HUMAN SETTLEMENTS & TOWN PLANNING

DOCUMENTATION OF SLUM

NEZA-CHALCO-ITZA,MEXICO - INTERNATIONAL SLUM

BHALSWA SLUM - NATIONAL SLUM

INDIRAMMA NAGAR - REGIONAL SLUM

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 Neza-Chalco-Itza, Mexico City, Mexico

LOCATION: Neza-Chalco-Itza, Mexico City, Mexico.

AREA: 63.74 km2 (24.61 sq mi)

POPULATION: 17423 sq km. The largest Slum is in Mexico.

1,110,565 as per 2010 Census population

CRIME RATE: The city has one of the highest crime rates in the State of Mexico.

REASON FOR SLUM: Growing population with change in municipalities.

ABOUT THE CITY: Drainage of the interconnected lakes of the Valley of Mexico began in the early colonial period. The first
major drainage project was begun in 1590, with the aim of eliminating the chronic flooding that plagued Mexico City. By the time
of the Mexican War of Independence, flooding was still a problem in the Mexico City area
DRINKING WATER FACILITIES:

The Lake Texcoco area was declared federal property in 1912, and was drained out by 1930 as flooding was always a problem
in mexico. In 1945 the Xochiaca dam and the Tequixquiac tunnel were built for the diversion of potable water which created the
first formal neighborhoods of Juárez Pantitlán, México and El Sol. The population kept increasing as the neighbourhoods were
spreading leading to scarcity of resources. In by 1959, a group representing the now-33 neighborhoods of the area protested
the lack of services, which still included sufficient potable water.
 BHALSWA SLUM

LOCATION: Bhalswa jahangirpur, Delhi, India

POPULATION: 151,427. Males constituted 55% of the population and females 45%.

LITERACY : The average literacy rate was 59%, lower than the national average of 59.5%; with 62% of the males
and 38% of the females literate.

WATER CONNECTION :The slum does not have piped drinking water. In summers the ground water gets so polluted
because of the landfill and children suffer skin rashes and their eyes itch.

DRINKING WATER: Sources of water consist of surface and groundwater.

SANITATION:
● Common toilets for a group off houses
● Sanitary latrine in maximum houses
● One toilets for 10 households
DRAINAGE:
● Piped drainage system
● Both covered and open drains.

HOUSING STRUCTURES: Low rise buildings, cramped, confined.

REASON FOR SLUM:

The people of bhalswa were forcefully evacuated from various parts of Delhi during a beautification drive in the years
2000-02. they were promised modern amenities. But it was this slushy wasteland, bordering on this landfill that they
were finally dropped into in truckloads.

PROBLEMS:
• Malnutrition • Growth declination of children
• Sanitation • Health issues like malaria, jaundice, etc
• Lack of space • Defecation
• Resettlement problems • landfill
 Indiramma Nagar
Location : Rasoolpura , Telangana
Population : 2,00,000

Location and characteristics:

The ownership of the land on which these slums exist is also disputed. Some part of the land belongs to the Airport Authorities,
which took this land on lease from the Cantonment. Unclear tenure rights remain the reason why the slums have only a limited
supply of basic utilities for the slum dwellers.

State of Public Services in Rasoolpura :

This section will document the provision of basic public services in the slum and the cost associated with it in its provision. It will
also try to analyze the price paid by people for the services and compare it with price paid by the middle class for the same public
service. It will also be good to assess the quality of services that people in the slums get for the price that they pay and also
compile the qualitative and quantitative premium paid by the poor for public services.

Water
Now you can get two pots of water for a rupee, but the fights and queues remain. Water supply according to most of the
respondents is the biggest problems that the residents of Rasoolpura face and Indiramma Nagar in particular bears the brunt. The
land is illegally occupied and hence the government does not provide any direct water supply like taps for each house.
• Different provisions of water exist in Indiramma nagar. They are
1. Water pipelines
2. Bore wells
3. Tankers
4. Private Sources
• The bore wells are thus the source of most of the water for non-drinking purposes. These bores are the lifelines for most
people as direct water supply is not available to everyone. Not all lanes have bores though and those who do complain that they
have gone dry.
• Drinking water is the major problem here as there are no taps and throughout the slums people are provided drinking water by
tankers from the state authority (HMWSSB) which are supposed to be free of charge. The amount of water too for each family is
extremely less. Each family is provided with two–three pots of water and the frequency of water is alternate days. Sometimes in
the summers water can come once in three days.

