Superpower India: Challenges of Urbanisation

This programme is produced by Pumpkin Interactive and is about Bangalore. It focuses

upon inequalities in the city and ways in which the city’s recent growth has affected
these. Much of the programme is spent exploring the impacts of change, particularly
upon employment and housing, but a substantial part is focused upon projects designed
to improve the lot of the urban poor. Early in the programme, the effects of the caste
system are explored in causing inequalities, set against the glitz and branded company
headquarters.

Teachers’ notes
There are two Teachers’ Guidance Sheets. These provide guidance and background
information for teachers in using the programme to learn about Bangalore, the reasons
for its growth in population, the impacts of that growth, and how these can be managed.
The programme can be used in teaching about inequalities in urban development in
developing countries, and in applying sustainable principles to people’s living spaces

Teachers will find it especially helpful to read the introductory information about
Bangalore (Teacher Guidance Page 2), which provides:
 a geographical outline of India’s geography, its development, and its recent
economic growth
 background information about the growth of the city, particularly in respect of
SEZs
 an introduction to the caste system in India

Each is critical to understanding how and why Bangalore has grown as it has. These will
also assist teachers in handling some of the follow-up activities.

The principles of the programme and these exercises are that students should:
 know about the growth of Bangalore – its nature and causes
 understand Bangalore’s growth in the context of India’s emergence as an
economic superpower
 understand the impacts of Bangalore’s growth upon employment, housing and
services
 develop their abilities to analyse
 be able to judge whether the growth of Bangalore and its inequalities has brought
more benefits than problems

Resource Sheets are numbered 1-6 according to whether they are intended for teachers
or students.
Contents

Teachers’ Guidance 1 Using this DVD for active learning

 This consists of ideas to help students watch the programme

Teachers’ Guidance 2 Background information for teachers

 This provides background information about India’s recent economic
development as well as Bangalore’s growth and India’s caste system

Teachers’ Resource Page 1 Preliminary work: finding out about Bangalore

 Guidance on setting up small group enquiries to guide students in getting to know
Bangalore before they see the programme

Student Resource Page 2 Notes from the programme

 A framework for student notes on the programme

Student Resource Page 3 Understanding the programme

 Knowing key terms
 Understanding and interpreting key ideas

Student Resource Page 4 Comparing unequal areas in Bangalore

 A summary table comparing housing in Bangalore’s wealthiest and poorest
areas.

Student Resource Page 5 What are the housing issues facing Bangalore?
 A student small group enquiry about traffic, water and energy issues in
Bangalore

Teachers’ Resource Page 6 Discussing the issues

 Guidance on discussing attitudes and values towards the growth of Bangalore
and out-sourcing
Teachers’ Guidance 1 Using this film for active learning
Watching a television programme can often be interpreted by students as a passive
experience. Jane Ferretti (2009) has followed Margaret Roberts’ work (1986) on the
unequal attention given to the narration rather than the pictures on a video; asked to
make notes, students will more often than not make notes on what is said rather than
what they see. The strategies below are designed to engage students in different
strategies to ensure that they learn in varied ways, and which help them in making sense
of the programme.

1 Describing
 Select scenes and ask students to describe in detail – e.g. ’20 words to describe
this place’
 Ask students to compare scenes in the programme (e.g. comparing the company
headquarters in Bangalore with slum conditions found across the city). This is
especially effective if done without the sound
 Reverse the process; ask students to predict what pictures are being shown, and
details about these, by listening to the narration but with the screen picture
turned off

2 Understanding
 Before watching a clip, give students specific things to look and listen for. For
instance, students could be guided towards the role of NGOs so that they can
see how such organisations can work in urban communities
 Freeze-frame scenes and discuss students' understanding of what is being
shown
 Give students comprehension questions, but beware that they may be listening
to the narration, with eyes down, rather than watching the picture

3 Listening
 Give students a list of key words to listen out for, and then identify their meaning
 Ask students to identify key words or phrases, and define these, based on the
narration

