Projects that have gone down the drain
National Slum Development Programme: This Central government project started in the fag end of the last century. The project focused to improve the sanitation system in the slums. Around 25,000 latrines were identified but only 6,000 latrines have been developed at an expense of Rs 20 crore.
Valmiki Ambedkar Avas Yojana (VAMBAY): The planning and development unit of the civic body was asked to implement the VAMBAY, which aimed to build housing complexes for slum dwellers. The project was undertaken in the year 2000 and is still gathering dust.
Basic Minimum Service: A Rs 2-crore project was funded by the state government to develop the water services in slum areas. It failed without a whimper.
2001 Census estimates
*Total population of the city is 45 lakh. Of this, 16 lakh live in slums
*Total number of slums in Kolkata: 5,072
*Slums are spread in the 138 municipal wards of Kolkata
*Total number of municipal wards in the KMC area is 141
* No slum in ward number 45 (Burrabazar), 42 (Dalhousie) and 38
*Maximum number of slumdwellers live in the municipal ward number 58 along the Eastern Bypass
*Total surface area of the 5,072 slums is 25 square km, equivalent to 16 per cent of the entire surface area of Kolkata. (Total area of the city is 187 sq km)
Water facility in slums
Number of deep tubewells: 6,698
Number of water taps: 41,446
For every 39 slum dwellers, the KMC has provided 1 municipal tap
On an average, the civic body provides 8 municipal tap connections for one bustee. According to the water supply department of the civic body, 35 per cent of the taps are not in a working state. Of late, the department has decided to remove the deep tube wells from the slum areas, as these go very deep in the soil and contaminate the water table. 100 deep tube wells have been removed in the last two months. The slums existing along the Eastern Bypass have no connection of municipal water.
Education
*According to the KMC records, 62 per cent of the slum dwellers can read and write
* Of the 242 primary schools run by the KMC, 90 per cent are in slum areas
* The average attendance in these schools is about 40 with an exception of Garden Reach where children attend school in great numbers owing to the absence of other schools in the area. Students in other slums have turned their backs on the KMC schools and prefer to go to other schools, as the KMC schools are in a bad condition.
Electricity
To light up 5,072 slums, the KMC has arranged for 25,000 electric lights, which is grossly insufficient, according to experts
Future plan
The KMC is trying to replace slums in the eastern fringes of the city with five-storey housing complexes. The project will cost Rs 176 crore and will be financed through the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission. It aims to build 9,000 dwelling units to rehabilitate 10 per cent of the slumdwellers. Under it, the KMC plans to replace the slums