Chapter 4:
INDIA: Bombay and Calcutta

I. Introduction

India is one of the world's oldest civilizations with a rich cultural heritage. It is one of the world's largest countries, second only to China. Like China, it is now classified as a poor and "developing" country. Like all developing countries, it is experiencing rapid population growth and a major social transformation from rural, agrarian to urban, industrial society. Its size and its centrality in the world's current "development process" indicate that what happens in India will constitute a major part of Asia's modern economic development, and will also have a marked effect on the entire world. Thus it is appropriate that any study of Asia's urban development include the example of India.

India's population is now estimated at 844 million people (1991 Census Provisional), and is growing at the rate of 2.1 percent per annum, which is comparable to other developing countries around the world. It covers an area of 3.29 million square kilometers, extending from the snow covered Himalayan heights to tropical rain forests of the South. The average density of population is 267 persons per square kilometers which varied considerably from state to state.

Like most Asian countries, India has been urbanizing, but more slowly than the countries of Mrica or Latin America. The percentages of urban population in the 1951, 1961, 1971 and 1981 were 7.3, 17.9, 19.9 and 23.3 respectively. Though the percentage wise increase in urban population may have been slow, the number of people going to urban areas is large due to large population base of India. One major characteristic of the urban scene is that some large urban agglomerations have been increasing much faster than middle-sized or small-sized cities and towns. Therefore, the pattern of urbanization in India is putting a heavy burden on the infrastructure of a few large metropolitan areas.

Today Calcutta and Bombay are India's two largest cities, and also its largest ports. The coincidence of size and port function is, however, somewhat unusual for India. Of its twelve largest cities, allover one million population, only one other, Madras, is a port city. India's history and geography have made port cities somewhat less important than its inland cities. As in other Asian countries, the coming of western industrial imperialism greatly increased the importance of the port cities. Indeed, Bombay and Calcutta were founded as port cities by the British. Although Bombay was established as major colonial outpost in the mid 17th century and Calcutta in the early 18th century, they were officially opened as port cities in 1875 and 1893 respectively.

Table 1 provides a general picture of these two great port cities in the context of their states, India, Asia and the world.

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Table 1. Size and Some Other Characteristics of Population of the World, India, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Bombay and Calcutta

Geographic Area	Land Size (Sq. kms)	Pop Size (Millions)	Percent Urban	Growth Rate	IMR	Birth Rate	Death Rate
Develop Coun.		1206.6	73.0	0.5	15	15.0	10.0
Develop Coun.		4085.6	37.0	2.1	78	31.0	10.0
World (Million)	135.79**	5292.2	45.0	1.7	70	27.0	10.0
Asia	-	3110.7	34.0	1.9	72	28.0	9.0
India (Million)	3.29**	843.9**	27.0	2.1**	99	32.0	11.0
Maharashtra (Thousand)	308#	78.7**	35.0	2.5**	68*	29.2	8.8*
West Bengal (Thousand)	89#	67.9	26.5	2.4**	70*	28.1*	8.8*
Bombay Urban Agglomeration	603#	12.6**	100	3.8**	-	-	-
Calcutta Urban Agglomeration	852#	10.9**	100	2.4**	-	-	-

* Sample registration scheme (1988) Registrar General ofIndia, New Delhi.
** 1991 Census, Provisional Population Totals, Paper I of 1991, Registrar General ofIndia, New Delhi.
# 1981 Census, Registrar General of India, New Delhi. Note: Source for other statistics, United Nations, World Population Chart 1990.

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II. Historical Developments

A. The State Environments

1. Maharashtra

Maharashtra, with 78 million population, ranks third in size after Uttar Pradesh and Bihar on the demographic map of India (1991). The decennial growth of population in the richest and most developed state of the country in 1991 was 24.3 percent, slightly higher than the all India decimal growth rate of 23.50 percent. The state has been divided into 30 districts, 303 tehsils (Taluka or Sub-district), 307 towns and 41833 villages, of which 2479 are uninhabited. It is the home of the largest number of cinema theatres and head offices of imptS'rtant public and private organizations including banks and financial corporations. The state has a large number of educational and research organizations of national and international repute.

Maharashtra is among India's most prosperous and most developed states. It ranks first in respect to industrial value added, bank deposits per capita and roads per 1000 square kilometers: second in per capita domestic electricity consumption, motor vehicles and income; and high on other socioeconomic indicators. The performance of Maharashtra strongly reflects the weight of Bombay in its development. If Bombay is subtracted from Maharashtra, the performance of the state falls sharply to the average for India as a whole. Although Bombay is clearly part of Maharashtra in political and spatial terms, its economy clearly dominates that of the state.

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2. West Bengal

West Bengal with a population of 68 million in 1991, is spread over an area of 89 thousand square kilometers., is ranked as the fourth state of the country with 16 districts, 291 towns and 41,000 villages. The decennial growth rate of population in 1991 was 2.4 percent which was slightly lower than that of Maharashtra. The state has a rich heritage of education and culture.

The Calcutta Metropolitan District (CMD) is composed of some parts of five districts. The CMD constitutes about 82 percent of the state's total industrial units and generates 88 percent of total employment. As a result, the CMD, with less than one fifth of West Bengal's total population, generates one quarter of its income.

West Bengal is currently one of the most depressed states in India, mainly because of its industrial stagnation, low productivity in the agricultural sector and the decline of Calcutta as a major port. Real per capita income has been declining by about 0.3 percent per annum in recent years, in contrast with the situation in Maharashtra where it has been rising by about one percent per annum. However, per capita income levels in West Bengal are still higher than in India as a whole, mainly because of the higher income levels of the Calcutta metropolis. As a result of its industrial stagnation, however, West Bengal has been urbanizing very slowly in recent decades. Nonetheless, it still remains the sixth most urbanized state in India. It has now the highest density of urban population of any state in India - nearly twice that of Maharashtra.

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B. The Cities

1. Bombay

The city of Bombay, the capital of the Maharashtra state and the principal sea and airport of Western India, is one of a group of islands lying off the coast of the northern Konkan. Since it is located on a peninsula with water on three sides, the geographical boundaries of Bombay are un expandable. Though there has been much controversy as to the source from which the island derived its name, the opinions seem to converge on the view that the Goddess Mumba Ai is likely to be the source of the Marathi name of Bombay, whereas 'Bombay' was derived from the Portuguese name BOMBAIM, meaning a good bay.

Captain Cooke took charge of the island of Bombay in 1664 from the Portuguese and decided to build a town for the trading class. However, because of some initial problems of land dispute, the building work was delayed till 1674 when the initiative,of Governor Aungiers sorted out the land disputes. The early growth reflected the policy of the then government for attracting colonies oftraders from the rest of the country. Several other concessions in the form ofland tenure, a veiled policy of taxation, and the granting of free passage encouraged settlement in Bombay.

Although greater Bombay extends over an area of about 603 square kilometers, much of its population is concentrated in the south, within the old island city, which is a long and narrow strip. Two north/south railway lines divide the Bombay city by functions, the west is a residential area and the east is occupied by port related activities, warehouses, and wholesale trade. The fort area in the south is the center for big business, banking, finance, and government administration. Development is highly concentrated in the island city, which accounts for only 15.5 percent of the total municipal area but 51 percent of the population. Beyond the downtown and central areas of Bombay city lie the suburbs and extended suburbs, which have been growing much faster than Bombay city. Sub-urbanization is not a new phenomenon. The suburbs have expanded faster than the city in each decade since 1911, while the extended suburbs have grown faster than the Bombay since 1951.

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Although Bombay traces its origin the 17th century, it grew very little in its first decades. Even by the late eighteenth century, it was primarily a marine supply point, which, unlike Calcutta and Madras, had few links to the hinterland. Some industries were in existence for serving the handicraft needs like potteries, manufacturing of copper and brass vessels, gold smiths and hand weaving of both silk and cotton. During the early nineteenth century, Bombay's growth resulted from military and economic factors including the development of foreign shipping services. The first textile mill was established in Bombay in 1851. It was followed by several other cotton textile mills. The onwards growth of Bombay from the second hal~ of the nineteenth century was linked to trade.

Towards the early part of the twentieth century, with the inception of Indian Railways, several mechanical workshops foundries and other engineering firms were established. Similarly, construction of docks at the Bombay port helped establish several workshops, foundries and other engineering firms. From 1940, the manufacturing sector became more diversified, with an expansion into basic metals and engineering dating from the Second World War. The Second World War introduced a number of incentive schemes for industrial expansion. As a result, several chemical industries came into existence. Also, several oil, petrochemical, paper, printing, flour mills and food manufacturing industries sprang up. Despite the continued dominance of textiles and engineering, Bombay's industrial base is currently quite diversified.

