Unit 1

Rural Urban Linkage

Shachita Kuikel
shachitakuikel88@gmail.com
 Concept of Rural Urban Linkage
a. Concept of Urban Center
• Urban is a center which is developed in terms of
facilitates and infrastructure.
• Nonfarm activities and industrial sector led
profession.
• Centers are developed to supply secondary goods
and services to rural people.
• The advancement of technology.
• Administrative facilities are provided by urban
center.
 b. Rural\ Hinterland

• Rural areas are also called hinterland area which is a

surrounding area under the influence of urban
center.
• It is beyond industrial and infrastructural
development.
• It products primary goods.
• It provides raw materials, labor and food stuffs to
urban area.
• The primary profession of rural people is agriculture.
 c. Concept of Rural Urban Linkage

• Rural urban linkage is always a dynamic and multi-

dimensional approach to deal with the relationship
between rural and urban area.
• Transportation, communication and institution system or
service delivery systems are important elements to
facilitate linkage, flow and interaction between rural
hinterland and market center.
• It is related with the two way relationship between rural
and urban area.
• The flow of goods and services is based to establish the
proper and useful relation between rural and urban area.
 Definition of Rural Urban Linkage

• According to UN Center of Human Settlement: “Rural urban

linkage is an integrated approach to promote balanced and
mutually supportive rural-urban development.
• Harish and Moore: “The rural urban debates and linkage had
been focused on rural agriculture vs. urban industry and
sectoral conflicts vs. allocation of resources in rural and urban
area”.
• ADB: “Rural urban linkage is an integrated requirement to be
fulfilled with the interaction of rural urban relation in regard
of income generation, cultural activities, growth, public
development program, people’s participation and cultural
activities in both rural and urban area.
 Essential factors for developing rural urban Relation

• To promote services and facilities available in small

towns this could encourage for the rural
development through urban areas for production.
• Transformation of rural areas in regard of socio-
economic aspect of rural area.
• Planning and distribution of administration, political
division and resources allocation both in rural and
urban areas.
• Local people’s participation in decision making level.
 Three Major Elements of Rural Urban Linkage

• City Centers: Their structure, functions and

distribution of resources.
• Rural Hinterlands: Sources, types and utilization.
Available resources and their allocation and flow to
urban.
• Distance: elements which link rural and urban area
like, road and transportation, entrepreneurs and
service delivery system.
 Conceptual Issues in Urban Rural Linkage:
Distinction, Dichotomy and Continuum
a. Rural Urban Distinction
• This is one of the major issues of rural urban linkage.
• The major distinction found in rural and urban area or
the majors to maintain distinction between rural and
urban areas are: human settlement, size of population,
density of population, different occupation and facilities
and services, environment and living standard.
• Process of transformation: agriculture to industry in
rural area and industrialization to more urbanization.
 b. Rural-Urban Dichotomy (Dualism)

• Rural area changes to urban area through a long period of

time exercising modern techniques.
• The dualism created after industrialization due to
concentration of industrial activities and migration.
• It creates rural urban regional imbalance in economic
development.
• The following are major examples of it:
i. Demographic dichotomy: Size of population of rural and
urban area
ii. Occupational dichotomy: Agricultural and non
agricultural/ industrial occupation.
iii. Living Standard: High and low living standard depend
upon income and facilities
iv. Infrastructural facilities: less development and high
infrastructural development.
v. Social dichotomy: traditional and modern thinking
pattern.
vi. Level of Income: High in urban area and low in rural
area.
vii. Settlement pattern: Dispersed and compact
settlement.
viii. Density of population: High and low density of
population.
 c. Rural- Urban Continuum

