Urbanization And Migration Slum Dwellers Problems And Prospects: Programs And Policy Framework In Odisha, India
Jayaprada Sahoo, Lecturer, Department of Sociology, Gonasika Degree College, Keonjhar, Odisha-758001, India
Dr. Suresh Vadranam, Assistant Professor, Department of Political Science (DDE), Pondicherry University, Puducherry-605014, India
Dr. Barani Daran S, Post Doctoral Fellow (ICSSR), Department of Social Work, Pondicherry University, Puducherry-605014, India
ABSTRACT
The global cities of South mostly about 880 million people live in slums. Of these, approximately 236 million live in slums of cities in India, representing a third of all urban residents. As of late 2025, Odisha has an estimated 1. 8 Million multi-dimensionally poor people living in over 2,919 slums of the states urban population across its 116 cities and towns, constituting roughly 25% of the state’s total urban population, which is estimated to be around eight million. Slums in India are characterized by temporary structures, with limited access to basic infrastructure such as water supply and sanitation, inadequate living space, high densities, and limited property rights. Slums are the manifestation of extreme inequalities reflected not only in the immediate living conditions of slum dwellers, but also through many aspects such as access to healthcare and education that affects their lives. Despite decades of governmental interventions at the city, state, and national levels to address this challenge, slums persist in India. One of the main reasons for the policy failure is the top-down nature of design and implementation of interventions that follows one size-fit all approach. These policies have traditionally sought solutions from the technocrats and bureaucrats but rarely relied on people themselves to find alternatives. Policies have also failed to recognize the variation in the multi-dimensional nature of housing challenges commonly found in slums. In this regarding present paper emphasis issues and challenges and policy framework for urbanization and slum dweller at Cuttack city, Odisha
Keywords: Bureaucrats, Inequalities, Policy, Property, Slum Dwellers and Technocrats