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2. Calcutta

The existing Calcutta grew out of three villages of Sutanuti, Kalikata and Govindapur where the British first settled in the late 17th century. The site offered several advantages, which were instrumental in forming the nucleus of what would be in the 19th century one of the greatest commercial centers of the east. These included vital factors such as, a good anchorage, the foreign market of Betor and a trading settlement with a permanent 'Haat' (market) operated two days week. It also lay close to the village of Kalighat, with its temple of the Goddess Kali, a reputed place of worship attracting pilgrims throughout the year. Throughout the 18th century the port grew gradually, and more villages on both sides of the Hooghly River were added to the city.

With the consolidation of British Rille in India in the nineteenth century, Calcutta emerged as a great imperial city. The rise of Calcutta has been phenomenal since 1850. Between 1857 and 1900, Calcutta was connected to all important places in India through railways. During this time, coal mines north-west of Calcutta began production, the first modern wet dock went into action, the first iron and steel factory in West Bengal started producing iron, and the Jute industry recorded a phenomenal growth. A rail and road bridge to connecting the two banks of the river was constructed in the second half of the nineteenth century.

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Because of these developments, the population of Calcutta increased from 200,000 in 1822 to 413,000 in 1850 and then to about 1 million in 1911. An increase of almost two-and-ahalf times. The irregular spatial growth of habitation, the economic parameters offering service to a large number of productive centers, the continuous influx of population for a variety of jobs were the factors responsible for rapid growth of urbanization in Calcutta. By the turn of nineteenth century, the city had almost reached the saturation point because of the inflow of population, and consequently it started spilling over some new activities into other towns of its hinterland. This included the shifting of the national capital from Calcutta to Delhi. The division of the erstwhile composite province of Bengal after partition of the country (1947) further weakened Calcutta's urban economic base. However, its supremacy in eastern India is still intact.

C. Population Growth

Tables 2 and 3, and figure 1 show roughly similar patterns of population growth for the two port cities. Both grew rather slowly, at about 1 percent per year through the first part of this century. World War II brought a great increase in the growth rates, but the timing differed slightly. Due to its eastern location, facing the Japanese invasion of Burma, Calcutta grew most rapidly in the decade 1941-51, with the grow rate reaching 5 percent per year. Bombay's growth rate also jumped in that decade, but only to 2.5 percent per year, doubling to over 5 percent in the next decade, 1951-61. After the great spurt both cities experienced a decline in the growth rates, but the decline came earlier and was more marked in Calcutta.

Further, in both cities, after the main spurt of growth, the central city began to stabilize, showing very little growth, while the greater agglomeration continued to grow more rapidly. In 1901 the population of central Bombay constituted 80 percent of the entire urban area; in Calcutta the figure was 62 percent. By 1981 both proportions had been cut in half. Now central Bombay has only 40 percent of the total urban population, and Calcutta has 36 percent of its total urban population. Like many cities of the world, the old center has become saturated and growth takes place in an ever expanding periphery.

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The growth of industry during the nineteenth century resulted in high rates of in-migration to both cities. Although detailed migration data are not available until 1941, and then only for Bombay, it is clear that net migration has been a major source of the both cities' growth until very recently. As table 3 shows, migration into Bombay was almost four times the level of natural increase in the decade of rapid growth 1941-51. Since 1951, however, net migration and natural increase have contributed about equally to the city's growth.

Figure 1. Population Change

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Table 2. Population Size and Average Annual Growth Rates in Bombay City and Greater Bombay*

Census Year	City Size (mill)	Rate (%)	Greater Size (mill)	Urban Area Rate (%)
1901 1911 1921 1931 1941 1951 1961 1971 1981 1991	0.77 0.97 1.18 1.16 1.49 2.33 2.77 3.07 3.26 -	- 2.3 1.9 -0.1 2.5 4.6 1.7 1.0 0.6 -	0.93 1.15 1.38 1.40 1.80 2.99 4.15 5.97 8.23 12.60**	- 2.1 1.8 0.1 2.5 5.2 3.3 3.7 3.3 4.4

*Source: District Census Hand Book, Town Directory, 1981 Registrar General of India. **Census of India 1991. Provisional Population Totals, Registrar General of India, New Delhi.

Table 3. Population Size and Average Annual Growth Rate in Calcutta City and Greater Calcutta

Census Year	City Size (mill)	Rate (%)	Greater Size (mill)	Urban Area Rate (%)
1901 1911 1921 1931 1941 1951 1961 1971 1981 1991	0.93 1.02 1.05 1.22 2.17 2.70 2.93 3.15 3.30 -	- 0.9 0.3 1.5 5.8 2.2 0.8 0.7 0.5 -	1.51 1.75 1.88 2.14 3.62 4.67 5.98 7.42 9.19 10.9	1.5 0.7 1.3 5.4 2.6 2.5 2.2 2.2 1.7

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The industrial growth that has attracted the migrants and contributed to Bombay's development has been rapid, diverse, and complex. The number of industries almost doubled from about 4,000 in 1961 to almost 7800 in 1981. This also brought a growth of industrial workers, from 500,000 to over 600,000. From that point, however, the number of industries remained roughly stable, and the number of industrial workers declined to just over 450,000. Textiles and metal and engineer industries have dominated the number of establishments, currently accounting for about half of all industries. There are also substantial numbers of printing, petrochemical and consumer goods industries. And, of course, Bombay is the country's cinema capital, in fact producing more films than any other city in the world.

For Calcutta, the fortunes of development have changed dramatically over the years. As the first investment center in eastern India, and the political capital of India until 1912, Calcutta had a dominant position in the industrialization process. As a trading outpost, the first jute mills were set up in the area of the present Calcutta Metropolitan District in 1870. This was followed by paper mills between 1870 and 1880 and chemical and pharmaceutical plants in the 1890s. With the help of all these efforts for industrialization, in 1921, 35 percent of all the industrial workers in India were located in Bengal.

Calcutta's port was its economic strength. Several jetties of the Calcutta port were completed by the end of nineteenth century (1880). Because of certain locational advantages, like cheap transshipment facilities from farm to factories, availability of coal, and the export facilities offered by Calcutta port, the jute industry was the first to arrive on both sides of Hooghly River and in Calcutta itself. Other textiles, engineering and chemical industries also made Calcutta the largest industrial center of the eastern states of India until the early part of the present century.

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Independence has brought a slowing of growth, however. As the result of a partition of
the country, Calcutta lost of major part of its hinterland (East Pakistan, now Bangladesh). Its traditional industries were stagnating or declining without any diversification. Also, the port, which was a primary port until mid-1960s, began to experience serious problems from siltation and lowered water levels, lowered productivity, and competition from other, newer ports. The industrial structure of the city was dominated by an engineering group, followed by textiles, Jute, and chemicals. The printing industry which occupied position next only to engineering, confirmed the position of the metropolis - the great center for education and culture.

The distinct feature of Calcutta's industrial structure was its dominance by private enterprise. There was no investment from the public sectors undertaken until around the 1960s. Private capital also became scarce, leading to stagnation in Calcutta industries. The main reason given by the government for this near-stagnation of the industrial sector was a "shortage of power and certain raw materials and unfavorable price differentials of certain commodities." The impact of the power crisis on the production and export of engineering goods was visible.

Quite recently, migration has been more of a demographic than a political issue (since there is little net migration into the Calcutta Metropolitan District). The Calcutta Metropolitan District (CMD) authority has projected a population of 14.7 million for the CMD by 2001 in which the proportion of migration will be progressively reduced. The population figure for Calcutta compares well with the population projections of greater Bombay (15-17 million).

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D. Port Development

India has a long sea coast of 6000 kms which is served by 10 major ports, 22 intermediate ports, and 204 minor ports. Of the ten major ports, five (Bombay, Calcutta, Cochin, Madras and Vishakhapatnam) were built by the British, one (Mormugao) by Portuguese and the remaining four (Kandla, New Mangalore, Paradip and Tuticorin) by the Government of India after the country gained independence. The annual total traffic handled by these ports increased about from about 16 million tonnes at the time of independence in 1947 to 80 million tonnes in 1981 and to almost 150 million tonnes by 1990.

The growth of India's two major ports, Bombay and Calcutta can be seen clearly form tables 4 and 5, which show the number of ships entering port, and the volume of cargo handled from 1951 to the present (see figure 2 also).

Table 4. Ships Entering Bombay and Calcutta Ports, 1951-90

Year	Bombay	Calcutta
1951-2 1960-1 1970-1 1980-1	2767 3249 2440 4147	1460 1786 1237 1393

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Table 5. Volume (tons) of Cargo Handled in Bombay and Calcutta Ports, 1950-89

Year	Bombay	Calcutta
1951-2 1955-6 1960-1 1965-6 1970-1 1975-6 1980-1 1985-6 1988-9	7.50 9.68 14.35 17.91 14.37 16.65 16.98 24.31 29.34	9.45 8.01 9.39 9.73 5.97 7.66 9.27 12.13 13.87

The relative growth patterns of the two ports is quite evident in these tables, but other points can be noted as well. In 1950 these two major ports handled almost all of India's foreign shipping, with Calcutta taking slightly more than half and Bombay slightly less than half. Four decades later other ports had taken much of the increase in shipping, and Bombay had surpassed Calcutta as the leading port. in 1989 Bombay handled 20 percent, and Calcutta just under ten percent of the volume of India's ten major ports.

