Q.4 You are the head of a PSU, which has recently been entrusted with construction of a new airport in a metropolitan city. However, the area in the immediate neighbourhood of the proposed airport runways have large tracts of land occupied by dense slum settlements. If the airport is to be constructed, approximately 75,000 slum families will have to be humanly rehabilitated. The sheer scale of this rehabilitation, almost similar to an urban renewal, has thrown up many challenges. Foremost among these is identifying an appropriate location for rehabilitation of slum dwellers. You are faced with the following options in this regard, each of which have their own merits and demerits: (a) There is no reasonably priced land in close vicinity of the present slums. A vacant parcel of land that you have identified close-by will have to be developed afresh along with all civic amenities, and this will entail huge cost for the PSU. (b) There is another location, which is very far-off where a factory once stood. All the required civic amenities are in place here and the factory can be converted into appropriate houses at little cost to the PSU. However, there will be loss of livelihood on relocation to this area because of its distance from the current slum location. (c) There is yet another site, which can be used for rehabilitation at reasonable cost. Neither is it too far nor will it entail huge monetary cost, but exercising this option involves cutting a large number of trees, which may adversely affect the ecology of the area. This is likely to face resistance from environmental groups. Given the above options and the associated challenges, which of these sites will you choose for rehabilitation of slum dwellers? Provide adequate justification for your choice. (20 Marks)

Mentor’s Comments- Give a brief background of the case and mention its stakeholders. Discuss the merits and demerits of the given options. State the site you will choose and give reasons for the same. Conclude appropriately.