• It is a sequence with gradual change/ development from one

extreme to another.
• Reciprocal & overlapped relation in economic, spatial, cultural
and social dimension between rural and urban settlement.
• According to this concept, urban and rural areas can not be
differentiated because of inherent interplay and overlaps.
• Two extremes of continuum: one is most urban and another is
most rural.
• There is no definite point where rural ends and urban begins.
• This is useful for bridging the gap between rural and urban
areas not in absolute form but in relative form.
 Factors for Evolution of early Settlement:
Hydraulic, Economic, Social and religious
a. Environmental/ Hydraulic Theory
• This theory particularly deals with the concept of surplus.
• The environmental bases include three principal factors such
as FERTILE SOIL, SUITABLE CLIMATE and WATER SUPPLY.
• A surplus production support for non- agricultural production.
• The existence of food surplus signifies a degree of human
control over environment and allows an agricultural
productivity above subsistence levels.
• The surplus is essentially an excess product over the
minimum, which is necessary to sustain life of people.
• It means functioning of urbanism in general.
• The first cities grew in the wake of the agricultural
revolution of the Neolithic period which saw
domestication of animals, development of cereal
production and a growing sophistication in irrigation
techniques.
• The creation of surplus also necessarily established a
pattern of complex bureaucratic controls which
brought into being an administrative system of an
urban character which supposed to control over
collection and distribution of the surplus foods.
• Hydraulic agriculture involves a specific type of division
of labor such as intensification of cultivation and
requirement of cooperation on a large scale.
 b. Economic Factor Theory

• The economic factor considers city as market place.

• Two closely interrelated interpretations can be
given for economic theories of urban origin i.e.
MERCHANTILE which views the cities as the product
of long distance trade, and second is MARKET which
interprets the city as the center created by a region
to focus its internal process of exchange.
• The very first urban settlement originated on the
plains of Tigris R. Euphrates valleys in Mesopotamia
in between 4000 BC- 3000BC.
• Other river valleys of primary urbanization like: Nile
valley, Indus valley, North China plain etc. are also
originated as a product of economic factor. In these
areas urbanization was generated through internal
forces rather secondary diffusion from other places.
• The largest cities grew up in a major trading routes
of Europe.
 c. Military/ Force/ Security Theory
• This theory refers to defensive strong point one of the
main reason of growth of early towns.
• Most of the early towns were walled to keep out hostile
neighbors.
• Warfare may often have made a significant contribution
to the intensification of urban development by inducing
a concentration of settlement for purposes of defense
and by stimulating craft specialization.
• The origin of town focused on gather people together
for the protection of communal defense.
 d. Traditional/ Religious/Social Theory

• This theory explains that the early towns grew up as

ceremonial complexes consisting of temples, shrines,
church, mosque, and palaces which provided as
essential element of urban condition of folk, for
attachment to a certain locality and difference to the
rights of others and to change from nomadic culture to
civilized urban culture that required social organization.
• Religion became the highly effective force, which
created new loyalties and provided a social solidarity
superior to and mote lasting that based on natural
kinship.
 Historical development and Change of Settlement System in Nepal

• Nepal with an area of 147,181 km2, which consists of

three regions viz. Mountain, Terai and Hilly region.
• The Hilly Region:
• Throughout the history Kathmandu Valley acted as a key
actor in economic development where all of the major
economic activities took place, the outer hilly region had
minor role in economic viewpoint.
• The settlement in Kathmandu valley started as early as
600 B.C. later the settlement grew up particularly at the
site of elevated plain above the flood level of the rivers
during the Lichchhavi period (200-1200 AD).
• During the Malla Period (1200- 1769 AD), most of the
prominent settlements in the valley appear to have
enlarged and consolidated into a compact form during
18th century. (Kathmandu, Vaktapur and Patan).
• Beside Kathmandu valley the growth & development of
early settlements in other hill areas started to the latter
part of the 18th century.
• Increase in trade between Nepal and India during 19 th
century facilitated the development of trading centers.
• The existing small hill centers also entered into this
international trade. As, the hill centers grew, they began
to act as local market centers grew, they began to act as
local market centers and to produce their own good
through establishing small scale industries.
 Outer Hilly Region/ Mountain Region

• Early settlement in the outer hills dates back to later 18 th century.

