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Socio-Spatial Explanation of Crime: a Study on Kolkata Metropolitan Area

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Socio-Spatial Explanation of Crime: a Study on Kolkata Metropolitan Area Trans.Inst.Indian Geographers ISSN 0970-9851 Socio-Spatial Explanation of Crime: A Study on Kolkata Metropolitan Area Supratim Karmakar and Arghya Saha, Visva Bbharati, West Bengal Abstract Crime is an integral part of human society. The pathological disorder of crime varies spatially. A prominent difference in the nature of crime can be envisaged in rural and urban areas. Urban areas often show more number of reported crimes than its surrounding rural counter parts and the nature of crime is more complicated in urban areas. The present study tries to unfold the nature of urban crime with special emphasis on Property crimes and Drugging, in the light of various social theories of crime. To have a better understanding of these theoretical explanations of criminality, Kolkata have been chosen as a field of ground reality. Kolkata as a melting pot creates tremendous forces which enhances huge accumulation of people from various socio-cultural backgrounds help to create distinct neighbourhoods with distinct spatial entity. This kind of variability in environment within a city generates different forms of crime and delinquency. Key words: Crime, Conflict, Subculture, Urbanism, Labelling. Introduction Criminality is like an instinct in human society has a great role to play in shaping nature. For a long time, criminality is defined up one’s personality. There are numerous in the context of biological or psychological theories which tried to link the factors like characteristics of the offenders. From this environment, poverty, unemployment, point of view, the causes of criminality cultural norms, and societal rules with the entirely depend upon the individual traits nature of crime. Social changes brought of the offender. This kind of an explanation changes in the nature of crime. In rural diverts our view from the greater social and societies, where the communities are closely environmental context within which a crime knitted, the rate of crime has to be lower was being committed. There is nothing than the urban counter parts. Urban centers wrong to say that a crime is a kind of mal are full of heterogeneous population with activity which is carried out by an individual high density. Due to their varied nature and or a certain group of people. Their aspiration different place of origin, urban community is to commit such offences cannot be solely not well interwoven. High rate of migration, attributed to their personality traits. Even if huge population gathering, creation of it is attributed to their personality traits, then slums often create dangerous subgroups or one have to remember that environment and ‘Residuum’ (Phillips, 1977; Jones, 1982). Transactions | Vol. 38, No. 2, 2016 | 191 Objective and Methodology explanatory work. Apart from the theoretical The main objective of this paper is to justification some statistical methods like explain the causes of certain forms of urban bivariate and multivariate correlation; crimes and their spatiality (like theft and simple mapping techniques are being used. drugging) from the view points of different The study has been supplemented by the social theories. Ecological theory of data support collected from Head Quarters Chicago School, Situational theory of crime of Kolkata Police and Kolkata Municipal analysis, Urbanism Hypothesis of Louis Corporation. The police station wise data Wirth, Theory of Social conflict, Radical have been converted into the ward wise data Approach of Criminology and views of according to their place of occurrences of Cultural criminology are considered for this criminal incidences. 192 | Transactions | Vol. 38, No. 2, 2016 Study Area areas with high offence rate. The slum To understand the phenomena of crime areas are often seen to be highly crime from various theoretical standpoints, prone in nature. The social constructs of Kolkata has been chosen (Figure 1). This the slum areas make those areas vulnerable city has a multiplicity in its nature of to criminality. The residents are often seen demography, economy and above of all to commit offence. In these slum areas, cultural heterogeneity. Thus the criminal social disorganization is the main reason for incidents show a varied nature keeping pace criminality (Shaw and McKay, 1942). Social with socio-spatial variability. Total numbers disorganization is linked with multiple of one forty one wards are there in Kolkata occupancy dwellings, abundant properties, metropolitan area. The wards are stretched broken windows, residences of industrial from the bank of Hooghly river in the west labours etc. (Bottoms et al., 1992). (Plate1 to Eastern Metropolitan (EM) Bypass in the and 2 See page 188). In Kolkata there are east; North 24 Parganas in the north to South few pockets which are known for frequent 24 Parganas in the south. Nature and intensity occurrences of property crimes like theft and of crime