BureaucratONE

Learn like a bureaucrat

Geography Optionals

5. Typology of agricultural regions/Agricultural regions of the world

by Leave a Comment Last Updated

Agricultural regions of the world

There are many ways of classifying and regionalizing agriculture. Some of the earliest schemes of agricultural crops 🌾 are those based on agricultural productivity and crop combinations. Such regionalization for crop combination only reflects the type of land used but doesn't represent an agricultural system in all its diversity and components. Agriculture practiced is rarely the reflection of physical factors alone. Apart from the soil, rainfall🌧️, temperature🌡️, and slope consideration, the more important deciding factors are the technology, infrastructure, type of inputs, and techniques of farming.

Agricultural regions of the world
Agricultural regions of the world

Derwent Whittlesey's Classification

Whittlesey, therefore, tried to suggest a more holistic basis of Agricultural regionalization accounting for the entire range of factors that can influence agriculture.

The following are 5 variables that he considered.

  1. Choice of Crops🌾
  2. Crop 🌾 and Livestock 🐖combination
  3. Degree of Mechanization 🚜
  4. Degree of Commercialization 💰
  5. Infrastructure and Buildings 🏢

Based on the above five factors,Derwent Whittlesey identified the following 13 agriculture types.

The 13 agriculture types / Agricultural regions of the world

  1. Nomadic herding
  2. Livestock ranching. 🤠
  3. Shifting agriculture
  4. Rudimentary sedentary agriculture
  5. Intensive Subsistence farming with paddy 🍚 dominance
  6. Subsistence farming without Paddy dominance (millets maize🌽)
  7. Commercial grain farming wheat 🌾.
  8. Commercial mixed farming (crops 🌾+ livestock 🐖)
  9. Subsistence mixed farming. (crops 🌾+ livestock 🐖)
  10. Mediterranean agriculture. 🍇🍸
  11. Plantation agriculture. 🌴
  12. Commercial dairy farming 🥛🐮🐄
  13. Specialized horticulture. 🥕🥔🥒🍠🍆🍅🍄🌽

Nomadic herding

Nomadic pastoralists. They keep cattle 🐄 and migrate with their livestock across seasons. This is a feature of dryland and Semi-arid regions. It is practiced in Central Asia Uzbek horseman Afghan 🏇 horsemen. Africa cattle 🐄 Masai Tribes of Africa largest tribe. Practised in deserts🏜️. sheep🐑 and nomadism are around the oasis🏝️ region. Transhumance gaddi of Himachal Pradesh sheep 🐑 up and goat 🐐 and bakarwals of Kashmir cattle 🐄

  • a farm of animal grazing on natural pasturage
  • constant or seasonal migration of the nomads
  • confined to rather sparsely populated parts of the world
  • the natural vegetation is mainly grass.
  • concentrated in Saharan Africa (Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Chad, Sudan, Libya, Algeria ).
  • The southwestern central parts of Asia
  • parts of Scandinavian countries (Norway, Sweden, Finland ) northern Canada.
  • Food Needs of the family
  • declining agri system
  • the continued movement of people with their livestock in search of forage for the animals.
  • The Bedouin of Saudi Arabia and taurag of the Sahara in the desert semi desert areas
  • Seasonal pattern of movement.
  • Many kinds of animals grazed.
  • Transhumance.

Livestock ranching. 🤠

  • permanent ranches where large numbers of cattle sheep goat horses are kept.
  • the Americans, Australia, the Republic of South Africa, Brazil Argentina, Peru, New Zealand
  • livestock ranchers have fixed place of residence and operate as individuals
  • The vegetation cover is continuous.
  • There is little or no migration.
  • Ranches one scientifically managed.
  • The animals are rose for sale.

