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z Available online at http://www.journalcra.com INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF CURRENT RESEARCH International Journal of Current Research Vol. 7, Issue, 07, pp.18707-18714, July, 2015 ISSN: 0975-833X RESEARCH ARTICLE LIVING WITH THE WATER : A STUDY OF CHANGING LIVELIHOOD STRUCTURE IN A PERIPHERAL PART OF KOLKATA METROPOLITAN AREA, WEST BENGAL *,1Thakur, Jaya, Sivaramakrishnan and 2Dr. Lakshmi 1The Department of Geography, The University of Burdwan, Rajbati, Burdwan 2The Department of Geography, Jadavpur University ARTICLE INFO ABSTRACT Article History: The Baidyabati Khal (mentioned as River Kunti in Survey of India topographical sheet no.- 76 B/5) Received 26th April, 2015 is an important irrigation channel for not only Baidyabati but also for the whole district. It is Received in revised form connected to DVC canals through aquaducts and other canals. This canal, along with Dankuni 20th May, 2015 Drainage Canal creates a unique living space in the northern part of Baidyabati municipality. The Accepted 28th June, 2015 Drainage channels, like most of the waterways of deltaic Bengal, is suffering from the problem of Published online 31st July, 2015 heavy siltation and frequent inundation of the surrounding areas. The study area, part of ward no. 17 and 18 of Baidyabati municipality, situated in the northern and north eastern part of the Baidyabati Key words: municipality, represents a marginal social niche where people have learnt to live with seasonal inundation and without many urban civic facilities that their fellow civilians who live in the core and Social environment, more developed part of the same municipality enjoy. The present study tries to assess the social Land development, Marginalised urban society. environment of the area and analyses how land use changes have affected the direction of development and socio cultural dynamics of this area. The study is based on data collected by primary survey and analysis of those data by quantitative and qualitative methods. The study shows how land development is changing the life of this urban marginal society and tries to understand if this change is a part of balanced urban development. Copyright © 2015 Thakur, Jaya et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Citation: Thakur, Jaya, Sivaramakrishnan and Dr. Lakshmi, 2015. “Living with the water : A study of changing livelihood structure in a peripheral part of Kolkata metropolitan area, West Bengal”, International Journal of Current Research, 7, (7), 18707-18714. INTRODUCTION attached to the word and it’s relation with the welfare of the whole nation. “What is development? Increase in export? Urbanisation is a very complex process, especially, in a Supply of unrestricted Dollars for foreign visits of the educated country like India, which has a strong agrarian socio-cultural middle class? Or the change in hopes, dreams and aspirations base, complex physiographic characteristics, a history of for the boy who worked as a daily wage labour in an colonial occupation and the agony of the partition of the agricultural field of a remote village of our country?”(Marjit, country before independence. All these factors affected and, 2009) Another question is, how far these development of the are still affecting the urban dynamics of this country in various land is contributing towards the development of the people? ways. With increasing population, including increasing number Only time and proper socio-economic analysis brings in light of immigrants from hinterlands, the metropolitan cities and the true colours of land development of a certain area. areas around it with good accessibility are becoming a hotspot for land development and re-development. It is very important In Indian urban scenario, urban agglomeration around the to note that change in land-use for making commercial metros have a lot of different type of land uses, economic residential complexes is often called ‘land development’, activities and socio-cultural niches within the official urban because, “development is one of the most complex words in administrative boundaries compared to more easily identifiable the English language” (Johnston et al., 2005). This term has a belts in developed nations. Inside a metropolitan area in India, deep rooted history of imperial miss-use, colonial miss reading we can find vast tracts of agricultural lands, large shanties like of different socio-cultural communities and “failure of free Dharavi in Mumbai or Kathputli Colony in Delhi, socially market capitalism” (Johnston et al., 2005). The use of the word segregated communities based on language, religious or caste development only reminds again of the questions that are factors, areas specializing in different primary or secondary or *Corresponding author: Thakur, Jaya, tertiary activities which have a strong influence