Urbanization and its Consequences

According to the development and facilities, there are two types of areas. They are the rural area and urban area. Rural areas are the underdeveloped areas with fewer facilities whereas urban areas are the developed areas with all the facilities needed for citizens. In urban areas, there are good health system, education, transportation system etc. In underdeveloped or developing countries, there are more rural areas than urban areas but in developed countries, there are more urban areas than rural areas. The process of converting rural area to urban area by providing various facilities like of urban area is called urbanization. When facilities like education, transportation, health etc are provided to the rural area then it becomes semi-urban area as well as the urban area. To be the urban area, there should be the provision of facilities like education, health, transportation, pure drinking water, good employment opportunities, etc.

The word Urbanization derived from the latin word 'Urbal' that means civilized society. Urbanization means modernization, industrialization, good social lifestyle, busy people etc. There is more population in urban areas than in rural areas because in urban areas there are better facilities and opportunities. There are mainly three factors in urbanization. They are urban behavior, structure, and demography. Urban behavior means a change in fashion or lifestyle of people living there. Urban structure means a change in economic structure or economic activities. In the urban area, people are involved in business and trade rather than in agriculture. Demography means the concentration of the people in a few localities or areas.

Talking about Nepal, though some of the cities are declared as the urban area, they lack proper facilities that an urban area should have. Though Kathmandu is a main urban area, there are no proper transportation facilities, no employment generation, less health and education facilities, no electricity, shortage of pure drinking water, pollution etc. Rural areas are in bad condition. Plans and policies that are made for converting the rural area into the urban area are not properly implemented. The works are not properly done. Some of the cities of Nepal are declared as the urban area but only by name not by facilities and environment. The rural area represents agriculture, traditional lifestyle, subsistence nature whereas urban area indicates modern lifestyle, trade, and business as economic activities, large markets, good transportation, education and health facilities, proper management of pure drinking water and waste, electricity, busy people etc.

Classification of Urban Areas

Urban areas are classified into the different area on the basis of population size, space, social and economic structure. According to the Municipality, Act 1992 and the local self- governance Act 1999 have categorized the existing municipalities as mahanagarpalika, upa- mahanagarpalika and nagarpalika. These are classified on the basis of population size, facilities, and annual revenue.

To be in the list of upa- Mahanagarpa like, the area should have 1,00,00 minimum population with annual revenue at least Rs. 100 million with facilities of electricity, communication, pure drinking water etc. Similarly to be in the list of Mahanagarpalika, the area should have a minimum population size of 3,00,000 with annual revenue at least Rs. 400 million and all the facilities like proper communication, paved main and subsidiary roads, essential infrastructure for international sports events etc. In Nepal, there are 217 municipalities.

• Municipality (Nagarpalika): To be in the list of Nagarpalika, the VDCs or area should have minimum population size 20, 00 in the Terai, 10,000 in the hill or mountain region. The annual revenue of the area should be about Rs. 5 million in the terai and 500,000in the hill or the mountain region. The VDCs should have the facilities like electricity, road, drinking water, communication and other similar urban facilities. At present in our country, there are 205 Municipalities.

• Sub- metropolitan (Upa- Mahanagarpalika): To be in the list of Mahanagarpalika, the area should have the minimum population size of 1,00,000. The annual revenue should be at least Rs. 100 million and it should already receive the status of a nagarpalika. Similarly taking about facilities, it should have facilities of electricity, drinking water, communication, paved roads, education and health services of a high standard. The area should have the general infrastructure for national and international sports events and provision of public parks and city hall.
• Metropolitan (Mahanagarpalika): To be in the list of Mahanagarpalika, the area should have the minimum population size of 3,00,000. The annual revenue should be at least Rs. 400 million. It should have the facilities like proper facilities of electricity, drinking water, communication, paved main and subsidiary roads. There should be a good provision of health services, essential infrastructure for international sports events. The area should have at least one university with adequate opportunities for higher education in different fields. To be classified as Mahanagarpalika, the area should have already received the status of a Upa- mahanagarpalika.

The given table below shows the name list of Municipalities of Nepal, 2015 AD.