4 Creative follow-up
 Role-play Interviews. Here, students work in interview pairs. One student,
acting as a journalist, devises questions for the second student, acting as the
person being interviewed. A 5-minute interview follows which can either be done
privately in pairs or by ‘hot seating’ pairs in front of the class. Students then feed
back to the class about the interviews.
 Information Gap. You need two rooms for this to take place. Half the class
watches part of the programme without sound, while the other half hears it
without pictures. Each half then discusses what they think will a) be in the script,
and b) shown as pictures respectively. Students then return to class, pair up,
discuss the situation and characters, and put together sounds and pictures. The
teacher then shows the complete part of the programme.
 Fractured scenes. Write parts of the dialogue on separate strips of paper, place
these in random order in envelopes, and ask students to re-sequence them.
Alternatively, distribute the strips randomly, one per pair of students, and ask
students to recreate the scene in which the line of their script occurs.
Further reading
 Ferretti, Jane (2009) ‘Effective use of visual resources in the classroom’ in
‘Teaching Geography’, Autumn 2009
 Roberts, Margaret (1986) ‘Using video’ in ‘The Geography Teachers’ Handbook’,
Geographical Association

Teachers’ Guidance 2 Background information for teachers

Background information about three aspects of India and Bangalore will help in watching
this programme.

1 India’s geography and recent economic development

A Population indicators
 In 2009, the population of India was nearly 1.2 billion. By 2025, it will probably be
the world’s most populous country. Compared to its population of 400 million at
the time of its independence from British colonial rule in 1947, this growth has
been exceptionally rapid.
 With a median age of 25.3, India has a young population. Its population growth
rate is still high, at over 1.5% in 2009. Birth rates are high at 21.76 births per
1000 population, even though the fertility rate had fallen to 2.72 children born per
woman in 2009.
 Death rates have fallen dramatically, and are now only 6.23 deaths per 1000
population. Infant mortality rates remain high with 30.15 deaths per 1000 live
births in 2009. This factor alone holds back India’s life expectancy at birth which
in 2009 was estimated at 69.9 years.
 India is still a predominantly rural country; only 29% of its population is urban,
even though the population of India’s cities is growing faster than the annual
average, at 2.4%.

B Health and social indicators

 India’s HDI is 0.612, placing it 134th out of 182 countries. It has improved by 50%
since 1980.
 Literacy rates are low but improving. 61% of the total population could read and
write in the 2001 census, though this masked a large difference between female
(47.8%) and male (73.4%). This reflects differences in length of education; girls
spend only 9 years in school compared to boys who average 11 years.
 The risk of major infectious disease in India is still very high. Food and
waterborne diseases dominate the health of the population, with bacterial
diarrhoea, hepatitis A and E, and typhoid fever being rife.

C India’s economic growth

 India has over half a billion people of working age. Wages are very low.
 Services have seen the greatest economic growth in recent years, and now
produce 50% of India's GDP with about 30% of the labour force. Half its work
force works in agriculture. The Indian government has encouraged investment in
sectors such as telecommunications and support industries.
 The economy has averaged over 7% annual growth since 1997, creating
employment and reducing poverty. Even in 2008, when western economies were
 close to recession, India’s GDP grew by 6.6%. It has a well-educated middle class,
skilled in English, which has led to rapid growth in software development and
support.
 GDP per capita (PPP) in 2008 was US$2,900, still in the lowest 25% in the world.
It has risen sharply in the 21st century, but most income growth has gone to the
highest income earners and the educated middle class. Unemployment in 2008
was 9.1% and 25% of the population lives below the poverty line. Inequality has
fallen only slightly in spite of economic growth; the Gini Index fell from to 37.8 in
1997 to 36.8 in 2004.

2 Bangalore and its growth

Bangalore is the capital of India’s state of Karnataka. It is a stereotype of Indian urban

growth; its growth and development has been recent and rapid. Its population size is
disputable; different sources cite different geographical coverage of its urban area. In
2009, the population of the city itself was just over 5 million, but that of its built-up area
– beyond the current city boundaries – is probably closer to 10 million.