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Bombay's number of ships has increased each period except for the drastic 25 percent drop in 1970-1. Calcutta showed first a rise in the number of ships until 1960, then a drastic decline of 40 percent in the two decades to 1980, and finally a rise again of about 30 percent in the last decade. In volume of cargo, Bombay has registered a steady increase n all years except 1970, averaging 3.6 percent per year for the four decades. Since its low point in 1970, growth has averaged 4 percent per year. Calcutta experienced an overall average annual growth rate of only 1 percent for the four decades, but this masks a period of drastic decline of almost 40 percent for two decades, then growing steadily at an average annual rate of 4.8 ~rcent since the low point of 1970.

Figure 2. Port Activity

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The area of the Bombay port extends all along the eastern water front, adjoining the Harbor Bay. It covers about 800 hectares of land, of which 300 hectares constitute the docks Prince's, Alexandria and Victoria - with 51 berths. The hinterland of Bombay, which extends from Kashmir in the north to Uttar Pradesh in the east, and Karnataka in the south, has been connected through roads with other fast developing ports, including Kandla in the north and Goa in the south.

Of Bombay's total cargo in 1980-81, 76 percent were imports and 24 percent were exports. The main items of import include petroleum oil and lubricants, grains, cement and bricks, machinery and machine parts, iron and steel, and naval and military store. The export items included petroleum oil and lubricants, oil cakes, coal, manganese and other ores, hides and skins, and spices.

Bombay port has a total staff strength of more than 40,000 persons in various categories. Almost a third of these are technical and administrative personnel, and almost half are manual laborers. To facilitate the incoming and outgoing cargo, movement of passengers, and the working of its staff, the port has its own railways including a fleet of 20 diesel and 16 steam locomotives, two railway cranes, and one wagon weigh bridge of 120-ton capacity.

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Since 1973, Bombay port has been receiving full containerized vessels. For example, in 1980-1981, it handled about 101,000 TEUS which is expected to reach 200,000 in 1991. The Jetty at Trombay and Modern Oil terminal of Butucher Islands can accommodate tankers of 15 thousand and 53 thousand dwt. A proposal is also underway to build more berths at the Butcher Islands so as to increase its tanker receiving capacity, initially to eighty thousand dwt., and eventually to 125,000 dwt.

Bombay port has always been in the news. In 1983, because of heavy rush of cargo, a new port at Nhava Sheva, with a natural depth of 12.8 to 13.7 meters,. was established to give relief to the existing port and to cater to dry bulk cargoes and containers. This port already holds a leading place in quality of services rendered to trade.

Calcutta's port, 154 kilometers away from the Bay of Bengal, is located on the left bank of the Hooghly river. Although Calcutta jetties were constructed in 1869, the port started functioning in 1870 when the Calcutta Port Act came into existence. It now has four docks, and the modern deep-water dock at Haldia, 80 kilometers downriver from the city. All of them provide about 37 along-side berths with single to three- storied sheds. In addition, there are river side jetties in Calcutta, river side oil jetties in Haldia and six jetties at Budge Budge. All berths possess cranes operated by steam, diesel, or electricity with varying capacities from 2 to 200 tons.

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Some of the other equipment available to Calcutta port include mobile cranes, fork lifts, tractors, trailers, pay loaders, etc. The port provides about 397,000 square meters of warehousing accommodation and 83,000 square meters of covered space for storage purposes. The main items of exports include coal, tea, jute, gunnies, shellac, linseed (oils), hides, mica, sugar, iron scraps, finished steel and engineering goods. Machinery, hardware, food grains, petroleum, cement, phosphates and fertilizers are the principal items of import. Calcutta has been a major port for handling a significant portion of dry cargo in the foreign trade of the country. It serves the entire north and north east of India as neighboring countries such as Nepal and Bhutan.

Presently, Calcutta's port faces serious problems due to deterioration of the Hoogly River. The Bhagirthi - Hooghly gets completely cut off for about 275 days in a year. The decline in navigable depth has thus restricted the entry of large vessels which has affected the port traffic in Calcutta. To improve this condition, two steps have already been taken. One, involved the implementation of the Rs.1600 million Farakka Barrage Project and the other involved the establishment of a deep water port of Haldia, about 80 kms. south of Calcutta. Both of these ports function under one management and it is expected that with increasing traffic, the financial imbalance would be reduced. It is envisaged that Haldia port would primarily act as a bulk cargo port and Calcutta as a general cargo port. With these efforts, one may hope that the Calcutta port may regain its status in the near future and take its position as an important focus of inland water transport system in the Indian subcontinent.

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III. Problems and Issues of the Cities

Bombay and Calcutta, which have attained heights of achievements in business and commercial spheres and are the commercial nerve centers, have been facing multifarious problems of a large magnitude. Their large population base and rapid growth far exceed the infrastructure of these cities. There is hardly any scope to expand the available infrastructure. Land, particularly in Bombay, housing, transportation and other basic civic amenities are becoming scarcer everyday, particularly in the low class busties and the less affluent suburbs where the teeming millions live. The result is very poor living conditions. The cities have become nightmares and the lives of the people are becoming filled with disappointment and frustration. In addition, these huge urban centers add to the difficulties and problems of the state, region, and the country as a whole. This section will attempt to highlight the problems and the responsible factors which these metropolitan towns are facing. The urgent need to take some drastic steps is apparent. Unless something is done, the problems could become 'beyond solution'.

A. Bombay

As stated earlier, the geographical boundaries of the island city prohibit the expansion of Bombay. The influx of population tends to increase density which poses pressure on the existing infrastructure. Bombay is not only counted amongst the world's largest ten metropolises, it also has the distinction of being one of the largest slum cities of the world, with an estimated 1.2 million slum dwellers in 1971. In addition, the concentration of industrial activities presents serious transportation problems. About 74 percent of the formal jobs are located in the island city where only 35 percent of greater Bombay's population resides. This leads to heavy commuting problem. Water and air pollution have also created serious environmental and health problems. Untreated liquid waste is deposited in the sea and tons of toxic gases including exhausts from automobiles are released into the air everyday.

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1. Housing

Providing shelter to Bombayites is a major problem. The acute housing shortage has its roots in World War II when population increased without any increase in building activity due to scarcity of building materials. The Rent Restoration Act created further problems by discouraging landlords from maintaining old buildings. Thus, not only were few new buildings put up, the existing ones were not repaired. Efforts to rectify the situation have been going on but they are overwhelmed by population increase, limited resources and the Rent Restriction Act.

The scope of the problem extends to overcrowding, poor maintenance of existing houses, slums, pavement dwellers, and shortage of housing with minimum facilities. Against the norm of 12 square meters of living space per person set by the National Building Organization, the people living in Bombay have to satisfy themselves with a meagre space of 2.5 square meters only. More than three-quarters of the households live in one room housing units. Nearly one third of the households reside in houses with walls made of gram leaves, bamboo and metal sheets, while nearly one-half of households had roofs made of gram leaves, thatch, reed or other such materials. It has been estimated that about 1.3 million housing units, apart from a large number of slum housing (Jhopar patties), are needed for the Bombay population. Further, about 50 percent of population is living in the slums.

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2. Recreational and Open Spaces

The rapidly increasing population of Bombay has put greater pressure on the recreational and open spaces needed by the city. There is a severe shortage of all forms of parks, recreational facilities and open spaces. A recent survey reveals that the city has roughly 0.1 hectare of open space per 1000 population as against 3 hectares in Britain, and 4 hectares in the USA. In Delhi, the ratio of open space is 1.4 hectares per 1000 population. With the lack of resources and effective policies to prevent overcrowding and high density, the situation is doomed to get worse.

3. Educational Facilities

The system of public education in Bombay is being organized in three major progressive stages: primary education, secondary education and higher education. The Constitution of India gives the government the responsibility for providing free and compulsory education for children of ages 6 to 11. With this mandate, large numbers of children are seeking schooling. Buildings are inadequate, equipment and facilities are limited and the pupil load per teacher very high. Despite these problems, greater Bombay and even the progressive state of Maharashtra are much ahead of several other cities and states of the country. Greater Bombay has two universities and several national research institutions catering to specialized types of training and research. In addition, Bombay has literacy rates higher than the state or than all India, as table 6 shows.