on the The Department of Geography, The University of Burdwan, Rajbati, Burdwan 18708 Thakur, Jaya et al. Living with the water : A study of changing livelihood structure in a peripheral part of Kolkata metropolitan area, West Bengal community out there . For proper and balanced development To enquire the future prospects of the study area of Indian urban centres the complexity of the different facets of urban communities must be taken into consideration. In these Database and Methodology Indian urban units we often see people attracted to the urban agglomerations due to scope or ‘hope’ for the scope of jobs and This work is mostly based on primary data which was obtained a better socio-economic life which draws a lot of people from from the field through a structured questionnaire and random areas around the urban agglomeration, especially the rural sampling technique was used for this purpose. Some secondary areas around it. These immigrants, in search of a better life, data, mostly collected from Census of India, has also been come to the urban areas but, are often forced to settle used. Different statistical techniques were used for analyzing themselves down in metro shanties or slums or any kind of the data and suitable cartographic techniques were used to cheap land available to them in the metropolitan area. The represent them including maps and diagrams. By analyzing and study area in question is such an area where the physical interpreting them conclusions have been drawn. attributes and socio-cultural factors have created a very interesting urban community around a seasonally inundated Background of the study area water meadow inside Kolkata Metropolitan Area situated in it’s north eastern part, on the eastern bank of river Hooghly. The area under study can actually be termed as a derelict water meadow crossed by a flood meadow. A water meadow is Study area defined as a “grassland subject to controlled irrigation using sluice gates to control the water” (http://www.farm- The study area is situated in parts of ward no.-17 and 18 of direct.co.uk/farming/history/watermedow/index.htm , retrieved Baidyabati municipality. It includes almost 2.5 square km. area 30 December, 2014) where as a flood meadow is defined as “a and extends from 88°19'4" East to 88°20'30" East longitude lowland covered in shallow water due to seasonal inundation” and from 22°47'31" seconds North to 22°48'39" North latitude (http://www.farm-direct.co.uk/farming/history/watermedow/ (Fig.1). It is included in Kolkata Metropolitan Area. The study index.htm retrieved 30 December, 2014). “Former water area is actually a water meadow beside the channel of River meadows are found along many river valleys, where the sluice Kunti, also known as “Baidyabati Khal” in the study area, gates, channels and field ridges may still be visible….The which is a tributary of the River Hooghly. drains in a derelict water-meadow are generally clogged and wet, and most of the carrier channels are dry…..The complex Rationality mixture of wet and drier ground often gives derelict water- meadows particularly high wetland biodiversity.” The study area is under Baidyabati municipality , which is the (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Water-meadow, retrieved 30 only municipality in the western part of river Hooghly directly December, 2014). The study area has all these characteristics. connected to Katwa, Burdwan (through Bandel) and The seasonal inundation gives the area a unique environmental Tarakeswar (through Sheoraphuli), all three major points of characteristics. The study area attracts a lot of wildlife, transit from rural hinterland of Kolkata Metropolitan Area. especially wild and migratory birds who are endangered due to Inspite of being a part of a municipal area , the study area rapid proliferation of build up areas. But, this same wet and dry itself is surrounded by agricultural fields. The study area is spell of the study area makes it complicated for residential very much accessible by road from Howrah, Kolkata and buildings which often need an elevated platform to avoid Burdwan. It is within 40 kilometres of Howrah and Kolkata inundation. A wetland habitat challenged by a flow of human and within 90 Kilometres of Burdwan. From Howrah, the study dwellers in search of cheap land, a fringe community trying to area can be reached by road through the NH-2 and G. T. Road survive without many urban facilities, a group of people living .To reach the study area from Kolkata by road, one has to take in the socio-economic margin, an area on the brink of change first B. T. Road , then crossing the Ganges, G.T. Road and NH- as the big real estate boom knocks on it’s door (or steps on it’s 2. The area is also very close to Baidyabati railway station on cheap land to be precise), there are a lot of ways to look at the Howrah-Burdwan mainline. It is within 5 minutes train journey study area.