32.91 people lakh reside in urban slums in State

Over 32.91 lakh people or five per cent of the total population in the State live in urban slums, according to the latest figures released by the office of the registrar general and census commissioner.

 The State has also the seventh highest number of people dwelling in slums after Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Madhya Pradesh. The census — 2011 figures reveal that the total number of slum dwellers has increased by 3.39 lakh during the last 10 years. Of the 220 towns in the State (classified as urban local bodies — corporations, city municipal councils, town municipal councils and town panchayats), as many as 206 have slum pockets in their jurisdiction.

 Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike has the largest number of people dwelling in slums at 7.21 lakh, followed by Hubli-Dharwad City Corporation at 1.84 lakh.

A noticeable trend is that the number of people living in slums in Tier-II cities is  on the rise. For instance, Tumkur City Municipal Council has 52,429 slum dwellers, while Hunsur Town Municipal Council  has 31,227. According to K S James,  Prof & Head, Institute for Social and Economic Change (ISEC) Population Research Centre the booming real estate market and increased construction activities are attracting labourers to these towns. “The income of construction labourers is low and they have no option but to settle in slums”, he said.

 “Karnataka is witnessing rapid urbanisation. More people are migrating from villages to cities. While the standard of living of people previously living in slums may have improved, there is influx of more poor people into cities”, he added.