Suburban dynamics

A study of migration and governance in suburban Kolkata

Bibliographic Data

ID20154112
AuthorsR Bhattacharya (0000-0002-7244-8029, Centre for Decentralisation and Development Institute for Social and Economic Change Bengaluru India, corresponding author), Debarshi Guin (0000-0001-9042-826X, Department of Geography Presidency University Kolkata West Bengal India)
Year2024
Volume45
Issue3
Pages426-446
Publication date2024-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueSingapore Journal of Tropical Geography (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0129-7619 • E-ISSN: 1467-9493
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/sjtg.12560
OpenAlexW4401253406
LanguageEN
Citations received1
References cited36

Drawing from an analysis of the processes of migration and governance, this paper documents the suburban dynamics of Dankuni—an industrial town located on the western periphery of Kolkata. While in the last few decades, a significant portion of suburban Kolkata has witnessed economic and demographic stagnation or decline, Dankuni has grown by attracting migrants mostly from nearby suburban towns/cities rather than from the city core or distant rural areas. The town also has a robust industrial foundation which provides gainful employment to the majority of its working residents underscoring their independence from the central city for livelihoods. Although the town's growth is driven by the sustained flow of migrants, they are unevenly distributed as majority of them prefer to settle in the inner part of the town where civic infrastructure and communication facilities are better than those in other parts of town. However, over time, especially since the establishment of the municipality in 2008, property prices swiftly escalated in this most sought‐after zone. Consequently, lower‐income migrant households have filtered out to the outer parts of the town. This spatial filtering has increasingly fragmented the suburban landscape. This splintering effect has been reinforced by the municipality's inclination to prioritize relatively affluent inner city neighbourhoods when it comes to the provision of basic amenities and civic infrastructure

Agriculture · Business · Corporate governance · Economic geography · Economic growth · Economics · Geography · Independence (probability theory) · Industrialisation · Livelihood · Political science · Socioeconomics · Sociology · Urbanization · Urban and Rural Development Challenges · Urban Planning and Governance · Urban, Neighborhood, and Segregation Studies

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