Shifting agriculture

  •   slash and burn agriculture
  • primitive form agriculture
  • tropical rainforests also tropical lowlands hills in the center America, Africa, and Southeast Asia, Indonesia.
  • bush fallow agriculture
  • ladang in Indonesia,
  • Milpa in central America,
  • (grow only for his family in this agriculture systems. small surplus are exchanged on bartered sold for cash
  • rotation of fields rather than rotation of crops.
  • hill tracts of north-east India 86 percent of the people living on hill - shifting cultivation.
  •   food grains-rice maize-millet- jobs-beans-vegetables- soybean.

Rudimentary sedentary agriculture

  • Mostly confined to the tropical lands of Central & South America, Africa, South-East Asia.
  • Crop rotation occurs
  • Potatoes, Sweet potatoes, Maize, Sorghum, Banana etc are grown.

Intensive Subsistence farming with paddy 🍚 dominance

  • confined to the tropical monsoon lands of Asia.
  • China. Japan, India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand, Srilanka, Malaysia, Philippines etc.
  • Farming is intensive
  • double or triple cropping - several crops are grown on the same land during the course of a year.
  • dry season - other food or cash crop such as sugar tobacco on oil seeds or the fiber crop jute.   
  • Asian farmer - greater yields per acre - hybrid rice.

Subsistence farming without Paddy dominance (millets maize🌽)

  • interior India and North-East China.
  • The land is intensively used & worked primarily by human power.
  • Farming in these regions suffers from frequent crop failures & famines.
  • Wheat, Soya bean, Barley, crops are grown.

Plantation agriculture. 🌴

  • estates or plantation
  • tropical agriculture
  • originally to the British settlements in America
  • then in north America , west India, south-east Asia which was cultivated mainly by Negro or other colored labor.
  • specialized production of one tropical or subtropical crop raised for market
  • Climatic hazards' strong winds, topography, drainage soil vegetation condition prevent the establishment of plantation
  • problems
    • Accessibility
    • connectivity
    • availability of labor
    • difficulties of clearing vegetation (tropics)
    • pests, weeds,
    • rapid deterioration of the tropical soil ,
    • soil erosion
  • plantation generally large
  • found mainly in the thinly populated areas.
  • The size of farm varies from 40 hectares in Malaya India, too 60000 hectares in Liberia. I
  • large disciplined unskilled labor force is necessary.
  • plantation crops are rubber, oil palm, cotton, copra,
  • beverages like coffee, tea, coco,
  • fruits like pineapples, bananas,
  • sugar-cane jute.
  • Asia is the leading producer of Jute (96%), rubber (90%) tea (87%) coconut (37%) tobacco (46%) of the total world production Asia share in the production of sugarcane is 39% that of banana , oil palm is 25%                 
  • Estate farming.
  • Foreign ownership local labor.
  • estates is scientifically managed.

Mediterranean agriculture. 🍇🍸

  • Mediterranean region
  • where there is winter rain and summer drought
  • confined to the coastal areas of the Mediterranean sea in Europe, Asia Minor, North African coastal strip.
  • Outside the Mediterranean cost this system is found in California (USA) Central Chile the south-coast of cape province (South Africa) South-West of Western Australia.
  • also found in irrigated areas in similar latitudes.
  • been largely affected by long day summers occurrence of rains during the winter season devices for artificial irrigation during drought periods of summers.
  • Traditional Mediterranean agricultural - barely cultivation
  • vine tree crops like the grape olive, fig, small livestock herding particularly of sheep goats pigs.
  • In recent times -irrigation - expansion of crops to citrus fruits.
  • The Mediterranean - Orchard lands of the world - the heart of the world's wine industry.

Commercial grain farming wheat 🌾.

  •  specialize in growing wheat on less frequently rice or corn.
  • Great wheat belts - Australia, the plains of interior North America, the steppes of Russia, the pampas of Argentina, together the United states, Canada farmer, Soviet union.
  • extensive.
  • Big farm size
  • use of heavy machines
  • Low use of irrigation fertilizer
  •  Low production rate
  • Long distance of farm from market.
  • (iii) Wheat is the main crop; maize , Barleys, oat are another important crops.
  • The wheat production regions
    • Winter wheat belt.
    • Spring wheat belt.

