Report No. 138

2.2. Position as per 1981 study.-

A more detailed study1 on the subject has summarised the position as under:-

"According to the 1981 census estimates, India had a slum population of about 30 million, amounting to nearly one-fifth of the total urban population of the country. "The sum population of India is larger than the total population of a large number of countries including Canada (24.2 million), the Netherlands (14.2 million), Australia (14.9 million), Belgium (9.9 million), Sri Lanka (15.0 million), Afghanistan (16.3 million), Malaysia (14.2 million), Portugal (9.8 million), etc."

These comparative figures would give some indication of the magnitude of the problem of slums.

1. Cherunilam and Heggade Housing in India, (1987), p. 49.