economic context
of the development of the region.
Apart from (1) the housing shortage
relative to the population in the city, and
(2) the uneven city-region equation which
results in accelerated rates of migration
305
into the city, there are also (3) unusual
crises such as wars, or natural disasters
which create refugees who seek shelter in
the city. Obviously when the genesis of
slums in the city is mainly due to (1) and
(3) above, increased tempo of housing and
welfare programmes would alleviate the
problem of urban blight. If however, the
genesis of slums is mainly due to (2) above,
namely, uneven socio-economic develop-
ments in the region, then the solutions for
the problem of urban blight has to be re-
lated to the strategies which are relevant
for development problems of the region as
a whole.
Charles J. Stokes' basic premise (Stokes,
1962: 187-197) that slums play a func-
tional role in the city and plea that we
need to understand this function in order
to have an explanatory framework for the
growth of slums is useful. The migrant"
comes to the city in search of jobs. Essen-
tially, better opportunities in terms of
earning a livelihood constitute the lure of
the cities. The new migrant into the city
is especially useful for his willingness to
do jobs for which labour is in short supply
or for which he has special skills. The city
having an immensely more complex and
wide-ranging economic framework than its
rural counterpart can absorb people at many
different levels and with differing types of
skills. In the under-developed countries,
moreover, the migrant and the slum dwel-
ler can always find employment since the
level of skill required is low. The slum
dweller of the "escalator" class (Stokes,
1962: 197) if he has the personality, the
ability and the ambition can even move
out of the slum to better residential parts
of the city. The crucial difference which
Stokes makes between slums in under-deve-
loped and developed countries is that tech-
nological complexity and sophistication is
so high in the developed countries that the
306 RATNA NAIDU

slums there contain many more people for
whom there are few channels of mobility
out of the slum condition. He says that
in developed countries —
" . . . . slums persist because they are an
index of a paradox. Rising standards of
living are accompanied by rising stan-
dards of ability and competence. In the
United States poverty has become a term
which describes the conditions of a class
more and more composed of the "in-
capable". These are people who because
of society's standards of entrance into
job opportunities have not been integrat-
ed into full participation in the economic
life of the community. How to provide
for these unfortunates lest their presence
yield a costly dividend of crime and
disease remains the problems of highly
developed society." (Stokes, 1962:194).
The crucial difference, therefore, which
Stokes seems to make between slums of the
type described above and the slums of -the
"'less developed days and countries" (Stokes,
1962:197) is that one is a sign of decay
and the other "an index of growth and of
unabsorbed immigration to cities" (Stokes,
1962:197). Obviously different types of
policy implications emerge from such a
typology.
From the point of view of such a typo-
logy, in a city such as Hyderabad the slum
problem is not predominantly one of deal-
ing with social-psychological variables (i.e.
"the slum mentality"), but it is more a
problem of extending the cities amenities so
as to reach the population as a whole
including the slum-dwellers who have the
capacity to achieve acceptable standards of
living.
The typology provides other useful in-
sights. Among the slum-dwellers of Hydera-
bad unemployment was less than 7 per
cent in 19726. This relatively low level of
unemployment among slum dwellers is
easily explained in terms of the perspective
outlined above. Common sense also would
lead us to expect that unemployment among
the lower middle income educated class is
much more severe than among the able-
bodied of the low income groups in the
metropolis. Apart from the job opportuni-
ties in industries, factories, and so on, the
metropolis can absorb ad infinitum semi-
skilled and skilled labourers in the enor-
mous informal sector. Further, the Indian
metropolis and especially Hyderabad has
continued to allow services which one might
associate more often with smaller towns,
such as rickshaw transportation, coolie
service the push-cart sale of vegetables
fruits, etc.
It is reasonable to associate city size with
resource-base, that is, the larger the city,
the greater its resource base, and therefore
the higher and more complex its techno-
logical base. The larger the city the greater
should be its capacity to provide cheap
fuel-operated transport on well-planned acci-
dent-free roads. But the capacity to develop
these metropolitan functions and delivering
metropolitan services may remain stunted
as along as more primitive modes of techno-
logy (such as in the area of sewerage dis-
posal and drainage) remain and traditional
modes of transport dominate the city roads.
While the point of view that the slums
of the metropolis in countries such as ours
are an index (paradoxically) of health and
growth since the slum-dweller plays a dyna-
mic and useful role (and in our context,