Bangalore’s population growth has been spurred by technology industries. The city’s
image is one of high-tech buildings, with almost every major technology company
represented there. Rural-urban migration of the rural poor has affected Bangalore, and
there are massive slum areas. But there has been significant urban-to-urban migration of
professionals, and a large middle class lives there.

Three factors have been critical in Bangalore’s growth:

a) The historic role of Bangalore’s university in providing well qualified science
and technology graduates for India’s defence and research industries. This
created an education infrastructure of highly qualified and literate scientists from
several disciplines.
b) The growth in out-sourcing from western economies. British Airways led an
early movement to India by moving its accounting and finance to India in 1996,
where wages at the time were 10% of those in London. Other retail companies
have joined banks and finance companies, using Bangalore as a base for:
 Technology and software development. The companies in this
programme such as Infosys base almost all of their research and development in
Bangalore.
 Call centres, for everything from UK rail ticketing to BT internet support.
c) The establishment of Bangalore as a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) in which
the state removes export tariffs and quotas, reduces bureaucracy in export
administration, and creates financial incentives for business. Most incentives are
based on low taxation. Indian SEZs were introduced in 2000 and there are now
several hundred of them. Setting these up has been a partnership between
private companies and the Indian state governments.

In theory, SEZs should increase employment, attract economic activity, and create a
critical mass of high-earning, high-spending people. The benefits should therefore
accrue in increased tax income for infrastructural development. However, in reality,
revenue for Bangalore’s authorities has been outpaced by its rapid growth; attracted by
low taxes, company growth exceeds the rate at which new roads, or water and energy
networks can be built. The programmes show how multi-million rupee buildings are
surrounded by poor roads, cracked or dirt pavements, and that companies have their
own electricity generators and water tanks to guarantee supplies.

Climate

Bangalore has a tropical climate with wet and dry seasons. Its elevation makes it cooler
than India’s coast, though westerners can find it uncomfortable in the monsoon. ‘Winter’
is dry; January temperatures may drop to 12°C in early morning, whilst the hottest month
(April) has the highest average daily maximum temperature of 33.6°C. Rainfall is
concentrated in the summer monsoon between August and October, which causes
power cuts and flooding.

3 The caste system in India

The caste system is a religious and social class system in India, where social class is
defined by birth and family. Found mostly among Hindus, it also exists among some
Muslims and Christians. Over 60 years after India’s independence, its constitution
makes caste discrimination illegal, but many barriers and social customs persist.

Under the caste system,

 Dalits have the lowest status. Traditionally, they have been known as
‘untouchables’, though this term is regarded as abusive and should not be used
in day-to-day reference. Their existence and treatment is part of a vicious cycle;
they have fewer years of schooling, are less qualified, and are employed mainly
in the lowest-wage occupations in the most unhealthy, unpleasant or polluting
jobs. They suffer social prejudice, segregation, and extreme poverty. Prejudice is
greatest in rural areas, where they are isolated, humiliated, and discriminated
against; they cannot worship in temples with others, and must obtain water from
different sources. They cannot stray from their own parts of the village. Dalit
children are sometimes forced to sit in the back of classrooms where they
receive less attention than other children. The system is stacked against them.
 Within the general caste classification, further discrimination exists among Dalits,
so that there are ‘outcasts among outcastes’.
 Movement is possible between caste groups, especially in the middle castes; for
example, those born into a lower caste could rise by becoming vegetarian and
teetotal, behavioural patterns which are normally associated with higher castes.

As well as the advantaged Forward castes – forming 25% of India’s population – the
government now classifies people by
 Scheduled Castes, or former ‘untouchables’ (16% of India’s population); the word
‘Dalit’ is now preferred.
 Scheduled Tribes, who consist of tribal groups (7%).
 Other Backward Classes (52%).
It does this to discriminate positively in education and jobs for the most disadvantaged.
Some people protest about this, because they believe that negative treatment of forward
castes is actually divisive. They believe that school and employment choice should be
based on economic status, as there are now many Dalits who are wealthier and more
educated than forward castes, but who still benefit from positive discrimination.

