Chapter 4 Human Settlements

A human settlement is fundamentally a collection of dwellings or structures where people live, ranging in scale from small groups of houses to vast metropolitan areas. Settlements involve the arrangement of residences and associated structures, along with the utilization of a surrounding area or territory as their economic support base.

Settlements exhibit significant variations in both size and type. As settlements grow, their economic nature, social structure, ecology, and technology tend to change.

At one end of the spectrum are small, widely spaced settlements, typically called villages, where the primary economic activities are land-based (like agriculture). At the other end are fewer but larger settlements, known as urban settlements, specializing in secondary and tertiary economic activities (manufacturing and services).

The key differences between rural and urban settlements include:

• Economic Base: Rural settlements primarily rely on primary economic activities tied to the land for their livelihood. Urban settlements, in contrast, depend on processing raw materials, manufacturing finished goods, and providing a wide array of services.
• Functional Relationship: Cities serve as centres of economic activity and hubs providing goods and services not only to their own residents but also to the surrounding rural areas (hinterland). In return, cities receive food and raw materials from rural areas. This exchange is facilitated by transport and communication networks.
• Social Characteristics: Rural and urban settlements differ in social relationships, attitudes, and lifestyle. Rural populations tend to be less mobile, leading to close-knit and intimate social ties. Urban areas are characterized by a more complex, fast-paced lifestyle and often more formal social interactions.

Types Of Rural Settlement

In India, rural settlements are classified into different types based on the layout and spacing of houses, particularly the extent of the built-up area and the distance between homes.

Several factors influence the specific type of rural settlement found in different regions of India:

• Physical Features: Includes the nature of the terrain (plains, hills), altitude, climate conditions, and the availability of water.
• Cultural and Ethnic Factors: Relates to the social structure, caste system, and religious practices, which can influence grouping and segregation.
• Security Factors: Considerations for defense against threats like theft and robberies.

Broadly, rural settlements in India are categorized into four types:

• Clustered (Agglomerated or Nucleated)
• Semi-clustered (Fragmented)
• Hamleted
• Dispersed (Isolated)

Clustered Settlements

These settlements consist of a compact, closely built-up area of houses. The residential zone is clearly distinct from the surrounding agricultural fields, barns, and pastures.

The arrangement of houses and streets often forms recognizable patterns or geometric shapes, such as rectangular, radial, or linear layouts.

Clustered settlements are commonly found in fertile alluvial plains (like the Northern Plains of India) and some northeastern states.

Reasons for forming compact villages include security or defense needs (e.g., in the Bundelkhand region of central India and Nagaland). In water-scarce areas like Rajasthan, compact settlements facilitate the maximum utilization of limited water resources.

Semi-Clustered Settlements

These settlements exhibit a tendency towards clustering but are somewhat fragmented or scattered. They might arise from the partial clustering of a dispersed settlement pattern or, more often, from the division or segregation of a larger compact village.

In this pattern, certain sections of the village population may choose or be compelled to live slightly apart from the main residential cluster. Typically, the dominant or land-owning community occupies the central part of the main village, while socially or economically less powerful groups or those performing specific manual tasks may settle on the periphery.

Semi-clustered settlements are commonly observed in the Gujarat plain and certain areas of Rajasthan.

Hamleted Settlements

In this type, a single large village is broken down into several smaller, physically separated units. These units bear a common name referring to the larger village but are locally known by various terms such as panna, para, palli, nagla, or dhani in different regions of India.

The segmentation of the original village is often driven by social and ethnic factors, where distinct social groups may form separate hamlets.

Hamleted settlements are frequently found in the middle and lower Ganga plain, Chhattisgarh, and the lower valleys of the Himalayas.

Dispersed Settlements

Also known as isolated settlements, this pattern is characterized by individual isolated huts or very small clusters of a few huts. These are typically found in remote or challenging environments like dense jungles, on small hills with scattered farms or pastures, or on slopes.

Extreme dispersion is often a consequence of highly fragmented terrain or a resource base that allows for only scattered habitation.

Many areas in Meghalaya, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Kerala exhibit this type of settlement pattern.

