Big picture
Rapid population growth, industrialisation and urbanisation have brought development, but also serious environmental and social problems. Pollution of water, air, land and the soundscape, piles of urban waste, overcrowded slums and degraded land all affect people's health and livelihoods.
This chapter examines these problems in India, their sources and effects, and one example of how a community restored its land.
Learning goals
Explain environmental pollution and its types.
Describe the sources and effects of water, air, noise and land pollution.
Explain the problem of urban waste disposal.
Explain rural-to-urban migration and the problem of slums.
Explain land degradation and its causes.
Describe the Jhabua case study of watershed management.
Core ideas
1. Environmental pollution
Environmental pollution results from the "release of substances and energy from waste products of human activities". It is classified by the medium through which pollutants spread: air, water, land and noise pollution.
2. Water pollution
Natural sources: erosion, landslides, decay of plants and animals.
Human sources: industrial (effluents with heavy metals, chemicals; industries like leather, pulp and paper, textiles, chemicals), agricultural (fertilisers, pesticides, herbicides), and cultural activities such as pilgrimages, religious fairs and tourism, as well as urban sewage.
The Ganga and Yamuna are among the most polluted rivers in stretches near cities like Kanpur, Varanasi, Delhi and Agra. The Namami Gange programme (2014) aims to clean and protect the Ganga.
Effects: water-borne diseases such as diarrhoea, intestinal worms and hepatitis; harm to aquatic life.
3. Air pollution
Air pollution is the addition of contaminants such as dust, fumes, gases, fog, odour, smoke or vapour to the air, in quantities harmful to humans, animals and property.
Sources: combustion of fossil fuels, mining and industries; pollutants include oxides of sulphur and nitrogen, hydrocarbons, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, lead and asbestos.
Effects: respiratory, nervous and circulatory disorders; smoky fog (smog) in cities; acid rain; and contribution to global warming.
4. Noise pollution
Noise pollution is the state of unbearable and uncomfortable noise caused by various sources: factories, mechanised construction and demolition, automobiles and aircraft, sirens, loudspeakers and festivals.
Noise is measured in decibels (dB). Prolonged exposure causes hearing loss, stress, sleep disturbance and high blood pressure.
Noise pollution is location-specific: it is highest in urban areas, along highways, and near airports and industries.
5. Land pollution and urban waste disposal
Land pollution is caused by the dumping of solid waste and use of chemicals. In rural areas, it is due to the use of fertilisers and pesticides; in cities, due to the disposal of solid waste.
Urban waste: cities generate huge volumes of household, industrial and commercial waste. Waste is often dumped in landfills or open spaces, where it attracts flies and rats, causes foul smell, and pollutes soil and water.
Problems include diseases (typhoid, diphtheria, diarrhoea, malaria, cholera), blocking of drains during rains, and air pollution from burning waste.
Solutions: segregation of waste at source, recycling and reuse, composting organic waste, and using waste to generate energy. The Swachh Bharat Mission (2014) aims to improve sanitation and waste management.
6. Rural-to-urban migration
Migrants from rural areas come to cities in search of jobs, because of push factors (poverty, unemployment, landlessness) and pull factors (jobs, better wages and services).
Most migrants are poorly educated, unskilled or semi-skilled and end up in low-paid, informal jobs.
Cities can't absorb so many migrants, which leads to slums, unemployment and pressure on services.
7. Slums and the case of Dharavi
Slums are residential areas of the poorest people, with dilapidated houses, poor hygiene, poor ventilation, lack of basic amenities like drinking water, light and toilets, overcrowding, narrow lanes and high incidence of disease.
Slum dwellers often work in low-paid, risky informal jobs and are vulnerable to drug abuse, alcoholism, crime and social exclusion.
Dharavi in Mumbai is one of the largest slums in Asia. It has narrow lanes, very cramped housing, and poor sanitation, yet it also has thriving small industries such as pottery, leather and recycling. It shows both the hardship and the resilience of slum dwellers.
8. Land degradation
Land degradation is a temporary or permanent decline in the productive capacity of land.
Natural causes: gullies and ravines, desert or coastal sands, barren rocky areas, steep slopes and glacial areas.
Human causes: shifting cultivation, degraded forests, degraded pastures, mining and industrial waste lands, and waterlogged, saline and alkaline land due to over-irrigation.
Of the various types of wasteland, degraded forest areas form the largest category caused by human activities.
9. Case study: Jhabua district
Jhabua is in the westernmost part of Madhya Pradesh, one of the most backward tribal districts, inhabited mainly by Bhil and Bhilala tribes. The land was severely degraded because of deforestation and overgrazing.
Watershed management programmes, funded by the Ministry of Rural Development and the Ministry of Agriculture, helped prevent land degradation and improve soil quality.
Villagers, through community efforts, developed pasture land (planting grasses and protecting it from grazing for at least two years), practised stall-feeding of animals instead of open grazing, and planted trees.
In the Petlawad block, Bhil villagers revitalised large parts of common property resources through their own efforts. The programme succeeded because of community participation: the people took ownership of the land's restoration.
A reliable approach to questions
For each type of pollution, give sources, effects and examples.
Explain urban waste problems and solutions.
Explain why rural-to-urban migration creates slums, using Dharavi.
Classify causes of land degradation as natural or human.
Explain the Jhabua case: location, people, problem, measures and outcome.
Connections that matter
India: water resources covers water quality and conservation.
India: population explains migration streams.
Planning and sustainable development discusses watershed and sustainable approaches.
Common mistakes
Saying noise pollution is equally spread everywhere. It is location-specific, highest in cities and near airports and highways.
Calling Jhabua a district of Rajasthan. It is in western Madhya Pradesh.
Treating slums only as places of poverty. Places like Dharavi also have active small industries.
Ignoring cultural activities as sources of water pollution.
Revision checklist
I can explain the four types of pollution with sources and effects.
I can explain urban waste disposal problems and solutions.
I can explain rural-to-urban migration and slums.
I can explain land degradation and its causes.
I can describe the Jhabua watershed case study.