Development of Slums | Five elements lacking in Slums
The percentage of Development of Slums is always seen higher in developing countries. In developing countries, the major development takes place in cities, then towns. People from towns and villages surrounding the developing city start migrating the city.
Since they are people with very low income or no income at all, finding a place to live in is a challenge for them. This is the major reason of why slums develop in a developing city.
They use all the scrap and waste material for the construction of their homes that we discard. People building their huts on a land without a legal permission are also termed as slums. These are all illegal households which sooner or later are cleaned by the Government.
A slum area is always underdeveloped, unhygienic and lacks important elements that are required for a hygienic and healthy living. Eradication of Slums can be achieved by providing Low cost Housing for the people living in the unhygienic slum areas.
Five elements which slums lack:
- Access to improved water
- Access to improved sanitation
- Security of tenure
- Durability of housing
- Sufficient housing Area
In this article, we are going to discuss these five elements which are lacking in the slum household making the living conditions harsh and difficult for people.
Access to improved water facilities
Slum areas do not have any proper arrangement for drinking water purposes or for any other usage. They try to get water from places that are highly unhygienic but they are left with no other choice.
Getting rid of this water shortage for the slums should be the main aim of the “Slum Eradication Organization”. Sufficient quantity of water should be made available for family use, at an affordable price and should be freely available without any extreme effort.
Access to improved sanitation facilities
Unhygienic sanitation system is another critical problem that is facing the slums and the also the urban areas. The diseases that breed in unhygienic conditions are developing very rapidly in slum areas which are later spreading in the city areas.
The Government should provide an excreta disposal system especially designed for slum areas. This could be done by providing a disposal waste system either in the form of a private toilet or a public toilet shared with a reasonable number of people.
Security of tenure for the Slum people
People staying in slums always have that insecurity of being thrown away from the land where they are staying. Slum eradication measures should be taken by the government but in a positive way. Government should allot some land for these people with proper hygienic facilities and give them evidence of their security of their homes.
Evidence of documentation to prove secure tenure status or de facto or perceived protection from evictions.
Durability of housing
It is seen that the materials that are used by the people in the slums for the construction of their houses is all trash wastage that is hazardous to the environment. They go to dump yards and gather different materials for their home construction. The materials don’t last long and also prove hazardous to the society.
Therefore, usage of non-hazardous building materials should be encouraged. For that reason, the materials should be made available to them at cheaper costs or the Government must bear the expenses for the housing of the poor.
Provision of sufficient living area
People living in slums do not have sufficient living space. They have to sleep outside their hut during night times and stay outside during the day time irrespective of the kind of climate.
For this reason, the Government should provide sufficient living space for these people. Not more than two people sharing the same room.
These are the people who run our society. The workers, cleaners, drainage cleaners, maids, servants… All of these people belong to the slum areas. Have you ever thought of your life without these people performing various tasks for you and making your life so much easier?
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