Urban Settlements

In contrast to rural settlements, urban settlements are generally characterized by their compactness and larger size.

The population in urban areas is primarily engaged in non-agricultural economic activities, including a variety of manufacturing, processing, and service-based functions.

Urban centres have functional linkages with the rural areas that surround them (their hinterland). They provide manufactured goods and various services to rural populations, while receiving food grains and raw materials from the countryside.

This exchange connects cities directly and indirectly with villages, as well as establishing connections between different urban centres through trade and transport networks.

Evolution Of Towns In India

Urban centres have existed in India since prehistoric times, with evidence of planned towns like Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro from the Indus Valley Civilisation.

Urban development continued through various periods, experiencing fluctuations, until the arrival of Europeans in the 18th century.

Based on the period of their development, Indian towns can be broadly classified into three historical types:

• Ancient towns
• Medieval towns
• Modern towns

Ancient Towns

India has numerous towns with a history spanning over 2,000 years. Many of these developed around sites of religious or cultural significance.

Examples include Varanasi (one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world), Prayag (Allahabad), Pataliputra (Patna), and Madurai.

Medieval Towns

Around 100 of the towns currently existing in India trace their origins back to the medieval period. Most of these were established as administrative or military headquarters of various kingdoms and principalities.

Often, they were built as fort towns, sometimes utilizing the ruins of older ancient towns as their base.

Important examples include Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Agra, and Nagpur.

Modern Towns

Modern towns in India were largely developed by the British and other European powers during the colonial era.

Initially, Europeans established trading posts on coastal locations, which grew into trading ports like Surat, Daman, Goa, and Pondicherry.

The British later consolidated their power and developed three main centres – Mumbai (Bombay), Chennai (Madras), and Kolkata (Calcutta) – constructing them with infrastructure and layouts influenced by British architectural styles and planning principles.

As their control expanded, they established new administrative centres, developed hill stations (like Shimla, Mussoorie) as summer resorts, and added civil, administrative, and military areas to existing towns.

Towns based on modern industries also began to emerge after 1850, such as Jamshedpur, which developed around the Tata Steel plant.

Following India's Independence in 1947, the government initiated the development of many new towns to serve specific purposes:

• Administrative headquarters for states (e.g., Chandigarh, Bhubaneswar, Gandhinagar, Dispur).
• Major industrial centres (e.g., Durgapur, Bhilai, Sindri, Barauni).

Some older towns near metropolitan cities developed as satellite towns, providing residential areas and services to reduce pressure on the main city (e.g., Ghaziabad, Rohtak, Gurugram around Delhi).

Increased investment in rural areas has also led to the growth of numerous medium and small towns across the country.

Urbanisation In India

Urbanization refers to the increasing proportion of a country's total population that lives in urban areas. It is measured as the percentage of the urban population relative to the total population.

The level of urbanization in India was 31.16% according to the 2011 Census. This is considered relatively low compared to more developed nations.

Despite the lower percentage, India's total urban population has experienced a significant increase, growing eleven-fold during the 20th century.

This growth is attributed to the expansion of existing urban centres and the emergence of new towns.

However, the rate of growth in urbanization itself has slowed down over the last two decades, even as the absolute urban population continues to increase.

Classification Of Towns On The Basis Of Population Size

The Census of India classifies urban centres into six categories based on their population size.

An urban centre with a population of 100,000 or more is termed a City or a Class I town.

Cities with a population between one million (10 lakh) and five million are called Metropolitan Cities.

Cities with a population exceeding five million are referred to as Mega Cities.

Many metropolitan and mega cities in India are classified as Urban Agglomerations (UAs).

An Urban Agglomeration is a continuous urban spread that may comprise one of these combinations:

• A town and its adjacent urban outgrowths (areas that have developed urban characteristics around the town).
• Two or more neighboring towns that have merged, with or without their own outgrowths.
• A city and one or more adjacent towns, along with their outgrowths, forming a continuous urban area.

Over 60% of India's urban population lives in Class I towns (cities). As per 2011 data, out of 468 cities, 53 were metropolitan UAs/cities, and 6 of these were mega cities (population over 5 million).