Table 6. Literacy Rates of Maharashtra and India in 1981 Census

Literacy Rate	Bombay	Maharashtra	India
Total Male Female	- 73.91 60.75	47.18 58.79 34.79	36.17 46.74 24.88

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4. Health and Family Welfare

India is committed to provide Health facilities for all by 2000 AD. Therefore, a network of service facilities has been created all over the country. The quality and intensity of these services vary because health is considered a state subject. In other words, each state has to make provision for the health services of its own people out of its own exchequer. Since Maharashtra is one of the states with higher revenues, its health and family welfare service infrastructure standards are higher than other states. Thus, its health status is better than the other urban areas in the country. The performance in the urban areas of Maharashtra state is considerably better than in the rural areas. The state as a whole has 125 general hospitals, 74 dispensaries, 10 TB hospitals, and a total of 13,000 beds.

Though a relatively large health infrastructure exists in greater Bombay, the provision of health services, especially preventive services for slum dwellers, is far behind the norm. The same holds true for family welfare services including the facilities needed for pregnant mothers and infants. With the assistance of the World Bank, the provision of services within walking distance of poor and backward populations is being strengthened, but the goal is still far off. For example, the municipal authorities have mounted massive health campaigns in recent years in Bombay city. In 1985, with the help of Mobile Health Units, the Municipal Corporation of Bombay organized health checkup and immunization service camps in primary schools. As a result, nearly 56,000 students in Bombay were vaccinated against measles and nearly 180,000 were given general health examinations. In addition, 56 health posts were established in the existing family welfare centers to cater to the needs of slum areas. There are also 282 abortion centers, 66 post-partum clinics and 39 MCH homes in the city.

Bombay has also reported impressive figures for the target couples who have accepted the small family norm. However, the poor and slum areas still need more attention, more service, and more infrastructure.

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5. Transport

The biggest problem for the residents of Bombay is the public transportation system, which is aggravated by the geography of the city, the spatial distribution of jobs and the location of housing. About three-fourths of the formal jobs in Bombay are located within the island city while two-thirds of the entire population resides in suburbs. Thus, a large number of people have to commute long distances daily for jobs. Though the people of Bombay are fortunate in having a fairly developed suburb train service which provides a little over 5 million people journeys daily, the problems of over congestion and security need special attention. Between the suburban trains and intra-city bus service, about 12 million daily journeys are undertaken by Bombayities. It has been estimated that the public transportation system accommodates about 90 percent of all daily journeys. A recent study showed that roughly 40 percent of the transportation is provided by the suburban railway, another 40 percent by public busses, ten percent each by private automobiles and taxis, with about 1 percent each in school busses and motorcycles. Even this substantial public transportation system, however, is inadequate to meet the demands of a rapidly increasing number of people and workers who have to commute daily.

The traffic problems in Bombay are further aggravated by the rapid growth of private cars and commercial vehicles, which have become an impediment in the smooth flow of bus services and the safe movement of pedestrians. The limited number of north and south entries are clogged with traffic. Heavy commercial traffic is evident because Bombay is an industrial town with the best port facilities in the country. Moreover, Bombay, with more affluence and a higher standard of living for its people, doubles the number of motorized vehicles every three years without any increase in the road network. As table 8 shows, the total number of motor vehicles has increased fifteen fold, from just over 30,000 in 1951 to over 550,000 in 1989. This massive number has brought great congestion and a slowing of urban traffic to about 6 km per hour.

One of Bombay's greatest needs is for a convenient and cheap public transportation system for the entire commuting environment.

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Table 7. Growth of Motor Vehicles in Greater Bombay (1951 - 1989)

Type of vehicles	1951	1961	1971	1981	1989
Motor Cycles & Scooters Motor Cars, Jeeps and Station Wagons Taxi cabs Auto-Rik Shaws Stage & Contract Carriages Trucks and Lorries Ambulances School Buses Private Service Vehicles Trailers Tractors Others Total	2188 19707 1495 - 409 6872 43 64 - - - 111 30889	5325 36899 150 16 1067 11653 86 232 95 600 170 88 61381	24786 83360 5951 7 1565 24204 211 352 443 475 396 332 152082	87474 150711 9623 4465 3066 38447 441 418 900 631 803 902 308881	221531 248957 4338 24577 5155 47302 840 533 1439 927 977 1582 588158

Source: Transport Commissioner, Government of Maharashtra, Bombay

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6. Environmental Problems

Bombay suffers from serious air and noise pollution. Approximately 2,300 tons of pollutants are discharged into the environment of Bombay everyday. In the evening, the cool air causes the stagnation of air along with the toxic pollutants which remain in the city atmosphere. Being near the sea, the moist air combines with dust and gases, to create a hazy smog that is injurious to the population.

The air pollution is also caused by noxious industries: textile mills, petrochemical plants and gas works. The other source of air pollution is the vast indiscriminate burning of rags, garbage, firewood and charcoal. Another reason may be the estimated 60,000 non-road-worthy vehicles. It is reported that "almost 55 percent of the city's pollution is due to increasing number of vehicles."

Smoke concentration in Bombay has increased ten times during the last twenty-five years. A number of epidemiological studies show a definite correlation between air pollution and different types of respiratory diseases. "Air pollution, in simple language, kills. We are maimed, crippled and our lives are reduced with every breath we take in Bombay." It is time to plan some measures to remove pollution and save the Bombay people from various diseases.

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7. Civic Problems, Utility Services, and Power Supply

Bombay is growing under back-breaking burdens: piled up garbage, inadequate water supply, poor roads, traffic bottlenecks, unauthorized constructions, shortage of power, and mushroom growth of slums and pavement dwellers. The city produces an estimated 4,000 tons of solid waste daily. This is carted away in the open lorries which often spill wastes while carrying it to the garbage dumps. The cleanliness of the roads thus becomes another major problem. In addition, 1,600 million liters of liquid-waste is deposited in the sea, also creating serious environmental pollution.

The water supply situation in Bombay is also critical. The level of supply is far below the demand. It is restricted currently to between two and eight hours per day, depending on the location. When the monsoons fail, the supply situation sometimes reaches the emergency point. Slum dwellers rarely get piped water. One can often see long lines for water at public pipes near slums and low income residential areas. The water requirement of the metropolis is 700 million liters per day, whereas the current supply is about 450 mld. A current World Bank aided project it is expected to bring the water supply up to 650 mld. by 1993.

The sprawling of slums in the city and the suburbs, even on civic plots reserved for public utilities and pavements, have continued to provide shelter to increasing numbers who are flocking into Bombay in the search of livelihood. Many end up living in the midst of filth and squalor, cooking and sleeping without provision of a toilet or water facilities.

Power shortages constitute another problem both for Maharashtra and Bombay. The city consumes more than 60 percent of the power generated in the state. The total power consumption is about 1200 MWs, provided by two thermal plants located at Thakruli and Trombay generating nearly 500 MWs. In addition, a little more than 600 MWs of electricity are generated through one nuclear plant (190 MWs) and three hydroelectric units (276 MWs). The World Bank has assisted two major projects for improving the power generating capacity of Bombay. In spite of all this, the whole state, including Bombay, suffers from severe power shortages. A few of the issues which add to the power problem are the rapid growth in population,. heavy demands for industries and the corporate sector, and the requirements of the port including its ancillary industries.

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B. Calcutta

Understanding Calcutta means trying to understand its two angles. From the view point of Eastern India, Calcutta has been the sole metropolis for nearly two centuries. From the view point of India, as a whole, it is the biggest agglomeration after having been the capital for 140 years of British expansion. It has witnessed the genesis of modern India. Once a brilliant symbol of power and wealth, second only to London, Calcutta has fallen on b1}.d days. It has become a major symbol of urban misery. Since independence in 1947, the growth of its population no longer denotes its strength, power, and wealth. Rather, it points to a tragic imbalance in growth.

Calcutta's port problems began with the deteriorating water levels of the Hooghly River. As the upland water supply became restricted and the tidal effects increased, sedimentation in the river increased. The decline in the navigable depth restricted the entry of large vessels. Even ships of 8,000 to 10,000 tons can enter the port only a few days in the year. There are other constraints like sand bars and sharp bends in the river. The increasing navigation hazards are the most important reasons for the decline of port traffic in Calcutta. The decline of the port and the rapid population growth have brought other problems that are common to many cities, but seem overwhelming in the case of Calcutta.

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1. Housing

Heavy pressure of the population on per unit area of the city has created diverse and acute problems for Calcutta's growth and welfare and made the city a test case of modern urbanization. The living conditions in its bustees (localities) demonstrate deplorable conditions. They are badly constructed, low roofed, shared by many families and by many people within the families. Still, they look better than the smaller dwellings of squatters found on the sides of public thorough-fares, on the banks of canals, and along the railway tracks. A typical bustee has its own drainage system, a number of public and private taps and water tankers. According to one estimate, one person out of three in Calcutta lives in such a bustees.

