What are Peri-urban areas? Highlight the problems of Peri-urban areas in India and also suggest corrective measures.

Peri-urban areas refer to the area near by a urban town, which is in fast developing stage, or has developed due to agglomeration economy.

Problems of Peri urban areas:

• Automatic expansion leads to bad management of town.
• Dumping ground of urban efflux. E.g. Waste Mounds on outskirts of Delhi.
• Ghettoization is a common problem. E.g. Dharavi in Mumbai.
• Health, Sanitation, and Social evil of gender disparity are common.
• Education, Political participation, and vote bank politics are major concerns.

Suggestions:

• Establishing municipal board or town management committee.
• People participation and state’s active involvement.
• City level planning in terms of master plan is needed. E.g. Slum rehabilitation work.
• More NGO, Mohalla clinic, Mobile health vans are needed.
• Spreading awareness among society through NGOs and civil society. E.g. Jaga mission of Odisha for innovative housing can be replicated.

While developing economy coming to Peri-urban area is inevitable, sustainable planning is the need of the hour to realise dream of sustainable development goals of Sustainable cities.