There were political and administrative centers like Baise and
Chaubise Rajyas.
• The formation of small geographical and economic units exists at
that time. The main reasons for that are defense, climate, and lack
of agricultural land malaria problem.
• After unification, many changes were added in this region. The
development of Himalaya Trade Routes to the valley i.e. long
distance trade.
• In 19th century, the communication system like ‘Hulak’ was
introduced. The trade between Nepal and India was started during
19th century where the establishment of in-trade centers, local
market centers etc.
 The Terai Region

• This region is most valuable region for its

abundance plenty of cultivable lands.
• The production of different crops appear to have
been large enough not only to local needs but
also to contribute export.
• The evolution of early settlement can be related
to two tenets: Agricultural development policies
undertaken by the rulers in different historic
periods and Extension of Indian railway networks.
• The Rana rulers encourage for migration from hilly
region into Terai region. Thus, during the 19th century
although the trade flourished in the Terai centers
had not inevitably led to their physical growth as
towns, for the Terai remained inhospitable largely as
stated earlier as a result of prevalence of Malaria,
Cholera, Smallpox and other diseases.
• After the resettlement plans, the settlement pattern
in Terai increased in early 1960s and the Malaria
eradication program also done in 1958.
• Road construction helps in the link between other
countries for trade as well as with in the country
also.
 Concept of Setting and Settlement

• Setting and settlements system are fundamental elements

of rural urban linkage. They influence agricultural pattern,
trade, transportation, manufacturing sector, health,
education and finance etc.
• Setting is natural and artificial composition of locality.
Settlement is the grouping of the people into occupancy
units together utilizing the facilities in the form of houses,
streets, drinking water, electricity, school etc.
• Settlement system consists of houses, the people who live
in cities, town, villages, and hamlet and so on.
 Elements of Settlement

• Farm, villages and urban places.

• Network of settlement (location, size, function and
their relation )
• Housing patterns
• Road and transportation networks
Types of Settlement
• Dispersed Settlement
• Agglomerated Settlement
 Dispersed/ Scattered Settlement

• The settlement having agricultural area, minute size of

settlement unit caused by rugged land topography of
hilly and Himalayan region is dispersed settlement.
Advantages
• Friendly behavior of people
• Mutual co-operation
• Availability of natural resources
• Possibility of high production
• No threat high pollution of environment
 Disadvantages of Dispersed Settlement

• Less infrastructural development

• High poverty
• Alternative source of employment is
less
• High service cost
 Planning implication of Dispersed Settlement

• High investment for per unit of production

• Lack of people’s participation
• No stronger link with center
• High service cost
• Difficult to promote infrastructural development
• Less access to decision making process
 Concept of Agglomerated Settlement

• The inhabitants use other resources than

agricultural production and the size and locality of
settlement in nuclear form having compact unit of
housing is called agglomerated settlement.
• Non agricultural activities, buying and selling,
transportation, manufacturing, higher density of
population in per capita unit area is a part of
agglomerated settlement.
 Advantages of Agglomerated Settlement

• Employment opportunities
• Transportation facilities
• Infrastructural development
• Minimum distance from one house to another
• Proper utilization of natural resources
 Disadvantages of Agglomerated Settlement

• High criminal activities

• Lack of natural resources
• Lack of cultural relationship
• Threat of pollution
 Planning Implication of agglomerated Settlement

• Low cost
• Low per capita investment for development of
infrastructure
• Close contact between rural and urban center
• High access to decision making process
• People’s participation
• Proper utilization of natural resources
 Constraints of Rural Urban Linkage

• Different geo-political conditions, historical and

cultural traditions and socio-political environment.
• Mere development of physical links such as roads
and communication will not be adequately enough
for strengthening rural urban linkage.
• Time is another factor which cuts through almost all
the dimensions of rural urban linkage. It is not only
the time is needed to overcome a distance.
• Change in settlement pattern and
rural to urban migration.
• Administrative procedure.
• Lack of means of communication.
• The existence of some demographic
problems.