varies from the port areas of west to pick pocketing. These types of crimes are real estate dominated east of Kolkata. mainly carried by the people who are in need of money or greed of money. A huge number of cases of property crimes are reported in Environments and areas of high rate of the economically well off neighborhoods offence (Figure 2, 3). It is quite obvious that the From the view points of ecological offenders will always target the posh areas understanding of crime, there are certain for committing property crimes. neighborhoods which are demarcated as Fig. 2 Fig. 3 Transactions | Vol. 38, No. 2, 2016 | 193 It is clearly seen that the wards with but it might also show that the resultant highest percentage of Below Poverty Line inequality in economic position, the pure households are showing the lowest number fact of poverty, or boredom and free time of reported cases of theft. From the view might be factors in the equation of crime. point of Rational Choice Theory (Becker, But the there are some other views about this 1968) it is logical for the offenders not explanation of property crimes in relation to to choose the poverty stricken areas for unemployment. In fact, in case of Kolkata committing the theft (Table 2). In those non working population or marginal workers relatively economically backward areas the concentration is not showing any significant outcome the offence will be low. Another relation with the incidences of property issue may lead to the commitment of the crimes (Table 3). Crow et al. (1989), Box property crime that is unemployment. (1987), Long and Witte (1981) all conclude Unemployment is also associated with that crime and unemployment are related, wealth or lack of it. The non working but the relationship is not constantly strong; population often chooses to do some petty and that it is probably true for very localized property crimes for the sake of survival. The pockets than for an entire urban center. This unemployment leads to poverty, which in correlation is consistent in the case of young turn give rise of property crimes (Table 1). males mainly. Unemployment is mostly If crime increases with unemployment, this associated with the juveniles who commit might indicate a feeling of unfair treatment, property crimes. Table 1 : Correlation between BPL Household, Nonworking Population and Marginal Workers of Kolkata BPL NON MARGINAL HOUSEHOLD WORKER WORKER BPL Pearson Correlation 1 0.602** 0.509** HOUSEHOLD Sig.(2 tailed) .000 .000 N 141 141 141 NON WORKER Pearson Correlation 0.602** 1 0.822** Sig.(2 tailed) .000 .000 N 141 141 141 MARGINAL Pearson Correlation 0.509** 0.822** 1 WORKER Sig.(2 tailed) .000 .000 N 141 141 141 **Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2 tailed) 194 | Transactions | Vol. 38, No. 2, 2016 Table 2 : Correlation between BPL Household and Property Crimes in Kolkata PROPERTY BPL HOUSEHOLD CRIMES PROPERTY Pearson Correlation 1 -0.533** CRIMES Sig.(2 tailed) .000 N 141 141 BPL Pearson Correlation -0.533** 1 HOUSEHOLD Sig.(2 tailed) .000 N 141 141 **Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2 tailed) Table 3 : Correlation between Working Composition and Property Crimes NON MARGINAL PROPERTY WORKER WORKER CRIMES NON WORKER Pearson Correlation 1 0.822** -0.271** Sig.(2 tailed) .000 .000 N 141 141 141 MARGINAL Pearson Correlation 0.822** 1 -0.225** WORKER Sig.(2 tailed) .000 .000 N 141 141 141 PROPERTY Pearson Correlation -0.271** -0.225** 1 CRIMES Sig.(2 tailed) .000 .000 N 141 141 141 **Correlation is significant at the 0.01 level (2 tailed) Crime as a Natural Manifestation through the economic inequality. This idea Social conflict theory views the problem of conflict in terms of economic inequality property crime in a different view. The has a long history of discussion. Karl Marx conflict view gives more recognition to the (1848) predicted the collapse of capitalist fact that within any sizable society there society through the conflict between groups with conflicting needs and values. labour class and the capitalists. Economic From this emerges a general discussion of inequality creates a sense of deprivation struggle whish arise over power, status and among the people living below poverty the desirable, but often scarce, resources line. This feeling of deprivation often takes of society. This conflict can be generated a form delinquent behaviour. Economic Transactions | Vol. 38, No. 2, 2016 | 195 inequality draws a line between the haves fashioned high rises. A conflict between the and have-nots in the society. Around this slum dwellers and these powerful groups of line of separation a gray zone of conflict real estate developers is inevitable. Here, arises. The poor people feel exploited by the crime is not an abnormality, but rather is well off people. From Marxian view point the natural response to an attack on their of crime delinquent attitude of the exploited way of life (Vold, 1958). Very often the people against the upper class people is economically powerless groups lose their a natural manifestation of their struggle.
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