EVILS OF URBANIZATION
The old cities were never built to accommodate such a great exodus from the rural areas and small towns. The sudden enlargement of residential areas has not been expected. With the expansion of cities many slums that were on the periphery of the city are now in the midst of developed areas. Affluence and poverty side by side seems to be a good adjustment. But the health hazards have not been limited to the hut; they are immediately injected into the better localities, too. An epidemic that originates in slum is immediately picked up by the whole city. Moreover; the slums are congested and the amenities so scarce that the dwellers are generally on war path against one another on water taps and residential accommodations.
The people in the slums lack social norms of moral and character. Poverty and uncertainty about tomorrow’s bread leads them to all sorts of filthy things. Thefts and prostitution is a part of the life of people. A dozen of people- male, female, children-huddled in one room cottage are not expected to have any moral conscience. Frustrations lead to alcoholism, further leading to quarrels and murders. But slums are essential part of a big city. Even city-dwellers do not grudge them, for they supply cheap domestic labour and satisfy their other urges and passions, too. Without an employment oriented housing plan, this blot cannot be erased.
With all its intellectualism and sophistication, urbanization is responsible for artificiality, breaking of family ties and utter loss of emotional relations. Freedom from the bondage of stale customs and superstitious customs is welcome. But the vagaries of addiction to drugs and psychological problems in the material world of big cities cannot be under estimated. Environmental pollution due to automobiles has added one more misery to the vast expansion of the cities