In the beginning these bustees were located near the port or close to factories to provide accommodation for workers. Subsequently, more such bustees were developed. It is estimated that currently there are about 3,000 such bustees located in almost every municipal ward of Calcutta, of which nearly half are in Calcutta city. Efforts have been made since the 1930s to improve the living conditions of Calcutta's people. The Calcutta Slum Clearance and Rehabilitation of Slum Dwellers Act of 1958 envisaged the gradual clearance of the bustees. Also, the Calcutta Metropolitan District Authority (CMD) has focused on the physical improvement of these bustees. With this program, around 1.7 million people have benefited. But this is very meagre considering the magnitude of the problem.

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It was estimated that in the CMD area about 1.3 million housing units will be needed to eliminate the existing over-crowding and another 1.1 million will be needed to accommodate the growing population. A number of agencies including the Calcutta Housing Board the Calcutta Housing Trust, the Howrah Improvement Trust and the Housing Directorate are working in this sector. Still, the average annual output in the form of houses ready to use, is only about 15 thousand units. All this suggests the growing acuteness of housing shortages in the Calcutta Metropolitan District including Calcutta agglomeration.

2. Recreational and Open spaces

The pattern of land use is such that only about 5.9 percent of the land falls into the category of recreational use and open spaces. As per available data, the approximate land used under respective functions in Calcutta city is seen in table 8.

Since residential accommodation constituted the major land area in this city, little open space is left for recreational activity, which again is linked with the problem of population pressure. The largest open space known as "Maidan" (Grounds), measuring more than 1000 acres, is located close to the CBD (Calcutta Business District) and acts as the lung of the crowded city. The Maidan is the focal point of most recreational activities.

Table 8. Land Use in Calcutta

Activity Area	%	Activity Area	%
Residential Transportation Commence Industry Recreation	41.9 11.2 4.6 7.3 5.9	Public & Semi Public Health Education Water Bodies Others	3.9 1.0 2.7 4.5 17.0

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3. Educational Facilities

Calcutta has been one of the major centers of learning in India. The University of Calcutta, the chief educational center, has produced a large number of scientists, scholars, and poets of national and international repute who have kept the country's head high in scholastic and scientific achievements. There are also two other universities: Jadavpur Engineering University and Rabindra Bharati University. Overall, the city has 49 colleges, 95 secondary schools, 403 middle schools and 2113 primary schools. The significant progress in the universalization of elementary education in the state, including Calcutta, owes much to the government policy of providing free school education supplemented by the distribution of free text books to the students in the first through fifth standards.

A total of 700 primary schools have been either opened (100 new schools) or have been renovated (600 buildings). The double-shift system has also been practiced in Calcutta to deal with school-age enrollment. However, the requirement for primary, junior and higher education is much higher.

These estimates are based on the coverage of 100 percent targets for primary and junior education and only 45 percent for higher education.

To overcome the problem of high drop-out rates, the government has also introduced a program of mid-day meals for students. About 2.8 million students are currently being covered in this scheme every year. Steady progress has also been noted in the non-formal education program arranged by the state government.

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4. Health and Family Welfare

Respiratory and diarrheal diseases constitute a major cause of morbidity and mortality in Calcutta. The health care system of the city remains primarily a hospital based curative system. In 1971, there were about 135 hospitals with 16,000 beds, and 156 dispensaries. The hospital bed to population ratio was worked out to be 1.9 per 1,000 population for the Calcutta Metropolitan District. However, the Calcutta agglomeration had a slightly higher bed-population ratio (2.1 beds per 1,000 population). The major problem in regard to medical service is its uneven distribution in the city with higher concentrations on the eastern side and in the area of middle income population. The poor population in the bustees remain unattended. In recent years, Calcutta authorities have emphasized the opening of dispensaries. Mobile polyclinics have also started functioning in areas where no static facilities were available. However, financial constraints have affected these schemes quite heavily.

As in the country as a whole, the family welfare program in Calcutta is target oriented. Each service unit and worker is assigned a fixed quota of acceptors. Efforts are also on to involve various voluntary organizations, especially in the delivery of family welfare services. Preventive services are also being arranged through the implementation of Integrated Child Development Scheme (lCDS).

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5. Transport

The Hooghly River divides the Calcutta Metropolitan District into east and west. There are only three bridges and limited ferry service over about 85 kilometers of the river. This has led to a highly independent transport systems for the east and west sides of the river. Due to the extremely high population density and the limited road surface (only 43 roads are accessible to public conveyance), Calcutta has a most chaotic and slow traffic movement, which cannot be compared with any other urban areas of the country. Transport planning no doubt existed for the last century, but due to a scarcity of vacant land, it could not be instituted effectively. According to the Calcutta Metropolitan Authority, roads account for only 6 percent of land in Calcutta compared with 25 percent in Delhi. Another difficulty in planning road transport system is periodic flooding which cuts off large sections of the city.

It has been estimated that around 500,000 person-movements occur daily on the Howrah Bridge alone. Traffic volume counts on the Bridge indicated that the transriver traffic volume has been increasing at a rate of more than 10 per cent per year. Other movements may have also been increasing at a faster rate. Because of traffic congestion and an increase in the number of vehicles, the travel speed is as low as 7 miles per hour.

Calcutta's transportation system is almost at the verge of collapse and this is causing a great strain on its economy. Besides traffic congestion, Calcutta faces the problem of severe overcrowding on public vehicles within the city and on trains and buses carrying a daily passenger load of 1.2 million commuters from outlying areas. In 1980, Calcutta had a fleet of 1,188 state buses (631 were on the road at any given time), 1,500 private buses (900 on an average in service) and 438 tramcars (average 300 in service), 5,000 taxies and 36,000 rickshaws. Altogether, it has a capacity of 2.8 million transit trips, while the daily passenger demand was equivalent to 6.8 million transit trips. To meet this demand, three projects have been initiated: the Calcutta Metropolitan Railways, the Circular Railway, and a Second Hooghly River Bridge. By the time these three projects are completed, the expected demand will be about 9 million transit trips.

The problem of pedestrians in Calcutta cannot he overlooked. Because of the use of pavements for other commercial and residential purposes and heavy traffic rush, the pedestrians have to walk on the road with all the risks involved. During the peak hours, this leads to bigger traffic jams with both pedestrians and vehicular traffic involved in a grim struggle resulting in the violation of rules and accidents.

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6. Civic Problems, Utility Services, and Power Supply

City life also suffers from an inadequacy of all basic amenities including water supply, drainage, sewerage and transportation. Assuming a minimum requirement of water of 40 gallons per day for an individual, Calcutta's 10 million people will need 400 million gallons per day (mgd). The WHO standard is 50 percent higher than this. In fact, the supply of water in Calcutta is merely 140-150 mgd, reflecting a good deal of water shortage. For many people, there is no major supply of water and the majority of the people have to get by with 2 to 5 gallons per capita per day. The main reason for this shortfall is the old age of pumps and machinery and innumerable leaks and cracks in the supply pipeline.

There is also the problem of unfiltered water. This had led to high incidences of cholera, which precipitated some action to strengthen the water supply system for the provision of clean water. Along with WHO, Calcutta proposed a master plan for water supply and sewerage. Unfortunately, the implementation of this plan was delayed due to financial constraints. The major emphasis has been on replacing the century old pumps and pipelines and the construction of boosting stations and water works in under-serviced areas. Stand-pipes have been provided in the bustees of Calcutta where a large proportion of population lives. These measures have helped improve the drinking water availability. It is stated that access to water in Calcutta is now better than in most large Indian cities but by no means adequate.

Another related problem lies in the sewerage system, which does not cover the entire city. Parts of the city are covered by underground system and the rest by surface drainage. Apart from the heavy load which the city sewage can't handle, the accumulation of silt in the sewers (owing to the primitive method of clearance) has eroded the carrying capacity. Simultaneously, outfalls and storm water canals have silted up and the pumping capacity of the drainage pumping stations has deteriorated due to the age of the machinery. As a consequence, Calcutta experiences drainage congestion and water logging, particularly during monsoons. The situation has slightly improved with the construction of a large new sewerage treatment plant and the implementation of some 40 other sewerage projects. A few drainage and outfall improvement schemes have also been implemented.

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With regard to environmental sanitation, the Calcutta Metropolitan Development Authority has executed a program of solid waste management to deal with the daily accumulation of 2,500 tons of solid waste. It has also converted more than 50,000 privies into service latrines. One of the city's major environmental projects is the Cattle Resettlement Project, which aims at moving many of its 2,200 un-hygienic cattle sheds to cattle colonies in the city's outer areas. The supply of clean air to the Calcutta population has been for longer duration (268 days) in a year compared to that of Bombay.

Power shortage remains one of the most important problems of Calcutta due to stagnation in the industrial sector. The city has an average power deficit of more than 30 percent in recent years, compared to a national average deficit of about 8 percent only. As a result, there have been frequent power interruptions. This has affected the daily life of the people of Calcutta, the economic situation, industrial development, the functioning of the Calcutta port, and all other concerned activities. Although steps are being taken by the West Bengal Government to expand 10 power stations by 1990, implementation of many of the projects depends on the financial clearance and provisions by the central government. Calcutta is moving towards decay unless some drastic measures are taken.

