The following are problems in urbanization:
Environmental issues due to urbanization:
Resource depletion and pollution are the two major environmental problems of urbanization:
Depletion of Natural Resources in Urban Centers:
- Overpopulation in the urban center increases the demand for water, land, food, fuel, shelters, which results in rapid depletion of natural resources like groundwater, forest, wildlife, land, etc and it causes an ecological imbalance in the region.
Increase in pollution level:
- Industrial waste from urban centers and sewage discharge from urban settlements are the main environmental concerns in urban areas. Industrial effluents and sewage discharges cause water pollution, soil pollution, and damage to the flora and fauna of the area.
- In addition to industrial effluents and sewage discharge, large-scale plastic and solid waste generation are major environmental concerns as they harm every area of the environment such as the atmosphere, the lithosphere, the hydrosphere, and the biosphere.
Population related problems due to urbanization:
Following are the population-related problems due to urbanization:
Demographic Change and Rural to Urban Migration:
- Urbanization has increased the trend of rural to urban migration. It brings about demographic changes in both urban and rural areas.
- Due to higher male migration from rural areas to urban areas in developing countries like India, the male population tends to be higher in urban centers.
- The opposite scenario occurs in a developed country, where the female population is more than the male population in urban centers and the male population lives in rural areas for agricultural activities.
Increase in Economic Inequality:
- Urbanization makes the rich richer and the poor poorer. This increases inequality among people.
The rise in Nuclear Family Trends:
- Urbanization leads to an increase in nuclear families [couple and their children]
High Unemployment Rate:
- Employment opportunities in urban areas are not increasing as much as the population is increasing there, as a result, the unemployment rate is increasing in urban centers.
Shortage of Urban Infrastructure:
Urbanization increases the infrastructure facilities such as roads, hospitals, schools, transportation in urban centers as compared to rural areas. But due to unplanned urbanization and crowing in urban areas, in general, developing countries are facing the following problems:
- Congestion in Urban centers
- Traffics on roads
- Lacking solid waste and sewage treatment plants
- Insufficient health and education facilities
- Pothole in roads and highways
- Shortage of Public and private toilets
Law and order problem
The following are the problems of law and order in the cities:
- Illegal construction
- Encroachment on footpaths and public land.
- Increase in crime like rape, cybercrime, social conflict, etc.
Solutions to the urbanization problems:
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| sustainable development |
- The solution to all the problems of urbanization lies in the sustainable development of the city. A balanced approach needed between the environment, economy, and society is needed.
- More power should be given to tax collection to urban bodies to become economically independent for their local problems.
- What are the problems associated with urban expansion and growth in the world? ( 66th BPSC geography mains)
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