The Hindu          28.12.2011

Healthy urban area distribution envisaged

Future thrust on urbanisation along the east-west corridor and connectivity along the eastern stretch of the district will impart a healthy spatial distribution of urban areas of Kannur, according to the District Urbanisation Report (DUR) prepared by the Department of Town and Country Planning.

The DUR, released by district panchayat president K.A. Sarala at a function here on Tuesday chaired by District Collector Anand Singh, shows the urbanisation trend and pattern of development of the district in the present as well as in future. The study of different growth parameters, infrastructure and facilities has been used to derive the present trend of urbanisation of the district, while the future growth pattern is conceived from the study along with a future connectivity pattern, according to officials in the District Town Planning Unit here.

When contacted, Deputy Town Planner K.V. Ranjith said the DUR was a preparation for the Integrated District Development Plan (IDDP) for the district. The district planning committee (DPC) of Kollam district is the first DPC to prepare the IDDP. This model of development planning, sanctioned by the State government, has been extended to the districts of Alappuzha, Thrissur, Idukki, Palakkad, and Wayanad, he said adding that the DUR provides a framework for the works to be done for preparing the IDDP in the next phase.

The report says that the production sectors including agriculture and industrial sectors in the district are showing a declining trend in the district. The only sector which shows growth is the service sector, it says adding that around 60 per cent of urban population depends on the service sector for their livelihood. Even the rural areas are slowly abandoning the primary sectors, it finds.

Population density

The highest concentration of population is seen in the local bodies situated in the periphery of the National Highway and in the coastal region of the district. The major urban areas of Kannur and Thalassery show a negative population growth rate. The tendency of immigrants to the urban centres to settle in the periphery of urban areas rather than within may lead to undesirable spread of urban area and conversion of agricultural land in rural areas for residential and other non-agricultural purposes, the report says.

The land use and its concentration pattern in the district show that compared to other districts in the State, especially to the northern districts, Kannur is having major concentration of areas under agriculture and plantation. Agricultural and plantation areas cover about one-third of the geographical area here. The report also shows that there is a potential for development of primary sector to some extent.

Kannur is no exception to the urban-rural continuum in the entire State. The report finds that the district shows a high level of urbanisation when compared to the State average.

The urban areas of the district show a lower growth rate of population whereas the rural areas surrounding the urban towns shows significantly higher growth rate indicating possible out-migration of people.

Out of 87 local bodies, 38 are listed as urban as per census and they include six municipalities and the Kannur cantonment.