Education
• A government school with no fee, provision for free mid-day meals, free books and easily available, hassle free admission
situated in close proximity. On the other hand a private school with a monthly fee of Rs 150-200, a donation of Rs 20008 to get
a child admitted, Rs 500 at least to be paid for books, no meals and no playground facilities.
• The whole of Indiramma Nagar and beyond which constitutes a major part of the Rasoolpura slums has only one Government
High School that has classes up to the tenth standard. There are about 5-6(governmental) various other provisions for primary
schooling for these slum dwellers like Bal Jyothi schools, anganwadis etc. For e.g. there is a school run by the National
Domestic Workers Movement which consists of two small classrooms where the children sit on floors and study. The number of
students in these places is thus consequently small.

Finance :
• It is in finance that there is the clearest incidence of poverty premium in Rasoolpura. These slum dwellers are too poor and
ignorant to have access to banks. Thus moneylenders who abound in the area meet most of their finance needs. The
moneylenders exist precisely because the poor do not have access to banks and bank loans. These banks are not willing to
give small high risk loans that do not give them a great return.
 Housing and Sanitation :
•It is without doubt the absence of security and legitimacy of tenure that is central to dealing with the problem of slums. The
municipal authorities are not that worried about provision of services as the settlements are still slums and all the steps taken to
provide the basic services are more on humanitarian grounds and to curry favour to the huge constituency that the politicians
have cultivated.

• Almost the whole of Indiramma Nagar except for a small tract of land (under Patta System) is illegal and was captured by the
migrant population. Vested political interests though ensured that these illegal houses were provided with electricity through
meters and thus now are divided into lanes and sub – lanes with proper addresses with each house having a distinct house
number.

Drainage system :
• The houses along the main roads in Indiramma Nagar still have a drainage system in that at least it drains into the nala. The
real problem lies with sub lanes in the interior, where the houses are all kutcha and the really poor live. They have acute
problems with the drainage system wherever there is one. The drainage lines are just pipes dug in and can be seen protruding
out on the road.

Hygiene and sanitation :

• Hygiene and sanitation are way below standard here. The slum also means that the authorities are not bound to regularly
collect the garbage in the area. The pattern of garbage collection is irregular, sometimes once in a week.
• There is one small settlement in Indiramma Nagar, which has a patta system, but there are no private bathrooms in the area.
Thus only here do the residents use the public bathrooms. The condition of these bathrooms is pathetic .
Conclusion:

● Slums and urban poverty are not problems unique to India alone. They exist in many other parts of the world
and are likely to increase at a rapid rate in future as urbanization is increasing at a very fast pace not only in
India but all over the world.

● Migration from rural to urban areas is increasing at a very fast pace, especially, now that agriculture in India is
no longer a lucrative proposition. This will lead to urbanization of poverty and the policy makers in India are
coming out with solutions but the implementation of the same needs a lot to be desired.

● Slums are seen as vote banks for the political parties and, due to their vested interests, are allowed to thrive
with impunity. According to a study conducted at National Institute of Urban Affairs , “there is evidence of
countries successfully reducing slum growth in the last 15 years by making considerable investments in
improving slums. Some low or middle- income countries, including Brazil, Colombia, Philippines, Indonesia,
South Africa and Sri Lanka, have managed to prevent slum formation by anticipating and planning for growing
urban populations-by expanding economic and employment opportunities for the urban poor, by investing in
low-cost, affordable housing for the most vulnerable groups and by instituting pro-poor reforms and policies
that have had a positive impact on low-income people’s access to services. Thus, it is possible to prevent slum
formation with the right policies and practices.”