For a city that aims to gradually turn into a Smart City, the news that there are ‘slum-like’ areas in Panaji will be somewhat akin to a spanner in the works for authorities. The nomenclature is important though. There are no slums in Panaji, but areas that are slum-like. This means that although there are areas and households that needs upgradation, if it does want to become a Smart City.
The news is courtesy a survey conducted by the Regional Centre for Urban and Environmental Studies, which is supported by the Union Ministry of Urban Development. The report states that 2517 households have been identified under the ‘slum’ category and classified as ‘slum-like’ areas. These 2517 households are in around 24 of Panaji’s 30 wards and are home to about 8368 people, the gender divide nearly equal.
What makes these areas slum-like, are the lack of facilities, amenities, literacy levels and even income levels. The situation, if you go by the numbers, is quite dire. Only a little over 18 percent have public taps outside their premises and about three percent use wells. Only about 1033 households get water for less than an hour daily and about 330 get water for more than two hours daily. Around 51 percent have a septic tank and flush latrines of their own; 329 households have a dry latrine, while 520 households are left to defacate in the open. This is a startling statistic, not just in light of the Smart City plan. There is also the fact that 73 households have no bathroom facilities while 581 have bathrooms outside their premises and 21 households depends on community bathrooms. When constituents do not even have proper spaces to bathe and defecate, it certainly does say something about the state of the city’s authorities.
But here are some statistics that are even more serious. Only 2453 out of the 2517 households have shared their land tenure status details. About 604 households have occupancy rights and possession certificates of their land and 573 live in rented houses. But, a total of 31 percent have encroached on private land while 179 households (just 7.3 percent) have encroached on public lands. The encroachments is clearly visible in three wards. The education stats too are quite stark and literacy levels are low. Just 253 of the 8368 people are literate.
These are not slum areas but slum-like, a very fine line given the statistics. But, does it even matter? The authorities are non-committal, with some councilors asking for better facilities to be afforded to these residents of Panaji. So what does the government do? It can go on a massive demolition drive like the recent one in Baina, but that would leave thousands of people homeless. Or, it can work to give these people better facilities, like toilets and bathrooms within their houses and also give them water and electricity. For that to happen, these areas will have to be regularised, which will be a problem. For the 179 households on private land, it will be a massive issue.
The government has to tread carefully on this issue and work towards a solution. If the Smart City status has to be awarded to Panaji, then these households and the people who live in them will need to have a better socio-economic status.
