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Birth of Census Towns in India: An Economic Analysis

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  • Saumyabrata Chakrabarti
  • Vivekananda Mukherjee

Abstract

In Indian census, the reclassification of villages as small towns (called census towns) has been startling during the decade 2001–2011 and accounted for almost 30 per cent of urbanization, which is significantly larger than their growth rate in previous decades. Though reclassified as towns, they are governed as rural settlements. This article applies urban economic theory along with rural–urban labour market dynamics to identify the factors behind the birth of census towns. It also attempts to empirically check the validity of some of the hypotheses of the theoretical model it develops by using data from the state of West Bengal during 2001–2011 where the growth rate of census towns had been one of the highest in India. It turns out that the higher formal sector income in the nearby urban centres with lower extent of urban sprawl is the major factor explaining the birth of census towns. JEL Classification: R11, R12, R23

Suggested Citation

  • Saumyabrata Chakrabarti & Vivekananda Mukherjee, 2020. "Birth of Census Towns in India: An Economic Analysis," South Asian Journal of Macroeconomics and Public Finance, , vol. 9(2), pages 139-166, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:smppub:v:9:y:2020:i:2:p:139-166
    DOI: 10.1177/2277978720961190
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Pradhan, Kanhu Charan, 2013. "Unacknowledged Urbanisation: The New Census Towns of India," MPRA Paper 41035, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    2. Bhalla, Surjit S. & Das, Tirthatanmoy, 2006. "Pre-and Post-Reform: India: A Revised Look at Employment, Wages and Inequality," India Policy Forum, National Council of Applied Economic Research, vol. 2(1), pages 183-254.
    3. Brueckner, Jan K., 2011. "Lectures on Urban Economics," MIT Press Books, The MIT Press, edition 1, volume 1, number 0262016362, December.
    4. David Lagakos, 2020. "Urban-Rural Gaps in the Developing World: Does Internal Migration Offer Opportunities?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 34(3), pages 174-192, Summer.
    5. Sukti Dasgupta, 2003. "Structural and Behavioural Characteristics of Informal Service Employment: Evidence from a Survey in New Delhi," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 39(3), pages 51-80.
    6. Krugman, Paul & Elizondo, Raul Livas, 1996. "Trade policy and the Third World metropolis," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(1), pages 137-150, April.
    7. Sabyasachi Tripathi, 2015. "An Overview of India’s Urbanization, Urban Economic Growth and Urban Equity," International Journal of Economics and Empirical Research (IJEER), The Economics and Social Development Organization (TESDO), vol. 3(3), pages 115-127, March.
    8. Marjit, Sugata & Kar, Saibal, 2014. "Broader Implications of Labor Market Reforms in India: A General Equilibrium Perspective," Indian Economic Review, Department of Economics, Delhi School of Economics, vol. 49(1), pages 27-35.
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    1. Saumyabrata Chakrabarti & Vivekananda Mukherjee, 2022. "Role of transport infrastructure in birth of census towns in West Bengal," Asia-Pacific Journal of Regional Science, Springer, vol. 6(2), pages 593-616, June.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Census towns; urbanization; migration; rural labour; India;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R11 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Regional Economic Activity: Growth, Development, Environmental Issues, and Changes
    • R12 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - General Regional Economics - - - Size and Spatial Distributions of Regional Economic Activity; Interregional Trade (economic geography)
    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population

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