Commercial mixed farming (crops 🌾+ livestock 🐖)

  • throughout Europe Rhineland in the West through central Europe to Russia.
  • found in north America pampas in Argentina, Southeast Australia, Australia, South Africa, New Zealand.
  • farms produce both  crops livestock integrated.
  • Mixed farms - high expenditure on machinery
  • extensive use of machinery
  • fertilizers also by the skill experts
  • Urbanized industrialized societies .
  • a number of crops are grown.
  • cereals dominate
  • A large portion of cereals is fed to animals
  • Capital input high

Subsistence mixed farming. (crops 🌾+ livestock 🐖)

  • Northern Europe, Middle East, Mountain region of Mexico.
  • crops & livestock mainly used for own subsistence.
  • Traditional way of farming.
  •  Seeds are poor quality & animals are poorly husbanded.
  • Capital input is normally unknown.
  • Wheat, Maize, Rye, Barley etc are the main crops.
  • Sheep and Goats are the most important animal.

Commercial Dairy Farming 🥛🐄🧀🧈

  • The rearing of the cattle for milk and milk products (butter, cheese, condensed milk)
  • practiced in Europe, Northern USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Denmark, Netherlands, Belgium, Finland, France, and Switzerland.
  • 40% of agricultural income.
  •   capital intensive farming.
  • mechanical equipment like milking machines milk freezers, feeding towers, silos for the storage of fodder for winters.  
  • size of cattle varies from country to country from farm to farm depending on the size of holding.
  •  (iv) Modern method of daily farming cattle breeding herd management allow high yields of dairy products.
  • temperate latitudes Average - 3000kg of milk per year.
  • he average production of milk per cow per annum - between 2896kg in Canada to 4284kg in Japan.

Indian scenario

  • In India it is 1,200 litres of milk per year per cow
  • India is the largest producer of milk
  • value of milk is more than that of rice and wheat combined So, it is India's biggest agri-produce
  • source of income to small and landless agri-house 70 per cent of those earning their livelihood from milk are women
  • Dairying provides a source of regular income, whereas income from agriculture is seasonal About a third of rural incomes
  • Livestock is a security asset to be sold in times of crisis.
  • Challenges 
    • Indian cattle and buffaloes have among the lowest productivity.
  • Milk Cooperatives
    • Guj - AMUL
    • TN - Avin
    • KL - Milma
    • KN - Nandini
    • AP - Vijaya
    • Pondi - Pondley
    • Delhi - Mother Diary

Specialized Horticulture. 🥕🥔🥒🍠🍆🍅🍄🌽

  • vegetables, fruits, flowers
  • Mediterranean agriculture - large scale. Other regions - Specific spot
  • vineyards of Europe - most ancient districts
  • raising the maximum of crops on the minimum of acres
  • Lavish application of purchased fertilizers - high yields and quality
  • winter - greenhouses
  • in the densely populated industrial districts of north-west Europe, Britain, Denmark, Germany, Netherlands, France, Italy.
  • located where communication links to consumption centers are good.
  • intensively cultivated.
  • Soil fertilizers are done by hand labor.
  • scientifically managed to achieve optimum yields and returns.
  • Commercial fruit orchard - apples, cherries, and pears
  • Vineyards
  • The Rhine, the Loire, the Swiss lakes, and the plain of northern Hungary - Grapes Wines
  • Mendoza, San Juan of Argentina, etc. (grapes production )
  • southwestern Germany Nova Scotia, the Lower Great Lakes, the Middle Appalachians, and the Ozark (apple).
  • south Arab and Iraq for dates
  • India and South-East Asia for spices, pineapple, mango
  • Sugar beet tobacco flax and hemp cotton

Main Post - Geography Optional Syllabus

For Agricultural Regions of India - Click Here

9. Human Development Index (HDI)

by Leave a Comment Last Updated

The Human Development Index (HDI) is a summary measure of average achievement in key dimensions of human development.