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IV. Perception of Administrators on City Problems

The city's rapidly growing population has created a number of problems. The extent to which these problems are addressed, however, depends in part on the perceptions of the urban administrators. They may consider some problems more important than others, the may not view certain conditions as problems, or they may even consider some conditions useful for the growth and development of the city. These perceptions lead them to either take positive action to solve or minimize problems or to ignore the problems because of lower priority and limited resources. Thus in order to understand why some projects have been undertaken to solve specific problems and why the degree of emphasis on them differs, we must understand the perceptions of the city administrators and sector heads.

To obtain information on administrators' perceptions, we interviewed the Mayors, deputy mayors and 13 section heads in each city. We also interviewed two newspaper editors and three academics or social scientists in each city. The total number of interviews was 21 for each city. We asked a series of questions about their perceptions of the city's population size and rate of growth, the sources of population growth and its impact on the city. Then we asked a series of questions about the major problems. What did administrators see as major problems and what kinds of projects did they have to address those problems. This section describes the perceptions, the next will describe the projects generated to address those problems.

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A. Population Growth: Rates, Causes and Consequences

Most (76%) of the respondents in Bombay, but only half (52%) in Calcutta could accurately state the size of the city's population and the rate of growth. In both cities net migration and natural increase contribute to the city's growth in nearly equal proportions, though migration is slightly greater in weight. In both cities, however, migration is seen as a major cause of growth. This perception is much stronger in Calcutta than in Bombay, but it is the dominant perception in both. Further, in both cities the administrators thought the rate of growth was too high and was a major cause of many of the city's most pressing problems. Administrators in Calcutta were especially pessimistic. They saw as much as 70 percent of the city's population as a "floating population" that did not own the city, did not pay for its facilities and thus produced an adverse effect on the city. When asked about the role of the port in accounting for past, present and future growth, the administrators in both cities saw the port as a major factor in past growth, but they did not see it as a major factor by itself in present or future growth.

The following quotes give a flavor of the perceptions of the administrators of the impact of growth on the character of the city.

Bombay

"Bombay is loosing its originality because migrants are becoming dominant. There has been a big gap between 'haves' and 'have not'. The ability to purchase land amongst Bombayites is going down. . . ."

"Although compared to so many other places, Bombay is still a peaceful place merely because the population of this city has been peace-loving and disciplined."

"Crime rate is going up and the main reason is the pressure of the population on resources and infrastructure".

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Calcutta

"Higher proportion of males (part of the unique population profile) has been causing tension in society."

"Since these migrant males do not belong to this city and they do not own it, they are exploiting its resources and services maximally."

"Unemployed frustrated males create anti-social atmosphere."

"An increase in slums has given rise to problems like delinquency amongst children, an increase in crime and worsening the law and order situation."

When asked what a reasonable growth rate would be, most administrators in both cities held it should be lower than at present, and many suggested zero growth would be best. To achieve this growth rate, more Calcutta than Bombay administrators (8 versus 5) were in favor of restricting in migration. The majority in both cities, however, (12 in Calcutta and 10 in Bombay) suggested further urban satellite development and family planning. Finally, the majority (14) in both cases said that further development and family planning were the major strategies being used to address the problems of rapid population growth. More Calcutta administrators (6 versus 2) said the city was taking actions to encourage people to move out of the city.

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The city administrators differed substantially in their general assessment of the city's population. When asked to describe the general character of the population, eight of the Bombay administrators described the population positively as hard working, non-interfering, and disciplined. Only three described them as young and frustrated. By contrast, in Calcutta 15 of the administrators described the population as young, poor frustrated male immigrants.

The general picture derived from these interviews is that Bombay administrators are more knowledgeable, have a more positive view of their populations and see positive steps (development and family planning) as the way to address the problems. It was suggested above that Calcutta is the epitome of urban problems. Its rapid population growth, increasing congestion and declining economic base present overwhelming problems. Our interviews suggest that the city's administrators are themselves overwhelmed by those problems.

Table 9. Spontaneous Identification of City Problems

Problem	Bombay	%	Calcutta	%
Utilities (water, sewage, power, garbage) Transport (traffic, roads,etc) Housing (slums, homeless) Population(pressure, migration distribution) Crime Pollution Education Health - Open Space Unemployment Budget restrictions Other Total	30 14 14 11 12 7 3 7 - 2 4 104	29 13 13 10 12 7 3 4 7 2 4 100	30 18 12 1 8 5 5 4 2 3 1 1 90	33 20 13 1 9 6 6 3 3 1 1 100

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Table 10. Five Most Serious Problems Identified from Prepared List

Problem	Bombay	%	Calcutta	%
Utilities (water, sewage, power, garbage) Transport (traffic, roads,etc) Housing (slums, homeless) Population(pressure, migration distribution) Crime Pollution* Education Health** Open Space Unemployment Budget restrictions Other Total	13 8 7 7 8 * 5 8 - 1 - 59	22 14 12 12 14 - 8 14 - 2 - 5 100	19 14 8 6 2 * 4 10 - 5 2 6 77	25 18 10 8 3 - 5 13 - 6 3 100

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B. Perceptions of City Problems

To understand the perception of administrators, different sector heads and elites, two types of questions were asked. First, a open question was asked to get administrators' spontaneous response on what they saw to be the problems of the city. Second, a list of possible problems was shown to the respondents and they were asked to give their perception on (i) why the problem(s) has come about, (ii) the seriousness of the problems (iii) how this perception was formed and (iv) whether any action to address the problems was taken. The next section will report on solutions. Here we shall be concerned with perceptions of problems. We can see that the different methods of posing questions brought only slightly different responses.

1. Spontaneous Identification

To get spontaneous responses on the city problems, respondents were asked to list what they perceived as the major problems facing their city was. Since administrators could list more than one problem, we identified a total of 104 problems in Bombay and 90 in Calcutta. They are show in table 10 in 12 different categories.

Administrators in both cities agree that urban utilities (water, sewage, power and garbage), housing and transportation constitute the major problems. Over half in Bombay and two thirds in Calcutta spontaneously identified these as the city's major problems. It would be difficult to disagree. We have seen in past reports of the Asian Urban Information Center of Kobe that these also rank as the major problems in most cities of the developing countries of Asia.

Crime and urban pollution also represent serious problems in the eyes of these administrators. These problems are mentioned by about one-fifth of the administrators in each city.

Education and health do not emerge as major problems. This, too, fits with other surveys done by the Kobe Center. This has been explained in the past by the objective facts of rapid improvement in both health and education throughout the developing countries of Asia. Schools and enrollments have expanded greatly and health has improved. Thus these do not seem to be serious problems, especially in the context of the crush of urban growth that the administrators face daily. What is interesting is the lack of identification of unemployment and urban budgets. Here they appear submerged by problems of basic urban infrastructure: utilities, transportation and housing.

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2. Five Most Serious City Problems

After the respondents had seen the longer list of problems, they were asked to list the five most serious problems. This approach had the advantage that they were introduced to all possible city problems and then were asked about the five most serious problems. Their responses are provided in Table 10. The classification used for the spontaneous identification is duplicated in table 10 so that direct comparisons can be made of the two methods for identifying urban problems. In this case, the total number of problems identified as top five problems was only 59 in the case of Bombay and 77 in Calcutta.

The two method produce very similar results. Utilities, housing and transportation remain the most serious problems that the administrators see and face daily. There is also similarity in the low priority give to unemployment, budgetary restrictions and miscellaneous other problems.

There are also some interesting, though generally minor, differences between the two cities in the priority of problems identified in these different ways. For population problems, Bombay remains the same, but the priority increases substantially in Calcutta. If we recall that Calcutta officials were less aware of the real size and growth rate of the population than were those in Bombay, we can speculate that their lack of knowledge on this issue leads them to give it lesser priority unless they are specifically asked to assess the seriousness of the problem. Other changes are relatively minor. The priority of crime increases slightly in Bombay and drops slightly in Calcutta. Education increases slightly in Bombay but remains the same in Calcutta. Health and pollution change considerably, but this is because the two are classified together in the list of issues given to the administrators.

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3. Problems Created by the Port

The administrators were also asked to what extent they thought the port itself constituted to the city's problems. More than half in each city considered the port beneficial rather than a problem. The following quotes provide a flavor of their perceptions.

"It has created employment opportunities."

"The port has only historical significance."

"The port has its own excellent arrangements for the provision of services like health, housing, transport, etc."

Still, 10 respondents in Bombay and 8 in Calcutta were of the view that the ports have been creating or adding problems for the cities. They saw the ports as adding to the pressure of in migration, and also contributing to crime and disorder.

