Delineation of Rural-urban Fringe - A Case Study of Srinagar City, India

The Srinagar city is the largest urban centre in terms of areal coverage and population site and is experiencing the highest growth rates among all Himalayan urban centers. The massive Urbanization is result of a rapid population increase caused by natural growth and mass migration from rural to urban areas in search of better living and employment opportunities and also due to meger of several villages as a result of spatial expansion of the city from time to time. The present study of Fringe delineation was carried out by analyzing various socio-economic indicators of urban importance. Land use, though the vital indicator of fringe delineation was ignored due to the merger of vast tracts of agricultural and vacant land in the city limits. The study reveals that there is a negative correlation between the distance from the main city and the different socio-economic variables in the fringe area. The study also highlighted that the urban growth of the city has direct impact on socio-economic and demographic structure of its fringe area.