  • A long and healthy life,
  • Being knowledgeable,
  • Have a decent standard of living.

The HDI is the geometric mean of normalized indices for each of the three dimensions.

The common objective of all development is to secure a better life in terms of amenities, a better quality of life, and prospects for all people and citizens.

Development in its more progressive and in its more modern concept is about securing people the following three.

Development is securing the following

  1. Better Quality of Life and a Better Standard of Living
  2. Dignity of life and Self-Esteem
  3. Better and more Democratic Choices across all aspects of life (Economic, Social, and Political)

Development - Classical Economics

Conventionally in the initial stages, Human development was centered around Economic Growth alone with an assumption that economic growth on its own can translate into better Social and Political outcomes. This is Classical Economics Wisdom.

Development in 1970s - Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI)

In the 1970s under David Morris, the UN accepted development to be measured under (PQLI) Physical Quality of Life Index. This index ignored economic parameters and included achievements under Literacy, IMR, and Life Expectancy alone. This again is an incomplete measure because Income and Economy are important determinants of social sector achievements.

Development in 1990s - Human Development Index (HDI) (UNDP)

In the 1990s, the UNDP under the leadership of Mahbub-ul-Haq and Amartya Sen redefined the concept of human development as a development that enlarges choices. Development choices not only need to exist but should also be Accessible, Affordable. and there should be Real choices.

Development was measured under three parameters

  1. Income - Per capita GDP in PPP terms (II)
  2. Health - Life Expectancy at birth (HI)
  3. Education - Education index in terms of adult and child literacy rate (Enrolment ratio) (EI)
Human Development Index (HDI)Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI)
Un-Weighted Arithmetic mean
(II + HI + EI) / 3		Weighted Mean
Different Weightages for different indices
HDI vs PQLI

In 2010 HDI, there have been modification in this indices.

2010 HDI modifications

  1. the income index is now measured in terms of per capita gross national income. Gionee is more comprehensive in terms of economic resources available for a country's development. It includes remittances and also exports.
  2. education index is now measured in terms of mean years of schooling of adult population and expected years of schooling for child population.
  3. health index continued to be life expectancy at birth and HDI is the geometric mean of the indices

Human development index = ∛(II + HI + EI)

The geometric mean exaggerates and amplifies the difference in achievements that are in the development lag.

Apart from HDI which primarily reflects the achievements of society, HDR-2010 also added three other induces to capture inequalities

  • Multidimensional poverty index
  • Inequality-adjusted Human development index
  • Gender inequality index

Multidimensional poverty index (MDPI)

Conventional HDI is measured only in terms of income. There are other dimensions of poverty such as food security, affordable housing, portable drinking water, affordable power, etc. According to 2014 HDI, greater than 50% of India's population have moderate multidimensional poverty and about 30% have severe multidimensional poverty.

Inequality adjusted Human development index.

It accommodates the inequality based under achievements and readjusts the HDI so that the new index captures both the achievements and the inequalities

Gender inequality index.

It captures the gender gap concerning life expectancy disparity, labour force participation disparity, political participation disparity.

Patterns of global Human development index.

HDI captures the development parameters of different countries and it categorises HDI into five categories.

5 Categories of HDI.

  1. Very high HDI
  2. High HDI
  3. Medium HDI
  4. Low HDI
  5. Very low HDI.

Patterns of HDI are

India has consistently maintained its position in the Mid and medium HDI. In 2019 India's rank was 129 out of 189 countries. In 2018 India's rank was 130 out of 189 countries. 

Very high HDI countries are Scandinavia, middle east, Kuwait, Qatar, UAE. The disproportionately high-income parameters more than compensate for the lower achievements in the social sector.

Very high HDI also includes Japan, Singapore, Chile, Argentina, Erstwhile USSR Estonia, Lithuania.