6. The 1972 M.C.H. survey requested information on unemployment. The total number of
unemployed were 10,283. To obtain the percentage figure we used the figure which
specified the total number of the slum population above 19 years. This figure was 1,36,631.
The percentage worked out to 7.53%. Since we could not take into account, the retired
age group, we are suggesting that unemployment is less than 7%.
 A STUDY OF SLUMS IN HYDERABAD — SECUNDERABAD 307

especially in bridging the gap in energy
shortages) is well taken, we do need to in-
troduce into this perspective the most intrac-
table variable in our cities, the potential
for endless explosion of population from
the countryside.
We may assess the State Government's
policies on slums in Hyderabad in the
context of these developmental problems.
The current policies on slums in Hyderabad
include the usual package consisting of
programmes of slum clearance and slum
improvement and the sanction of patta
rights. A novel feature is a scheme called
"sites and services" whereby government
acquires land for distribution to slum dwel-
lers and the banks are expected to finance
construction with' one-fifth contribution by
occupants (each house is expected to cost
Rs. 5000/-). Infrastructure and engineering
services are provided free.
The programmes for slum dwellers in
Hyderabad are channelled mostly through
the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad.
For some years, the MCH has had under
its wing the Urban Community Develop-
ment Project which implemented welfare
programmes for slum dwellers with UNI-
CEF assistance. It has fallen logically to
them therefore to take the lead in imple-
menting the new programmes.
The Urban Community Development
Project having been welfare-based, the new
programmes also are heavily biased in that
direction7. The problem of such a bias,
(well-meaning and good as it is) is that
it takes little account of the need for plan-
ning on the basis of the developmental
imperatives of the city as a whole. The
danger of too much of a micro approach,
an approach which is heavily welfare
7. See the report, "CM to lay stone for new MCH Scheme," The Deccan Chronicle,
Jan. 25, 1977.
8. The civic amenities in the city are now severely strained. The author has written on this
elesewhere. See "Urban Land Ceiling and Development of Social Infrastructure" in
Economic and Political Weekly, Vol. XI, No. 52, Dec. 25, 1976 pp. 1985-1987.
weighted and individual centered is that it
may further encourage unauthorized growth
of low income housing. If unauthorized
occupation of land is legitimized, and if
loans for building on such land become
more easily available, obviously the city
has an added attraction for would be mig-
rants from the surrounding region. The most
difficult problem the policy makers must
face is the endless infiltration and expan-
sion of slum areas. Even if the industries
are only allowed location outside the city
limits, as we have indicated earlier, the
migrant can always draw adequate income
from the enormous and expanding informal
sector. The sample survey carried out by
the Indian Institute of Economics shows
that 38 per cent of the families in the slums
are migrants (Indian Institute of Economics,
1975-76:37). Twenty three per cent of the
population in the city in 1971 were migrants
(census). The rate of migration into the
Hyderabad Urban Agglomeration ranged
between 18 to 44 per cent over the 1961-71
decade (census).
The problem of low-income housing needs
to be tackled in the context of the overall
planning for the city. It may be noted that
the Director of the Urban Community
Development Project is not directly repre-
sented at any level of the Hyderabad Urban
Development Authority working groups;
nor is any representative of HUDA repre-
sented or consulted for the slum house-
building activities of the Urban Community
Development Project. In fact HUDA has
its own slum-housing programmes. Thus
there is the lack of an integrated approach
to the slum problems of the city. The ad
hoc and dispersed approach of the civic
authorities to the slum question will surely
further strain the civic amenities of the city8.
308 RATNA NAIDU
 A STUDY OF SLUMS IN HYDERABAD — SECUNDEUABAD 309

