The causes and social impact of overcrowding in Kalmunai municipality area of eastern Sri Lanka

Abstract

In fact, this is a new topic which attracts the attention of the researchers in Sri Lanka as the country has to overcome the mounting challenges in relation to huge overcrowding at unprecedented manner in the country. As the country heaves a sigh of relief after wiping out the terrorism that inflicted innumerable damage to the nation over the last two and half decades, this is a new challenge that scholars and policy makers ponder over it as to how it could be overcome. So, this study is considered to be a pioneer effort in this area in contributing to the national development of Sri Lanka at present. Present population of the world is 6.7 billion and it is expected to increase as 9.2 billion in 2050 ( UNO report:2007). By 1960s many developing countries had rates of increase as high as 3 percent a year, exceeding by or threefold the highest rates ever experienced by European population. Since a population increasing at this rate will double in only 23 years, the populations of such countries expanded dramatically. Independent Sri Lanka had a population of 6.5 million which by the early 1990s had increased to more than 17million. The rate of population growth averaged about 2.6 percent annually up to the early 1970s and declined to about 1.7 percent over the next two decades. The present population of Sri Lanka is almost 20 million and it is expected to increase rapidly in 2025. Kalmunai Municipal area which is in the Eastern Province of Sri Lanka, according to 2002 census and population survey, has 1/6 of the total population of Ampara district with 44.5 sq km and it is predominantly occupied by Muslims. It has 94,483 of population with 22,324 families and 77 Divisional Secretariat. The density of the population is almost 1500. This study is considered significant since it explores the causes and social impacts of overcrowding in Kalmunai Municipality area. This study also endeavors to highlight what measures have been taken to control the overcrowding and why it is failed in the area. Basically, this is a qualitative study. Primary and secondary data collection techniques were employed for this study. Field research conducted by author in Kalmunai Municipality area revealed that people have hard times in accessing sufficient land, food, pure water and sanitation and proper infrastructure facilities due to the overcrowding in the area. Moreover, It also revealed that people undergo untold hardships in terms of employment opportunities that cause poverty and encounter major environmental issues that cause vector borne and water borne diseases in the area.