Almost all countries of the world I have consistently improved their HDI and this also is true for the sub-Saharan countries.

There is a large gap between and low HDI countries. Example on the income front, achievement off HDI countries is at least 20 times more than the low HDI countries.

There is a clear North-South divide in the development achievements. The north-south divide is based on Brandt line. The north comprises of more developed countries of America and Europe including Australia. The southern countries include Latin America, Africa, and Central and South Asia

Even among high and very high HDI countries, there is inequality within. There are social differences within a community inside the United States and the southern United States are lagging behind the more developed North-Eastern states. In Canada, the colder north and the agricultural regions of the west have lesser HDI compared to those on east like Quebec and the industrial regions along the Saint Lawrence River.

High HDI countries include Mexico, Panama, Libya, Uruguay, Algeria, Tunisia, Brazil, Ukraine, Bosnia, Iran, Lebanon. But these countries are no match to countries like Norway Sweden Denmark and other oecd countries.

Russia is one countries in high hdi that has suffered losses since 1990 due to its economic and social restructuring.

The intra country variation and ethnic disparities are the common aspect of almost all countries.

United States is among the top five HDI. But the HDI of Afro-Americans is 0.47 while the average HDI of the country is consistently greater than 0.9. The same is also for Brazil where average is greater than 0.7 but HDI for less developed state like amazonia, Pernambuco is 0.5.

Asia as a continent has the widest range of HDI. Countries like Israel and Singapore has greater than 0.9 HDI where as countries like Laos, Cambodia, East Timor, and Afghanistan have very low and low HDI.

Most of the very low HDI are African countries including the sub-Saharan Africa. Droughts and conflicts have aggravated historical poverty in Africa.

Development and Social Well-Being

Previous years questions

  • 2009: Provide a broad classification of world cultural regions.
  • 2010: Critically examine the method of deriving the Human Development Index.
  • 2013: Explain the parameters for the assessment and the spatial pattern of Human Development Indexing the world.
  • 2019: HDI has brought a paradigm shift in the way people think about the development process. Critically examine the inherent limitations of HDI.

Main Post - Geography Optional Syllabus
Previous Post -
Do follow for further information - Human Development Index of the UN Development Program

Social Well-Being

by Leave a Comment Last Updated

Development and Social Well-Being

Development is a subjective concept. Its scope can be defined in many ways. Different countries choose to define their developmental achievements according to their levels of development.

Development is also a dynamic concept. It changes with time. The HDR report defines development as a process of enlarging choices across economic, social, and political issues.

But HDI doesn't capture all the aspects of social and political achievements such as political freedom, rights against unlawful detention, social participation, perception about technology, and the ability to adapt and adopt the technology.

The HDR report acknowledges the importance of all-round development. It also accepts that quantifying and developing an index to capture all aspects of development is not easy. Hence the concept of social well-being.

Social well-being is a broad expression to capture all aspects of achievement and self-worth of individuals. Social well being can be explained in three dimensions.

The three dimensions of Social Well-Being

  1. Domain of Being
  2. Domain of Becoming
  3. Domain of Belonging

Domain of Being

It is about what a person in terms of his physical state, his occupation, and his emotional state. The being domain is about what a person feels about himself and what he things how he is perceived by others. It includes his income education and socioeconomic status.

Domain of Becoming.

it is the aspirational component of what a man seeks to achieve. It is about as future his hope his ambitions and why he does what he does.

Domain of Belonging.

it is a relational component of development. It includes the feeling of being a worthy contributor to the contributor in society at all levels family neighborhood workspace and even at an international and national level. It is the feeling that one has the capacity by virtue of his relationship with others.

Human development is a very broad subjective concept and all the above concepts are valid concepts even though we may not have objective measures as of now to depict them and quantify them.