‘Untouchability’ was outlawed in 1950, and has declined; the process of urbanisation has
also helped to break down barriers between groups. President Narayanan of India
(1997-2002) and the present Chief Justice each belonged to lower castes.

However, the caste system runs deep and is a long way from removal in India’s society.
Though inter-caste marriages are now more common, caste is still a factor in some
marriage choices. Some Indian matrimonial websites, internet dating adverts, and news
columns contain caste-based categories, and adverts for marriage partners are allowed
to state caste as a preference.

Teachers’ Resource Page 1 Preliminary work: finding out

about Bangalore
Before you show the programme, it is useful if students have some prior knowledge of
Bangalore, and of India’s rapid economic growth.

Aim

This activity is designed for small groups of students who, together, can produce either a
PowerPoint or a web page presentation. Teachers could then combine several of these
to create a class presentation on Bangalore or a year group website.

Seven enquiry themes are set out below. With a class of 30, this should mean about 4
students per question, and you can always split some of the questions up. For each
search, tell students to search under Google Images as well as web sites for information
and data.

Time allowed

To develop this enquiry as a minimum, you need to allow two lessons;

 a homework preparation with students doing their research,
 one lesson in which groups get together to prepare presentations,
 a final lesson in which each group is given about 5 minutes to present their
findings.

To develop this more fully, you could allow up to four one-hour lessons:
 one lesson’s research time;
 two lessons for the development of student presentations;
 finally, one lesson for group presentations, with self-assessment of each
presentation.

Group Enquiries

1. Where is Bangalore?

e.g. which country? Which latitude? Which other places have a similar latitude? What’s
close by? Are there mountains, rivers?

Guidance – look at sources such as atlases, Google Maps.

2. What is Bangalore like?

e.g. what is its climate like? Is there ‘summer’ and ‘winter’ weather? What about
landscapes? Cityscapes? The city centre? Its recent development as a city? What is it
like as a place to live in?

Guidance Use www.virtualbangalorepage.com; also Wikipedia – key in ‘Bangalore’ into

Google; for an Indian view of Bangalore try the ‘Times of India’ newspaper –
www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com

3. How is Bangalore changing?

e.g. what did the historic city look like? What is it like now? What sorts of buildings have
grown up recently? What are newer housing or buildings like compared to old? How is
transport changing?

Guidance
 For an Indian view, try the Bangalore Development Authority – written by the
people who are helping to make change happen. Their website is
www.bdabangalore.org/
 Carry out a Google Search of the words ‘Bangalore blog’; it will produce several
informal websites where people blog, which help to give a sense of what people there
are thinking and concerned about.
 Use the BBC news page, www.bbc.co.uk/news and search ‘Bangalore changes’.

4. What kinds of work are there in Bangalore?

e.g. What is Bangalore’s economy based on? What are the most common types of jobs
done by people who live and work there? Is the economy changing? What are working
conditions like for people at work? Who are the biggest employers in Bangalore?

Guidance
 Type ‘Bangalore economy’ into Google. Use www.virtualbangalorepage.com; also
Wikipedia – key in ‘Bangalore’ into Google; for an Indian view of Bangalore try the
‘Times of India’ newspaper – www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com.
 For job adverts, use http://bangalore.timesjobs.com/

5. What is housing in Bangalore like for different people? What housing types
are there?

e.g. What is it like for young people growing up in Bangalore? For families living there?
For the elderly? For wealthy? For the poor?

