Facets of Urbanisation: Views from Anthropology

This book is the result of an international conference organized by the Commission on Urban Anthropology, the Commission on Human Rights of the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES) and the Department of Anthropology of West Bengal State University, in collaboration with the Anthropological Survey of India, the Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya, the Indian Council of Social Science Research, the Indian Council of Medical Research, the Indian Museum, and the Centre for Alternative Research in Development. The theme of the conference was Mega-Urbanisation and Human Rights: Emerging Challenges and Opportunities. Rapid urbanisation began with the onset of industrialization, and has numerous social, economic, political and environmental implications. In the context of cities, where society is essentially heterogeneous and pluralistic due to the presence of several ethnic communities, the process of urbanisation becomes further complicated. This has particular implications for many people immigrating to the city, because the shifting of base involves not only the transcending of long physical distances, but also navigating additional cultural barriers that are associated with alien languages and different regions.Increasing urbanisation is emerging as a dominant trend all over the world, particularly in developing countries such as India. Besides examining the impact of urbanisation on human society, this volume also analyses the various different facets of urbanisation, including cultural adaptation; migration; gender distinction in the context of urbanisation; the growth of the Scheduled Tribes in the urban population; slums; urban space; entrepreneurship in the urban context; and the urban environment. Given its cross-cultural perspective, the book will be of great interest to researchers in the social sciences, including anthropologists and sociologists, academicians, planners, and policy makers, as well as anyone interested in urban issues. See more