Social capital

Social capital is the relational component of development. It is much like the domain of belonging in social well being. It is increasingly acknowledged that relationship, interpersonal, and inter social interactions are crucial determinants in all aspects of human development. Social capital is the sum total of collaborations, corporations, and participations based on trust and reciprocity. It is a resource which is beyond conventional sense of resources. According to Black and Hughes, there are four types of capital.

Four types of capital

  1. Natural capital - natural resources
  2. Produced capital - products of human activity including culture
  3. Human capital
  4. Social capital

Human capital

total of human labour skills knowledge and talent which is important to convert natural resources into produced capital

Social capital

relationship collaboration teamwork trust without which other capitals cannot be used or its benefits sustained. It is one of the prerequisites in achieving developmental goals.

The concept of social capital was first given by Pierre Bourdieu, a French cultural theorist who was trying to explain the process of social dominance and subordination in French society.

The modern concept was given by American social theorist Robert Putman who was trying to understand how social hierarchy develops in American society. His ideas were in the book 'making democracy work' and his concept was acknowledged by the World Bank.

Social capital operates in three ways.

  1. Bonding
  2. Bridging
  3. Linking

Bonding

The interrelationship and sense of belonging within a group which is similar in terms of population. Relationship and association between members who have similarities and the group which is relatively a homogeneous group. It is the earliest form of relationship.

Bridging

Collaboration and association between individuals and groups that are dissimilar for whom may seem perceptively opposed to another. Bridging is the most difficult component of interrelationship and lack of bridging is the basis of racism, communal violence, and cultural conflicts. Most countries and India in particular are yet to invest and use their official machinery to promote bridging. The role of media and government institutions play an important role in making it happen.

Linking

Linking is a relationship developing across different hierarchical groups.

Example

  • senior management and workers.
  • Bureaucracy and masses.
  • Upper caste and lower caste.
  • Higher class and lower class.

Social capital can be initiated, fostered, and strengthened by an interplay of trust, reciprocity, and mutuality.

social capital - Social Well-Being
social capital
  • Trust- faith
  • Reciprocity - the feeling that a good deed will result in a positive response.
  • Mutuality - A sense of interdependence and respecting the efforts of all groups that make up the team.

Social capital as a virtue can't be the automatic outcome and the natural consequence of economic and social achievement. It needs to be deliberately fostered. Social capital on the other hand can automatically guarantee economic and social development.

Main Post - Geography Optional Syllabus
Reference - OECD Social Capital.

3. Regional synthesis

by Leave a Comment Last Updated

Regional synthesis as 'disruptive of the earth's unity' ➗ and also 'Integrated' ✊✊??

One of the allegations against the regional approach was that while focusing on the 1specifics, the 2particulars, the 3uniqueness of the phenomenon, and the 4uniqueness of the place, the Regional Geography was 'Disruptive of the earth's unity' ➗. On the other hand in its 1 topical integration, the 2 systematic approaches with its 3generalizations and laws, it was more 'Integrated' ✊ .

Regional approach as a 'better paradigm/approach in unification' ✊✊

These allegations against the regional approach were disputed. The regional approach is a 'better paradigm/approach in unification' ✊✊ became the theme of regional synthesis.

Ferdinand Richthofen and organic unity of nature

It was Ferdinand Richthofen who was a Chorologist who tried to revive geography in the regional paradigm but he is not considered as a radical Chorologist because Richthofen's ambition was to revise geography in the concept of organic unity of nature much in the line of humboldt and Ritter's tradition. He too believe in the concept of Zusammen Hang hanging together.

He believed that the purpose of geography as regional geography has to be descriptive but the description cannot be the end purpose. The geographers must go beyond and seek regularities and similarities and establish the causal interrelationship within diverse elements that make up the region.

So, geography as a science of different kinds of things that exist together and are bound together by causal connection. This interconnectedness according Richthofen as a focus of study is possible only in regional approach of geography. Hence the concept of regional synthesis. This idea of Richthofen influenced all regional and Chorological geographers thereafter.

