Socio-spatial Structure:

1. Rural, Rurality and Village;

2. Urban Areas, Towns and Cities;
3. Rural-Urban Contrast and Continuum.
4. Urbanisation;
5. Rural and Urban Development Policies and Programmes

Rural
Is an area, where the people are engaged in primary industry in the sense that they produce things
directly for the first time in cooperation with nature- Srivastava (1961).
According to some sociologist village is the one which is not a city. If in a geographical area the
main occupation and means of living of the people is farming then that society is called a rural
society. If in a geographical area 50% or more than that people’s main occupation or means of
livelihood is farming then that community is said to be a rural community. If in a geographical
area more than 50% of the population depend on farming that area is said to be a rural area.
There are various factors and conditions responsible for having different types of
rural settlements in India. These include:

(i) physical features – nature of terrain, altitude, climate and availability of

water
(ii) cultural and ethenic factors – social structure, caste and religion
(iii) security factors – defence against thefts and robberies.

Rural settlements in India can broadly be put into four types:

• Clustered, agglomerated or nucleated,

• Semi-clustered or fragmented,

• Hamleted, and

• Dispersed or isolated.

Rurality
is used as an expression of different rural areas as not being homogeneously defined. Rurality is "a
condition of place-based homeliness shared by people with common ancestry or heritage and who
inhabit traditional, culturally defined areas or places statutorily recognized to be rural".
There is no single definition or measurement of rurality. It is often based on population size,
population density, or geographical proximity to urban areas.

Village
The term ‘village’ refers to a small area with small population which follows
agriculture not only as an occupation but also as a way of life. Therefore, the village
is clearly an important and viable social entity to its people, who also take part in
the larger society and share in the pattern of the civilization.
Urban

The term “urban” is used in demographic as well as sociological sense. In demographic sense,
the urban areas are defined as per population, population density or other such quantifiable
criteria. In sociological sense, heterogeneity, inter-dependence, quality of life etc. are focused.
In rural societies, the social bonds are based on close personal ties of family, caste, kinship or
friendship and emphasis is on tradition, informality, consensus etc. In urban societies, the
impersonal and secondary relationships predominate and the social bonds are based on formal,
contractual and dependence over each other in special functions or services performed.
 Town

Up to Census 1951, the definition of a town included all habitations with population of
more than 5000; every municipality/corporation/notified area of whatever size; and all
civil lines not included within the municipal units. In 1961, this definition was changed
and a town included:
 A minimum population of 5,000 and a population density not less than 1,000 persons
per square mile
 75% of the working population should be engaged in non-agricultural activities
 The place should have a few characteristics and civic amenities like transport and
communication, banks, schools, markets, recreation centers, hospitals, electricity, and
newspapers, etc.
The above definition was continued till 2001 census. For the Census of India 2011, the
definition of urban area is as follows
1. All places with a municipality, corporation, cantonment board or notified town area
committee, etc.
2. All other places which satisfied the following criteria:
1. A minimum population of 5,000
2. At least 75 per cent of the male main working population engaged in non-agricultural
pursuits; and
3. A density of population of at least 400 persons per sq. km.
The first category of urban units is called Statutory Towns. These towns are notified
under law by the concerned State/UT Government and have local bodies like municipal
corporations, municipalities, municipal committees, etc., irrespective of their
demographic characteristics.
The second category of Towns is known as Census Town. These were identified on the
basis of Census 2001 data.

Evolution of Towns in India

Towns flourished since prehistoric times in India. Even at the time of Indus valley
civilisation, towns like Harappa and Mohanjodaro were in existence. The following
period has witnessed evolution of towns. It continued with periodic ups and downs
until the arrival of Europeans in India in the eighteenth century. On the basis of their
evolution in different periods, Indian towns may be classified as:
• Ancient towns,
• Medieval towns, and
• Modern towns.

a- Ancient Towns

There are number of towns in India having historical background spanning over
2000 years. Most of them developed as religious and cultural centres. Varanasi is
one of the important towns among these. Prayag (Allahabad), Pataliputra (Patna),
Madurai are some other examples of ancient towns in the country.

b- Medieval Towns

About 100 of the existing towns have their roots in the medieval period. Most of
them developed as headquarters of principalities and kingdoms. These are fort
towns which came up on the ruins of ancient towns. Important among them are
Delhi, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Lucknow, Agra and Nagpur.

c- Modern Towns

The British and other Europeans have developed a number of towns in India.
Starting their foothold on coastal locations, they first developed some trading ports
such as Surat, Daman, Goa, Pondicherry, etc. The British later consolidated their
hold around three principal nodes – Mumbai (Bombay), Chennai (Madras), and
Kolkata (Calcutta) – and built them in the British style. Rapidly extending their
domination either directly or through control over the princely states, they
established their administrative centres, hilltowns as summer resorts, and added
new civil, administrative and military areas to them. Towns based on modern
 industries also evolved after 1850. Jamshedpur can be cited as an example. After
independence, a large number of towns have been developed as administrative
headquarters, e.g. Chandigarh, Bhubaneswar, Gandhinagar, Dispur, etc. and
industrial centres such as Durgapur, Bhilai, Sindri, Barauni. Some old towns also
developed as satellite towns around metropolitan cities such as Ghaziabad, Rohtak,
Gurgaon around Delhi. With increasing investment in rural areas, a large number of
medium and small towns have developed all over the country.

