Growth of slum areas and changing land use pattern in Guwahati city, India

Abstract

Slum is a characteristic feature of present day third world cities, which influences the land cover, land use pattern and urban infrastructure to a great extent. A large number of people live in the slums and the number and size of these areas are growing continuously. Poor people being unable to afford a proper house encroach upon wetlands, floodways, slopes etc, creating a land use with negative impact on the urban environment. This paper is an attempt to study the growth of slums in Guwahati, the nodal centre of North East India and its impact on the changing land use pattern of the city. The work is based on primary data and different sources of secondary information. To assess the existing land use pattern of the city remote sensing data have been used.