Guidance
 Type ‘Housing in Bangalore’ into Google, and find examples of both modern and
traditional housing, and for wealthy and poorer people. Find out what rents are like
for flats and houses, or what prices are like to buy.
 The Hindu newspaper is useful for life in Bangalore – see http://www.thehindu.com/
6. What are the day-to-day worries or concerns of people living in Bangalore?
Why do they have these worries or concerns?

e.g. what is travelling like in Bangalore? Pollution? Are there parks and open
spaces? What about crime? Are newspapers and TV similar to those in the UK or
Europe?

Guidance
 You will need to do a general search using Google on phrases such as ‘freedom of
speech in Bangalore’, ‘pollution in Bangalore’.
 General social data on life in India can be found on www.indiastat.com
 For crime, try http://spotcrime.com/in/bangalore as well as a report on 'Crime in
India, 2005' which you can find.
 YouTube is excellent for scenes of people driving or of pollution. Type ‘Bangalore
driving’ or ‘Bangalore pollution’ into YouTube’s search facility. You may get some
surprises!
 The Hindu newspaper is useful for life in Bangalore – see http://www.thehindu.com/

7. What might Bangalore be like in 20 years time? 50 years time?

e.g. how will the city change in appearance? Will people’s lives be any different? Is the
caste system changing?

Guidance
 Type ‘Bangalore in 20 years time’ into Google.
 Use www.virtualbangalorepage.com and Wikipedia
 Type in ‘future of Bangalore’ into Google; for an Indian view of Bangalore try the
‘Times of India’ newspaper – www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com
 The Hindu newspaper is useful for life in Bangalore – see http://www.thehindu.com/
 General social data on life in India can be found on www.indiastat.com

Student Resource Page 2 Notes from the programme

Use this framework to make brief notes on the programme using a) the pictures, b) the
commentary.

Pictures Commentary

Part 1: Causes of
urbanisation

Part 2: Impacts –
employment

Part 3: Impacts – housing

and services
 Part 4: Forces of change

Student Resource Page 3 Understanding the programme

After watching the programme, use your notes to help you understand the programme
further by completing these questions.

1. Knowing the key terms. Define these names or terms briefly with examples
from the programme:
Call centres
Caste
Community based organisations
Globalisation

Mythri
NGO
Out-sourcing
Prejudice
Privatisation
Sanitation

2. Understanding and interpreting the programme

a) In what way is having several children an insurance against poverty in rural

India?
b) Why do many people move from rural areas to cities like Bangalore?
c) Which companies have been attracted to Bangalore and why?
d) How has out-sourcing helped to create Bangalore’s middle class?
e) How does the caste system affect people’s employment and earning potential?
f) How might traditional castes decline in cities more quickly than in rural areas?
g) What kinds of materials are slum houses built from?
h) Why are there so few services such as water or electricity in the slum districts of
Bangalore?
i) In what way is the government’s low tax incentive for IT companies a cause of
poor service provision in the poorest areas?
j) Why are street scenes in Bangalore very similar to those of western cities (e.g. in
Europe, USA)?
k) Why do middle-class families increasingly have to look for housing on the
outskirts of Bangalore?
l) Explain why Indian homes often contain a mix of traditional and modern features.
m) How does Mythri raise its money? What are its aims in the slum areas?
n) Why are community women’s groups vital to Mythri in improving housing?
o) Why is education of prime importance in helping the poorest families?
p) Mythri’s main aims are to improve sanitation, water supply, the role women,
housing and education. Explain as many ways as you can in which these are all
connected. A well-labelled diagram might help you.
q) How and why are NGOs like Mythri important in poor communities in India?
Student Resource Page 4 Comparing unequal areas in
Bangalore
After watching the programme, summarise the contrasts between housing in
Bangalore’s wealthiest and poorest areas.

Impact Wealthiest areas Poorest areas

Density and space

House style

Building materials

Services e.g. water and

electricity

Streets and pavements

Local services available for

people

Other contrasts

Summary: When you have completed this, explain in about 500 words what you
consider to be the causes of these differences.

