Keywords
Abstract
This study examines the socio-economic consequences of forced displacement in the Kannagi Nagar resettlement colony in Chennai, India, through the conceptual lens of spatial injustice. Using a mixed-methods approach, primary data were collected from 150 households relocated between 1999 and 2015. The study evaluates the extent to which resettlement practices align with internationally recognized standards, with a focus on livelihood disruption, access to basic services, and quality of life. A Pearson Chi-square test indicates no statistically significant association between income levels and increased commuting distance (p = 0.567), suggesting that spatial disadvantages are uniformly experienced across socio-economic groups. Multiple linear regression analysis (R² = 0.257) identifies environmental and health-related factors specifically ventilation, family health, and the prevalence of water-borne diseases as significant predictors of quality of life, while housing size is not statistically significant. Qualitative findings highlight persistent challenges including inadequate water quality, livelihood displacement, and educational disruption. The study concludes that current resettlement approaches prioritize physical housing provision over socio-economic integration, underscoring the need for a more human-centered and spatially just urban policy framework.
References
1. Arabindoo, P. (2011). Rhetoric of the “slum”: Resettlement and urban politics in Chennai. Urban Studies, 48(8), 1603–1621. https://doi.org/10.1177/0042098010371393
2. Babarinde, J. A. (2014). Forced migration and displacement: A conceptual framework. Journal of Internal Displacement.
3. Bhan, G. (2009). This is no longer the city I once knew: Evictions, the urban poor and the right to the city in millennial Delhi. Environment and Urbanization, 21(1), 127–142. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247809103009
4. Bürgin, D., et al. (2022). The impact of war and forced displacement on children’s mental health. European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry.
5. Cernea, M. M. (2000). Risks, safeguards and reconstruction: A model for population displacement and resettlement. In M. M. Cernea & C. McDowell (Eds.), Risks and reconstruction: Experiences of resettlers and refugees (pp. 11–55). World Bank.
6. Coelho, K. (2016). Housing and urban development in Chennai: Policy and practice. Economic and Political Weekly, 51(17), 41–51.
7. Coelho, K., & Raman, N. V. (2013). From the frying pan to the floodplain: Negotiating land, water, and fire in Chennai’s development. Economic and Political Weekly, 48(48), 69–77.
8. Creswell, J. W., & Plano Clark, V. L. (2017). Designing and conducting mixed methods research (3rd ed.). SAGE Publications.
9. Cuadrado, C., Libuy, M., & Moreno-Serra, R. (2023). What is the impact of forced displacement on health? Health Policy and Planning.
10. Dupont, V. (2008). Slum demolitions in Delhi since the 1990s: An appraisal. Economic and Political Weekly, 43(28), 79–87.
11. Etikan, I., Musa, S. A., & Alkassim, R. S. (2016). Comparison of convenience sampling and purposive sampling. American Journal of Theoretical and Applied Statistics,5(1),1–4. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.ajtas.20160501.11
12. Field, A. (2018). Discovering statistics using IBM SPSS statistics (5th ed.). SAGE Publications.
13. Kain, J. F. (1968). Housing segregation, Negro employment, and metropolitan decentralization. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 82(2), 175–197. https://doi.org/10.2307/1885893
14. Likert, R. (1932). A technique for the measurement of attitudes. Archives of Psychology, 140, 1–55.
15. Montgomery, D. C., Peck, E. A., & Vining, G. G. (2012). Introduction to linear regression analysis (5th ed.). Wiley.
16. Patel, S., Baptist, C., & D’Cruz, C. (2012). Knowledge is power – Informal communities assert their right to the city through SDI and community-led enumerations. Environment and Urbanization, 24(1), Press. 13–26. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956247812438366
17. Raman, N. V. (2011). The board and the bank: Housing policy and practice in Chennai. Economic and Political Weekly, 46(31), 76–83.
18. Ramya, S. P., & Peter, V. (2014). Forced to the fringes: Disasters of resettlement in India. Housing and Land Rights Network.
19. Soja, E. W. (2010). Seeking spatial justice. University of Minnesot
20. Srinivasan, S. (2015). Environmental conditions and public health in urban resettlement colonies. Journal of Urban Health, 92(3), 569–581. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11524-015-9943-2
21. Tashakkori, A., & Teddli (2010). Mixed methodology: Combining qualitative and quantitative approaches. SAGE Publications.
22. UN-Habitat. (2014). Forced evictions: Global crisis, global solutions. United Nations Human Settlements Programme.
23. Verme, P., & Schuettler, K. (2021). The impact of forced displacement on host communities. Journal of Development Economics
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Copyright (c) 2026 Damodharan G, Sreemuthumeena, Dr. M. Suvetha (Author)