The slum question should be tackled in
the context of the development of the re-
gion as a whole and in the context of the
planning for the urban agglomeration of the
Metropolis in particular. Since HUDA will
logically and increasingly take a federating
role vis-a-vis all other agencies for urban
planning, development, and urban renewal
in the city, one might expect that the major
policies especially those dealing with allo-
cation of land and the award of patta rights
should emanate from that office. As yet
HUDA has not taken on this role of fede-
rating decisions in the context of an over-
all planned perspective on the Metropolis.
One might suggest that while exercises
in that direction take place, the main ap-
proach to the slum problem could have
been environmental cleaning. The slums
could be given paved roads, covered
drainage, water supply, street lighting and
so on, irrespective of whether the slum
happens to be on private land or govern-
ment land and whether the slum dweller
owns the land or is encroaching on it. In
the last two years 13,000 families in 86
slums have been given patta (ownership)
rights in the twin cities. Most of this land
belonged to the government. Perhaps the
question of ownership could have been
indefinitely postponed, especially if the slum
happens to be on choice government land
and if such slum dwellers can at some
later stage be conveniently relocated else-
where. Thus, instead of the land passing
into private inheritance, the government
would have the option of retaining the land
for the welfare of the community as a whole.
As it is now, slums which are an encroach-
ment on private land are not benefited by
the programmes of the government9. As is
obvious from Table VIII most of the slums
are on private land.
One other suggestion comes to mind from
our reading of survey data on slums collec-
ted by the Indian Institute of Economics. The
survey shows that 33 per cent of the earn-
ing members of the slum households had
employment with large institutions such the
zoo, hospitals, big industries, government
concerns and so on10. Perhaps at some stage
of our development, such large institutions
could be persuaded to make arrangements
for housing for their low-income employees.
Policy directives could be initiated in that
direction; special concessions and incentives
could be given to employers to solve the
housing problem. With our limited stock of
houses, it is obvious that each investment
which generates employment also generates
demand for dwellings. Logically therefore
sanction for such investments should be tied
to the investors' capacity for providing
housing.

9. This is because the owner of the land has to agree to these improvements and very
often of course the owner does not give permission.
10. The author did a secondary analysis of the data collected by the survey of the Indian
Institute of Economics and this information will not be available in the report cited.
310 RATNA NAIDU

TABLE VIII

SLUM POPULATION & CLASSIFICATION OF LAND* (1972)

HYDERABAD

* In parenthesis figures are in percentages.

 A STUDY OF SLUMS IN HYDERABAD — SECUNDERABAD 311

REFERENCES

Abrams C. Man's Struggle For Shelter In Urbanizing World, Cambridge,

1964 Mass, M.I.T. Press.
Advant, P. V. "Slums in Poona City", Civic Affairs.
1975
Arya, O. P. "Slum Clearance and Improvement in Kanpur", Civic Affairs,
1975 February 1974 "Slum: A Way of Life", Civic Affairs, Jan. 1975.
Awchat, Anil "Hamals of P o o n a : Beasts of Burden", Economic & Political
1976 Weekly, June 12.
Bharat Sevak Samaj Slums of Old Delhi, Delhi: Atma Ram and Sons, p. 78.
1958
Bhosale, Daulat "Maharashtra Slum Improvement Board and the Slums of
1971 December Bombay", Bombay Civic Journal.
Bombay's Shanty "Come the Fire", Economic & Political Weekly.
Towns
1974, August
Bureau of Economics Report on the Socio-Economic Survey of Slum-Dwellers in
and Statistics Hyderabad City (mimeo), Hyderabad.
1964
Burgess Earnest W. "The Growth of the City" in Robert F. Park and W. Budges,
1925 The city, Chicago: University of Chicago.
Chaudhari, Kalyan "Calcutta: Life in the Slums", Economic & Political Weekly,
1976 Sept. 4.
Chaudhari, Kalyan "Calcutta: The Human Fallout", Economic & Political Weekly,
1976 Feb. 21.
Claude, Gruen "Urban Renewal's Role in the Genesis of Tomorrow's Slum",
1963, August Land Economics, Vol. 39.
Clinard M. B. Slums and Community Development, Glencoe, Illinois, The
1966 Free Press.
Desai, A. R. and A Profile of An Indian Slum, Bombay, University of Bombay.
Pillai D.
1972
Desai, A. R. and Slums And Urbanization, Bombay, Popular Prakashan.
Pillai D.
1970
D'Souza Victor S. "Slums in a Planned City: Chandigarh", in A. R. Desai and
1970 S. D. Pillai (ed.) Slums and Urbanization, Bombay Popular
Prakashan, p. 230.
Gadgil, D. R. "Housing and Slums in Poona", Economic Weekly, Vol. II;
1959 N o . 1..
Goudar, K. M. "Slums for Social Explosion", Social Welfare.
1973, January
Inder Mohan "Slums of Delhi", Design.
1973
The Indian Institute of Sample Survey of Socio-Economic Conditions of Slums in 1975-
Economics 76, Hyderabad.
1975
Jagmohan "Our Cancerous Slums" Link, Jan. 26.
1975
Kizhakedan, John "Socio-Economic Study of a Slum in Bangalore", Social Welfare.
1975, June
Kulkarni, V. B. "Slums and Social Conscience", Civic Affairs.
1974, November
312 RATNA NAIDU