Hettner

Hettner for example is a radical chorologist and he criticized the geography as a science of earth's surface. Hettner nevertheless believed in the Causal interdependence Zusammen Hang and more importantly believed in dichotomy of human versus physical geography as irrelevant and wrong.

Ratzel, Vidal, and Hartshorn

Ratzel in his concept of Environmental Determinism, Vidal in his concept of Cultural regions (Payz) and Hartshorn in aerial differentiation all believed in integration and causal relationship to link man 👨 and environment in the regional perspective.

Main Post - Geography Optional Syllabus
Next Post -
Previous Post -

3. Morphology of Indian cities

by Leave a Comment Last Updated

Cities in India have a long history of evolution. So, the Morphology of Indian cities reflects its development during different historical phases.

In reality, no city would perfectly obey any of the generalized models like The Concentric Zonation Model, Hoyt's sectoral model (1939), or the Multiple Nuclei Model (1945).

Mostly all cities are partly spontaneous where history has played a more important role and are partly planned because of deliberate government policies.

American cities are much younger and therefore Central business district has exclusively commercial function, high risers, and skyscrapers.

But the Indian and European Central business districts are older. The cities will have a traditional architecture of not more than 2 or 3 stories. They will not have an exclusive commercial function. Such a Central business district will have a commercial function on the ground floor and first floor while the upper stories will have residential dwellings.

Since Indian and European cities are much older and have a long history, the region around the Central business district is always crowded with narrow by-lanes and a lack of civic amenities. Under the colonial experience, the New Central business district which is more planned was developed.

Almost all traditional cities of India have a lot of influence of different cultural architecture.

  1. The oldest cities with ancient origins have typical temple architecture. Temple towns of South India i.e. Madurai, Rameshwaram, Kanchipuram, Varanasi, etc.
  2. In medieval times with the advent of Muslim rulers, there was the influence of Islamic architecture (Persian influence). Indo-Saracenic style architecture with domes, minerals, gardens with waterfalls, Char Bagh pattern, etc.
  3. The European architecture is found in the presidencies and in the important administrative towns across India. The English brought with them railway colonies, civil lines, cantonments along with wider paved roads and better landscaping.

Social segregation is almost a feature of every city.

In European and American cities, the traditional segregation was on income lines. In India, segregation is based on racial and caste lines. Almost all cities of India have migrants from different regions and hence the cities also have linguistics segregations.

There are two models which can depict some of the features / Morphology of Indian cities

  1. The Bazaar Model
  2. The Port Based Model

The Bazaar Model

The planned extension will have its own European CBD and there is racial segregation.

Morphology of Indian cities
The Bazaar Model - Morphology of Indian cities

The Port Based Model.

Many cities like Kolkata, Chennai, Madras, Pondicherry developed around the ports. The ports were once factories. Eventually, the ports were fortified and served both military and commercial functions.

Morphology of Indian cities
The Port Based Model - Morphology of Indian cities

For Example, the city of Calcutta developed around Calcutta port. It has the fort, Fort William which initially was a factory and eventually armed. The European town is distinctly apart from the native town. The native town is a neglected unplanned region with old Bazaars and lacks amenities. The European towns and its planned extension have both racial and income class segregations.

The structure of planned cities in India

Almost all planned extensions in India were done during

  • Medieval times with Islamic architecture
  • British times with European architecture and better amenities
  • Post-independence modern planning which is invariably sectoral model (Iron grid model) Example - Chandigarh, Noida, Salt lake city, Navi Mumbai.

The sectoral model has a very efficient utilization of space in terms of connectivity with roads Crisscrossing at right angles.

Each sector is planned as a relatively self-contained sector with a shopping complex, schools, health services, etc.

Sectoral planning with mixed land uses tries to concentrate population so as to avoid the need for commuting over long distances for basic amenities.

Planning requires more clustering and encouraging vertical growth to deal with the congestion problem in the cities.

Main Post - Geography Optional Syllabus