Student Resource Page 5 What are the housing issues facing

Bangalore?
This enquiry focuses upon housing issues in Bangalore and how these might be
managed. The rapid growth of the city has been achieved at a high social and
environmental cost. The aim of this exercise is that students produce group reports to
the Bangalore City Authorities that will evaluate possible ways of solving some of
Bangalore’s environmental problems. YouTube has some visually effective material on
each of the three issues in Bangalore. Just type in ‘Bangalore traffic’ or similar into the
YouTube search engine.

Aim of the exercise

This is a research exercise, about how Bangalore’s main housing problems could be
managed in future. Four problem areas are suggested as a focus:
 to increase greatly the amount of private housing,
  to increase the amount of Bangalore City Authority housing ,
 to increase housing projects built by NGOs (the voluntary sector) such as Mythri.
 to provide housing for street dwellers and street children (there are an estimated
80 000 street children in Bangalore alone.

Divide students into groups of about 2-3. Each group should select one of the issues,
research it, and prepare a 4-6 side PowerPoint or podcast of about 3-4 minutes.

Research Questions

Each group should use this framework of questions.

a) What is the problem?

b) How does this problem affect Bangalore and its people? Are there
estimates of how many people are affected?
c) What improvements could be made? How would these benefit people and
the city of Bangalore?
d) How could these be funded? Are there problems in finding enough
money?
e) Should any improvements be paid for using government money?
f) What are the risks if nothing is done?

Group activities and presentations

Each group should present its findings.

Conclusions

Then summarise the four issues that have been discussed:

 What improvements need to be made to housing in Bangalore?
 What are the possible ways in which better housing could be provided?
 What are the arguments in favour of and against funding these with
government money?
 What are the risks if nothing is done?

Teachers’ Resource Page 6 Discussing the issues

In spite of the employment gains in IT and in outsourcing, Bangalore’s growth has
generated social costs. An expanding middle class has gained a great deal from this
growth, but at the same time much of what has been achieved has been on the basis of
low-cost labour. Many of India’s urban population live on US$1 a day or less. To help
students get to grips with this, this exercise encourages students to discuss some of the
complexities involved. It has three main stages:

Stage 1 Preparing for the discussion

For this lesson, you will need to prepare as follows:

 Five A4 cards or sheets of paper; these should read ‘Strongly agree’, ‘Generally
agree’, ‘Not sure or No Opinion’, ‘Generally disagree’ and ‘Strongly Disagree’.
 A small amount of blu-tak to enable these to be stuck on to the classroom walls.
 The classroom; use all the space for students to move about by moving tables to
the sides.

Stage 2 Discussing the issues

 Blu-tak the five cards to the classroom wall, from ‘Strongly agree’ to ‘Strongly
Disagree’.
 Explain to students that you are going to read out statements, one by one, and
that you will allow about five minutes to discuss each one. Each time they hear a
statement, they should go and stand beneath the card that most clearly
describes how they feel about it – e.g. ‘Generally agree’.
 Once there, they should justify why they are there, and listen to others doing the
same.
 If at any time they change their opinion, they can move to another position, and
justify it.
 Read out the statements from the list below. Add your own if you are feeling
inventive or other issues have occurred in class.

Stage 3 De-briefing and Concluding

 Debrief students towards the end of the lesson about the views expressed about
India. How far is the growth of Bangalore something that they like? Do they feel
that the caste system is something about which they are entitled to an opinion,
even though they do not live in India? How fair is India as a country or society?
 To conclude, ask each person to write about 500 words outlining why they do or
do not believe that the growth of Bangalore has been to the benefit of the
majority.

Statements

1. Bangalore is a really stylish, modern city

2. The Caste system is something you can’t do anything about – it’s just a
part of life in India
3. People in countries such as Britain have no right to comment on the
Caste system in India
4. A city cannot be a great city unless it treats all of its people fairly
5. In India, it is people’s own responsibility to improve housing; they should
not expect anyone else to help them
6. India’s government should improve conditions for the poor, even if it
means raising taxes
7. It is best to leave housing improvement projects to charities like Mythri.