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V. Solution to Various City Problems

One aim of this study is to understand the work administrators undertake to address the various city problems. The hope is that sharing ideas and experiences aDlong administrators will provide new ideas for addressing the many problems urban administrators face. To obtain information on projects, we first developed an inventory of projects. We "3.sked administrators first to identify some of the major projects being undertaken in the city. This provided a short list of what can be called big projects that receive considerable publicity. We then asked them for ideas or observations about projects that were working or that would work to address their most pressing problems. Naturally, the ideas of projects varied by the technical service of the respondents. Nonetheless, we were able to generate a list of about a dozen ideas and projects that would be useful. Finally, we asked for more details on a few projects that could be treated as case studies of addressing urban problems. Here we can first make some general observations about the inventory of projects, and then present the case studies.

A. Inventory of the Projects Tried So Far

In Bombay administrators identified five major projects. One was a major family welfare project, with World Bank assistance, which is designed to reduce infant mortality and increase family planning coverage in the city. It is in fact part of an all India Population Project IV supported by the World bank project, and in this case linked to a state population project. There has been substantial success in extending health services, reducing both infant mortality and fertility.

The state has developed a parallel project, the Kanya Kalyan Y ojna, to promote the welfare female children in the family. It provides special monetary incentives for couples who undergo sterilization when they have one or two girl babies. At this time 3,000 couples have been enrolled in the scheme.

The World Bank is also providing assistance for two major utilities projects. One is a water supply project, which is to raise the city's water supply from 100 to 550 million gallons per day by 1995-6. There has already been a noticeable improvement in the city's water supply. The second is Phase II of the Bombay Sewage Project, which is installing a series of new sewage treatments plants for the city. One of seven new plants has already been completed and the rest are in various stages of development.

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Finally, the Government of India is assisting the Bombay Port Trust to expand port facilities.

In Calcutta, administrators identified ten major projects. Three address the critical problem of housing. One is a slum development project assisted by the World Bank. A second is a city housing project, The Vashna Ghata Patuli Housing Project to provide shelter for the homeless population. A third is the Belghata Housing Project, undertaken with the West Bengal Housing Board, also to provide shelter for the homeless.

There are four projects generally aimed at improving city utilities. The state and the City are cooperating in an improved garbage disposal project. In another the World Bank is working together with the State and the City to improve water supplies. The State government is also undertaking a project to provide more adequate water supplies to Halida township, the site of Calcutta's major down river port. Finally, The Government of India is cooperating with the other international agencies to disperse polluting industries to peripheral areas.

Calcutta is also participating in the all India Population Project IV, which aims to increase health services in order to reduce infant and maternal mortality and to-reduce fertility as well. There is also a major road widening project in which the State and the City are cooperating. Finally, The state government is developing an engineering college in Salt Lake.

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The twelve lesser projects identified by the administrators of both cities can be classified by the major problems listed in table 10 and. 11. Transportation projects are common to both cities. Bombay has 5 projects and Calcutta 4 aimed at the transportation problems of the cities. Building and widening new roads and constructing flyovers are important projects for both cities. Both also plan to separate truck and bus parking, and Calcutta plans to separate truck traffic in the city. Calcutta also plans to extend its metro rail service. Bombay officials will attempt to rationalize and speed up the flow of traffic, and they also think it will be useful to create a new administrative structure for dealing more directly and more efficiently with the transportation problem.

Public utilities rank next in the number of projects mentioned. For Calcutta this means improving the power supply and the garbage services. For Bombay there are smaller, but no less important, ideas for providing public toilets and for cleaning lanes between houses.

Bombay officials list three ideas for improving housing. All of these focus on the legal and administrative aspect of housing. One idea is to relax rent controls to provide greater incentives for people to build and improve housing. Another idea is to reduce the bureaucratic delays in obtaining loans for housing construction. Finally, there is an idea to create a new housing authority to deal with the housing problem in a more direct and efficient manner. Calcutta officials do not mention specific housing projects.

There are also a number of miscellaneous ideas. Bombay officials wish to extend health services by increasing the number of helpers and nurses in the city's wards. Another is to expand the oil storage facilities in the port. In Calcutta there are ideas for greater pollution control, to develop satellite towns and to improve port facilities. There are also ideas for improving telecommunications and to expand the number of primary school places. Finally, there is an idea to increase the administrative services by dividing the city into zones, each of which will have full administrative infrastructures to provide better government services to the population.

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B. Case Studies

Five case studies, three for Bombay and two for Calcutta, are developed here to provide more detailed information on the nature of the problem and the manner in which that problem is being addressed. In Bombay these are the Kanya Kalan Yonja scheme for improving the position of female children, the Nehru Port (Nhava Sheva) project, and the family welfare project for Bombay's slums. In Calcutta the studies include the Kalyan Satellite Township project and the Calcutta underground railway project.

1. BOMBAY: Kanya Kalyan Yojna (Scheme for the Welfare of Female Children of Bombay-Maharashtra)

Genesis

Preference for a son has been found to be one of the impediments in the acceptance of the small family norm in India. A male child is not only considered to be the source of continuing the family name, he is also the performer of religious rites during and after the death of his parents to help them attain salvation (moksha). He is also seen to be security or insurance for the aged parents. Furthermore, the status of a mother in the family or society is determined by the number of sons she bears. Therefore, couples do not accept family planning methods until they have one or two male children. Research has repeatedly shown that the preferred family size is two male children and one female child.

As a result, a girl child is considered an unwelcome member of the family. Her arrival is not celebrated as is the arrival of a son. Her growth and developnwnt are dependent on the resources the family has after focusing first on the needs of male members. In other words, a girl child has far lower status than her male siblings.

In order to reduce the preference for male children, to give a girl child the full opportunity to grow and develop to her full potential and to promote a family health, the state of Maharashtra introduced a project entitled Balkalyan Yojna, in the Health and Family Welfare Department in November 1988. This project would also help achieve greater acceptance of family planing methods by reducing the preference for sons.

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The Project

This project has a twofold objective. First, to improve the status of a girl child and provide her all the benefits of education, employment and marriage. This is expected to improve the overall welfare of the family. Second, the project hopes to increase young couples' acceptance of terminal methods of fertility limitation by reducing the degree of son preference. It is hoped that though this project the family planing program will receive a boast and at the same time the well-being of the family will improve.

The project provides incentives for couples accepting sterilization if they have only female children and no sons. The program is applicable only for those couples who have lived in Maharashtra for 15 years or more. The incentive amount provided will be invested in a long term deposit (15 to 20 years), so that it will yield a substantial amount at the time the girl reaches the marriageable age of 18 years. The name of this project was later changed to the Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru Balkalyan Award (November 14 1988). This project has two types of incentives for two categories of couples

For couples undergoing sterilization after one living daughter and no living son - Rs.10,000.

For couples undergoing sterilization after two living daughters and no living son - Rs.7,500.

This amount is given in the form of a two year Social Security Certificate issued by a post office. At the time of issue of the certificate, the couple has to give a declaration in writing that 1) They will not marry their daughter before the age of 18 years, and 2) They will reinvest this amount for a further period until the girl reaches 18 years of age.

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Current Status

The overall responsibility for the execution of the project lies with the Assistant Director of Family Welfare, who ensures that all the conditions have been fulfilled by the concerned couple. However, since this project has been introduced in all of Maharashtra, it is being implemented by the medical officer in charge of the service unit where sterilization is performed. The necessary records are maintained in the office of the district health officer so that further followup action, like the renewal of the certificate, takes place at the appropri~te time and place. As a part of the publicity of this project, the district magistrates were requested to use all available media with the help of district publicity officers of the health department. If problems arise, the medical officer of the service unit where sterilization is performed can contact the responsible authority of the state government through the Assistant Director, Family Welfare, Maharashtra.

All the necessary procedures to get information from the couple undergoing sterilization have been made available to the concerned medical officers. The project, initially implemented for one year (November 1988 to November 1989), has been further extended for two more years (up to 1991). During these three years, about 3,000 couples have registered in this project, which has cost the government about Rps. 257,000. Both the implementors and the acceptors have been pleased with this system. It is expected that as word gets around, more couples will come to register for the project.

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Difficulties in Implementation

In between the period of the project's initiation and extension, funding problems arose. Although the family welfare program is centrally funded, this project is sanctioned by the state government. Our interviews identified a number of difficulties with the project.

It is not easy for the state government to share large sums and provide the sanctions needed for this project;

The time gap between the acceptance of service and the maturity of the certificates is quite large. Since there is no immediate gain to the couples who are opting for sterilization, staff report it is difficult to motivate couples and to sustain their interest in the project;

The procedure for the verification of couples regarding the number and sex of children and being permanent residents of Maharashtra for 15 years is a quite lengthy and timeconsuming process. Sometimes it takes three to four months to complete all the formalities. These delays are thought to reduce the acceptance rate.

