Social composition and family Structure of slums and non-slum households: a study in selected cities of India

Indian urban family structure is in a transitional stage and it is gradually moving from joint to nuclear families. The rapid urbanization and increasing number of urbanites changes the traditional family structure and religious composition of urban centres through differential migration. Religion and Caste played a vital role for determining the family structure and social composition. Slums are mainly dense households, settling beside the roadways and along the railway tracks, haunted the industrial and commercial set up in urban environment. Cities’ social areas are determined by these two components. The social and family composition varies from cities to cities. The study shows the comparison between slum and non-slum households in eight cities. The presence of slum households is higher in metropolitan cities as compared to other cities and towns. Most of the slums and non-slums of metropolitan cities are of nuclear type. There is no impact of religion and caste on the family structures of slum and non-slum households. Also among slum households, the family structure is independent of caste and religious affiliation, but is strongly dependent on age and educational levels of the head households.