Urban sprawl development around Aligarh city: A study aided by satellite remote sensing and GIS

Abstract

Rapid urbanization causes disorganized and unplanned growth of towns and cities. The pressure of an ever growing population becomes a burden on the limited civic amenities which are virtually collapsing. Asymmetrical growth of urban centres consumes agricultural land adjacent to these, resulting in lower agricultural productivity. Besides taxing the groundwater resources available for an urban centre, an increase in the paved area severely reduces the groundwater recharge potential, leading to situations which may truly be potential catastrophes. An understanding of the growth dynamics of urban agglomerations is essential for ecologically feasible developmental planning. With almost a third of India’s population already having become urban, it is necessary to acquire information on growth patterns of cities and how they impact the living environment. The current trend of spatial urban growth in almost all Indian cities has a haphazard pattern, particularly along the urban-rural fringe. There is an obvious need for continuously monitoring the phenomena of growth, and mapping and analyzing its patterns, since this is of great concern to urban administrators and planners whose concern it is to provide basic amenities and infrastructure for the complex urban environment.