Mega cities alone housed more than one-fifth (21%) of the total urban population.

Greater Mumbai UA was the largest agglomeration with 18.4 million people in 2011. Other mega cities included Delhi UA, Kolkata UA, Chennai UA, Bengaluru UA, and Hyderabad UA.

Functional Classification Of Towns

Beyond their basic role as population centres, many towns and cities develop specialized functions, becoming known for specific activities, products, or services. While most towns perform multiple functions, they can be broadly classified based on their most dominant or specialized roles:

Administrative Towns And Cities

These urban centres serve as the headquarters for government administration at various levels (national or state). Examples include national capitals like New Delhi and state capitals such as Chandigarh, Bhopal, Shillong, Guwahati, Imphal, Srinagar, Gandhinagar, Jaipur, and Chennai.

Industrial Towns

In these cities, industries are the primary economic driver and reason for their growth. Examples include Mumbai, Salem, Coimbatore, Modinagar, Jamshedpur, Hugli, and Bhilai.

Transport Cities

These towns are crucial hubs for transportation activities. They may be major sea ports focused on export and import (e.g., Kandla, Kochchi, Kozhikode, Vishakhapatnam) or key junctions for inland transport routes (e.g., Agra, Dhulia, Mughalsarai, Itarsi, Katni).

Commercial Towns

These urban centres specialize in trade and commerce, serving as important markets and business hubs. Examples include Kolkata, Saharanpur, and Satna.

Mining Towns

These towns have developed specifically in areas rich in mineral deposits, with their economies centred around mining and quarrying activities. Examples include Raniganj, Jharia, Digboi, Ankaleshwar, and Singrauli.

Garrisson Cantonment Towns

These towns originated as military bases or cantonments, serving as administrative and residential centres for army personnel. Examples include Ambala, Jalandhar, Mhow, Babina, and Udhampur.

Educational Towns

Initially established or growing around significant educational institutions, these towns have become major centres for education, sometimes referred to as campus towns. Examples include Roorki, Varanasi, Aligarh, Pilani, and Allahabad.

Religious And Cultural Towns

These towns gained prominence due to their religious or cultural significance, often being pilgrimage sites or historical centres. Examples include Varanasi, Mathura, Amritsar, Madurai, Puri, Ajmer, Pushkar, Tirupati, Kurukshetra, Haridwar, and Ujjain.

Tourist Towns

These urban centres primarily function as destinations for tourism, attracting visitors due to scenic beauty, climate, or specific attractions. Examples include Nainital, Mussoorie, Shimla, Pachmarhi, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Udagamandalam (Ooty), and Mount Abu.

It's important to note that the functions of cities are dynamic and change over time. As specialized cities grow into larger metropolitan areas, they tend to become multifunctional, incorporating a mix of industry, business, administration, transport, and other activities. These functions become so interconnected that it becomes difficult to classify such large cities based on a single dominant function.

Smart Cities Mission:

The Indian government's Smart Cities Mission aims to develop cities that provide essential infrastructure, ensure a clean and sustainable environment, and enhance the quality of life for residents. A key aspect is applying smart technologies and solutions to improve infrastructure and services, making cities more resilient (e.g., to disasters), efficient in resource use, and providing more affordable services. The focus is on sustainable and inclusive development in specific areas within cities, creating models that can be replicated elsewhere.

Exercises

This section contains exercises designed to test students' understanding of the concepts discussed in the chapter on human settlements in India, including rural settlement types, urban definitions, evolution of towns, and functional classification of urban centres.

Choose The Right Answers Of The Following From The Given Options

Multiple-choice questions covering key facts, definitions, and examples from the chapter.

Answer The Following Questions In About 30 Words.

Short answer questions requiring brief definitions and explanations of specific terms or concepts such as garrisson towns, urban agglomerations, factors for village location in deserts, and metropolitan cities.

Answer The Following Questions In About 150 Words.

Longer answer questions prompting detailed discussions on the characteristics and influencing factors of different rural settlement types and the reasons behind cities becoming multifunctional.