Mankekar, Kamla "Jhopadpatties in a Metropolis", Social Change.

1972, December
Manzoor Alam, S. Metropolitan Hyderabad And Its Region: A Strategy for Deve-
1972 lopment, Bombay: Asia Publishing House.
Nambiar, P. K. "Slums of Madras City", Census of India: Vol. IX, Govern-
1961 ment Press.
Nambiar, P. K. "Slums of Madras City", in A. R. Desai and S. D, Pillai (ed.),
1970 Slums and Urbanisation, Bombay: Popular Prakashan, p. 183,
191, 197.
Nomad "Delhi Slum", Democratic World.
1974, August
Pandya, D. G. "Challenge of Slums in Urban Areas: A Town Planner's View",
1973, April Quarterly Journal of Local Self Government Institute.
Patranbis, T. R. "What future for Slum Dwellers"? Civic Affairs.
1975, May
Pawar, N. T. "Poona's Zopad Pattis: Serious Problem", Civic Affairs.
1975, May
Pradhan, J. D. "Maintenance of Amenities in Bombay's Slums", Civic Affairs.
1974, Dec.
Prakash Rao, V.L.S. Bangalore And Emerging Metropolis, Vols. I and II, Bangalore
1976 Institute for Social and Economic Change (Mimeo. forthcoming
publication of Oxford University Press.).
Pratibha V. G. : "Slum Improvement in Greater Bombay", The Indian Journal
1975, April of Social Work.
Progress of Slum : "Improvement, Clearance in Bombay", Civic Affairs. ...
1974, January
Ramchandran, P. : Pavement Dwellers in Bombay City, Bombay: Tata Institute of
1972 Social Sciences.
Rais, Asutosh : "Enveloping Slum", Democratic World.
1975, May
Sangamneheri, Wajid : "Root Cause of Slums and Their Growth in India", Design.
1973. April
Sen, S. N. : The City of Calcutta: A Socio-Economic Survey, Calcutta.
1960
Sen, S. N. : "Slums and Bustees in Calcutta" in A. R. Desai and S. D.
1970 Pillai, (ed.) Slums and Urbanisation, Bombay: Popular Pra-
kashan, p. 199.
Sharma, K.S.R.N. : "Environmental Improvement Scheme", Nagarlok, Jan., March.
1974
Siddiqui, M.K.A. : "Life in the Slums of Calcutta", Economic & Political Weekly,
1969, December Vol. 4.
Stokes, C. J. : "A Theory of Slums", Land Economics, Vol. XXXVIII, No. 3,
1962 pp. 187-197, 194.
Town and Country : Towards A. Human Settlement Policy in India — 2001, New
Planning Organisation Delhi, p. 14.
Ministry of Works
and Housing, Govt.
of India
1975
United Nations, : Improvement of Slums and Uncontrolled Settlement, Publication
Department of of the United Nations.
Economic and
Social Affairs
1971

The Indian Journal of Social Work, Vol. XXXIX, No. 3, (October 1978)