Functional Classification of Towns

Apart from their role as central or nodal places, many towns and cities perform
specialised services. Some towns and cities specialise in certain functions and they
are known for some specific activities, products or services. However, each town
performs a number of functions. On the basis of dominant or specialised functions,
Indian cities and towns can be broadly classified as follows:
1. Administrative towns and cities
2. Industrial towns
3. Transport Cities
4. Commercial towns
5. Mining towns
6. Garrison Cantonment towns
7. Educational towns
8. Religious and cultural towns
9. Tourist towns

City

A city is a large human settlement. It can be defined as a permanent and densely settled place
with administratively defined boundaries whose members work primarily on non-agricultural
tasks. Cities generally have extensive systems for housing, transportation, sanitation, utilities,
land use, and communication. Their density facilitates interaction between people, government
organizations and businesses, sometimes benefiting different parties in the process.[1] According
to Lewis Mumford (1937) writes the city as “a theater of social action”.
The word “city” and the related “civilization“ come, via Old French, from the Latin root civitas,
originally meaning citizenship or community member and eventually coming to correspond
with urbs, meaning “city” in a more physical sense.

Classification of cities on the basis of their population:

 Tier-I with people 1,00,000 and above

 Tier-II with 50,000 to 99,999
 Tier-III with 20,000 to 49,999
 Tier-IV with 10,000 to 19,999
 Tier-V with 5,000 to 9,999
 Tier VI with less than 5,000.

According to Adna Weber, concentration of people into cities was a product of the economic
forces which were becoming significant with the industrial revolution, which introduced changes
such as steam power, mechanization, and trade and commerce etc.

The political causes of the emergence of cities were as follows:

i) Legislation on promoting freedom of trade.
ii) Legislation promoting freedom of migration.
iii) Centralised administration with its location of persons in civic centres.
iv) Free forms of land tenure politically defended in the city.

The social causes were as follows:

i. Education.
ii. Amusements.
iii. Higher standards of living.
iv. Attraction of intellectual association.
v. Habituation of an urban environment.
vi. Diffusion of knowledge of the values of city life.

Urbanization

Urbanization in India began to accelerate after independence, due to the country's adoption of
a mixed economy, which gave rise to the development of the private sector. The population residing
in urban areas in India, according to the 1901 census, was 11.4%, [1] increasing to 28.53% by the
2001 census, and is now currently 34% in 2017 according to the World Bank.[2] According to a survey
by the United Nations, in 2030 40.76% of country's population is expected to reside in urban areas.
[3]
As per the World Bank, India, along with China, Indonesia, Nigeria, and the United States, will lead
the world's urban population surge by 2050.

The main causes of urbanization in India are:

 Expansion in government services, as a result of the Second World War

 Migration of people during the partition of India[15][16][17]
 Industrial development in urban areas
 India's eleventh Five-Year Plan, which targeted urbanization as a means to accelerate economic
development[18]
 Economic opportunities, including employment
 Better opportunities for education
 Infrastructure facilities in urban areas [19]
 Growth of the private sector after 1990[20]
 Land fragmentation: some villages have been erased due to construction of roads, highways,
dams, and other infrastructure
 Non-profitability of farming

Difference between rural and urban settlements

The basic differences between rural and urban settlements are as follows :
• The rural settlements derive their life support or basic economic needs from land
based primary economic activities, whereas, urban settlements, depend on
processing of raw materials and manufacturing of finished goods on the one hand
and a variety of services on the other.
• Cities act as nodes of economic growth, provide goods and services not only to
urban dwellers but also to the people of the rural settlements in their hinterlands in
return for food and raw materials. This functional relationship between the urban
and rural settlements takes place through transport and communication network.
• Rural and urban settlements differ in terms of social relationship, attitude and
outlook. Rural people are less mobile and therefore, social relations among them
are intimate. In urban areas, on the other hand, way of life is complex and fast, and
social relations are formal.
Rural development

is a comprehensive term which essentially focuses on action for the development of area which
is lagging behind in overall development of village economy.

Rural Development (RD) is a process, which aims at improving the well being and self
realization of people living outside the urbanized areas through collective process.

According to Agarwal (1989), rural development is a strategy designed to improve the economic
and social life of rural poor.

According to Dr. Swaminathan, “The process of developing the weaker sections of the rural
society and making them strong in all aspects is rural development.”

The United Nations defines Rural Development as: Rural Development is a process of change,
by which the efforts of the people themselves are united, those of government authorities to
improve their economic, social and cultural conditions of communities in to the life of the nation
and to enable them to contribute fully to national programme. Rural Development is a process of
bringing change among rural community from the traditional way of living to progressive way of
living. It is also expressed as a movement for progress.

Rural and Urban Development Policies and Programmes

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