4.2 Migrants and Tenure Situation in Surat

The textile and diamond units of the Surat region contribute to3:

• 42 percent of the world’s total rough diamond cutting and polishing • 70 percent of the nation’s total rough diamond cutting and polishing • 40 percent of the nation’s total diamond exports • 40 percent of the nation’s total man-made fabric production • 28 percent of the nation’s total manmade fiber production • 18 percent of the nation’s total manmade fiber export • 12 percent of the nation’s total fabric production

Not only within the state of Gujarat but also at the all-India level, Surat has registered high population growth as compared to that in India and Gujarat. Surat is Gujarat’s second and India’s twelfth most populous city. Significantly, this has been the period that witnessed an impressive growth of secondary and tertiary activities in the city. From 0.47 million in 1971 its population increased to 1.48 million in 1991 and almost doubled to 2.8 million in 2001. Surat City has seen extraordinary growth in the last three decades and along with that, the municipal boundaries have also been expanded.

4.2 Migrants and Tenure Situation in Surat

The informal settlements are always occupied by the migrants and the urban population used to see it as slums. However, then again also, all things considered, these settlements are simply the arrangements individuals have found because of a state as well as market disappointments and that the settlementsand their households are a basic piece of the metropolitan framework and economy. They contribute essentially to the city's economy through their work market commitments and casual creation exercises. The poor represent a critical component of the metropolitan workforce and contribute significantly to add up to efficiency and work market seriousness. In Surat, the poor migrants and slums dwellers contribute colossally in running rewarding ventures like diamond, textile, and construction industries.

The Surat Municipal Corporation (SMC) has divided the city into seven different zones which are respectively, central, north, south, east, west, southwest, and southeast. The maximum slums are in the zones where industries are located (pooja shah, 2010). Zone-wise data of total workers, total

3 This information is taken from the article named Welfare Extension by Local State and Social Protection: Surat is written by MS. Pooja Shah. This paper funded under the research project titled “Inclusive Urbanization – Social Protection for the Slum and Pavement Dwellers in India’, a CEPT University – Mahila Housing Trust (MHT) project. It talks about the different informal settlement around the city and give numeric data.

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