The condition of being a 15 year resident of Maharashtra creates problems in the case of couples interested in getting the sterilization done, but who have not completed the specified stay.

In spite of this the project has been found to be interesting. The government has been trying to make improvements wherever required so that more and more couples accept this project. To simplify the procedures of verification, some authority has been delegated to district officers.

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2. BOMBAY: Nhava Sheva Port Trust

Genesis

Since the mid-1960's, the existing Bombay Port Trust has been functioning at the saturation level. The average occupancy of all the berths has been ah'nost 90 percent and thus the waiting time for the ships has become quite long. Also, Bombay Port imposes restrictions on the size of ships entering, which could not be improved upon for want of larger draft or beam re-. quirements. In terms of land, there was no extra area around the existing port which could be developed.

Therefore, the Nhava Sheva Port Trust was constituted by the government of India, in 1982, for the purpose of developing a new port on the eastern side of the Bombay harbor.

The Project

Nhava Sheva Port was a unique project since it included the complete spectrum of modern developments - structuring of a new organizational setup with modern practices including complete automation, computerization and internationally accepted work norms. Apart from the facilities for equipment, the port will have a self-contained township, draft and back up area. It was also proposed to develop this port in such a way that it will act as a major catalyst for stimulating trade and commerce in the country. The port is planned to handle the import of dry bulk cargo and the export as well as import of container cargo. In the first phase of the project, three container berths, two dry bulk berths and one service berth costing about Rs. 6 billion will be constructed. As a result, it was expected that around 4.5 million tonnes of dry bulk and 6.0 million tonnes of container traffic would be managed by 1992-93. The amount of cargo handled will further go up to about 12 million tonnes by the year 2000.

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Current Status

The Nhava Sheva Port with a water area of 42 kilometers is situated along the eastern shore of Bombay harbor with water depths of 12 to 15 meters. This port has a common channel with the Bombay Port up to the entry to the Nhava Sheva water area. Its operation commenced on May 26, 1989, when inauguration was performed by the then prime minister of India and the Port was dedicated to the first Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawharlal Nehru. A central computer system has been provided for remote operations and control of the bulk terminal, and also control and supervision of the container terminal. Bulk and container terminals are also linked with the national, state, rail and road networks. As of March 1990, the Port had a total staff strength of nearly 1,000 persons, including 113 officers. The recruitment programm(!d for the first phase of operation has been mostly completed. Some 15 training programs for the training of newly-recruited staff, were organized in 1989-1990.

Planning work for the new port started in 1985. Similarly, educational institutions, hospital and dispensary services and cooperative marketing facilities were developed. Special bus service for school-going children and shopping have been arranged for the port staff and their families.

With all these developments the Port could handle 99 vessels during 1989-90. Although the Port is still at the development stage, there are no complaints about the quality of the new port structure. It has been reported that, "it is a model for port planners throughout the world".

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Difficulties in Implementation

There is a problem of access to the Port because of poor road and rail connections. Office accommodation and other service facilities are yet to appear and staff has to divide their time between the new work situation and the old Port of Bombay. The revised project cost has gone up to nearly Rs. 10 billion. Financial constraints are another important factor in the slow progress of the Port. Due to poor communication links, the development of necessary facilities could not be undertaken until more money was available for improving the infrastructure. It has also been reported that almost all the operators are still using the original Bombay facilities. However, both construction and cargo handling-work are in progress and Jawaharlal Nehru Port has hope for a bright future. When completed and made fully functional, this port will give relief to Bombay by diverting the growth in sea cargo traffic outside the city limits. It will make it possible to efficiently handle large, modern and specialized vessels.

Looking to promote the interest of the port and its users, the chairman of Jawharlal Nehruun Port Trust (JNPT) has taken certain corrective measures, such as movement of containers by rail between Jawharlal Nehru Port Trust (JNPT) and Bombay Port, three times a week. Customs officials have cleared such movement from the beginning of the current year. Arrangements for shipping lines desiring to divert their ships from Bombay Port to JNPT because of berthing delays have been simplified. A committee has since been constituted to work out the details. Furthermore, dock permits are being issued for one year instead of three months as a concession to users. As a result, the performance of the container terminal has been most impressive. Forty-four containers per hour per crane, passed through the terminal, which is considered to be a high performance. In the month of December 1990, the Port achieved the highest discharge rate of 14,918 million tonnes as against 14,149 million tonnes in November 1990. The same month, December 1990, the port witnessed the dispatch of a little more than 10 thousand trucks, a record number since the commissioning of the Port.

The initial snags and problems encountered when handling a complex automated computerized plant and equipment are gradually diminishing and performance of the newly established port has been strengthening. The above description reveals that a little more time is needed to understand the impact of the Jahawarlal Nehru Port Trust in solving the problems of overcrowding and long waits at Bombay Port.

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3. BOMBAY: Improving the Availability and Quality of Family Welfare Services for Urban Slums in Bombay

Genesis

It has been estimated that of the absolute increase of roughly 2.3 million persons during 1971-1981 in Bombay the net migration contributed about 1.4 million, or more than 50 percent. Much of this increase is being accommodated not by good housing, but by slums. The slum population, which now constitutes about half of the total population, is growing more rapidly than the population of the total municipality. Furthermore, although Bombay has the most diversified economy and higher average income levels than the country as a whole, the living conditions in the slums are appallingly bad. The vital rates - birth, death and infant mortality rates - among slum dwellers and other low income people are significantly higher than for other sectors of the population.. The outreach of health services in these ~reas is very poor. Therefore, a project for improving the availability and quality of family welfare services for urban slums in greater Bombay was proposed and received financial assistance from the World Bank.

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The Project

The project entitled "India Population Project V" was designed to support the policy of the government of India of improving the availability and quality of family welfare and mother and child health care services for poor urban families including, slums, pavement dwellers and low income population. More specifically, the project had the following objectives.

To expand the service component and increase the outreach of family welfare services with emphasis on maternal and child health and the increased use of temporary methods of contraception for spacing between births;

To improve the quality of family welfare services delivered in Bombay;

To increase the participation of private voluntary organizations and private medical practitioners in the delivery of services.

It was planned to achieve these objectives through expansion of service units. Accordingly, 130 health posts in slum areas (at the rate of one health post per 50,000 people) were to be set up in "slum pockets." In addition, 65 health posts in non-slum areas were also established. For extending the outreach of health and family welfare services, eleven postpartum centers were set up. All the required staff were to be appointed out of the project funds.

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To improve the quality of services, the project envisaged intensive training of the staff working. Therefore, a training cell has been proposed to coordinate the training component with local training institutions such as, the Civic Training and Research Institute at Borivali, the Central Family Welfare and Research Centre at Deonar, and medical colleges. It has been calculated that over the project period of seven years, about 8,000 people of different categories would participate in either pre-service or in-service training, which will help to improve the quality of services.

To increase the involvement of the private voluntary organizations (PVO), this project has suggested a number of actions. Of the total health posts, nine were developed and manned by the private voluntary organizations. The training of female voluntary health workers would be contracted to expert NGOs like Nirmala Niketan, Apanalaya and Streehitakarni. Staff responsible for information education and communication activities (IE C) in the selected PVOs would be encouraged to collaborate with the (private) Family Planning Association of India, the organization of repute known for its contribution in the field of family welfare motivation and education.

Suggestions for managerial improvement to run the urban programmed, including, monitoring, evaluation, information, education, and communication and certain innovative research studies for strategy development, have also been included in the project proposal.

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Current Status

The India Population Project V, with an approved cost of Rs. 483 million, was launched in September 1988 for a period of seven years (to 1995). Encouraged by its early success, similar projects have also been proposed for Madras and Chinglapet district in Tamil Nadu. As per reports received from the appropriate authorities, the project has shown substantial achievements towards reaching the set objectives. For instance, 59 health posts started providing services, 5 postpartum centers became operational and about 80 percent of the sanctioned posts were filled. Training of medical doctors and paramedics has also begun (March 1991).

As a result of better implementation and outreach of services, the project has shown marked improvements in the vital rates, which can be seen in table 11.

Table 11. Impacts of Population Project V in Bombay

Measures1987	1990
Crude Birth Rate Crude Death Rate Maternal Mortality Rate Infant Mortality Rate Couple Protection Rate (%)	22.2 8.6 0.8 66.0 45.0	19.9 6.9 0.4 47.0 50.0

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4. Calcutta: Kalyani Satellite Township Project

Genesis

The Kalyani Satellite Project of Calcutta was conceived by the then Chief Minister of West Bengal, Dr B C Roy, in early 1950s. The main purpose behind the development of this township was to ease the pressure of the rapidly growing urban population of Calcutta and thereby lessen the burden on the city's infrastructure and utility services. T4e idea was to have a well-planned city near Calcutta which could provide a less stressful living environment for the urban population.

The Project

It was proposed to set up this proj