You should spend about 40 minutes on this task.
Write about the following topic:
Most major cities around the world continue to grow at a phenomenal rate due to the massive increase in population. This has led to a general decline in the quality of life in city areas as the environment becomes more crowded and polluted. Give some reasons why this growth has occurred and suggest some practical solutions to this problem.
Give reasons for your answer and include any relevant examples from your own knowledge or experience.
Write at least 250 words.
Sample Answer 1:
The tremendous expansion of the metropolises and the worsening environment in such areas are major dilemmas in the contemporary world. Our classic towns and villages, with gardens and playgrounds, have turned into ugly concrete jungles, and that has led to a deterioration in people’s living standards. This has primarily happened due to the mass migration to cities for better careers and amenities. The establishment of pristine societies and self-reliant suburban systems can improve the situation dramatically.
This urban sprawl could be attributed to two primary reasons. First, the migration of skilled and unskilled workers from rural to modernized societies, seeking better jobs and higher quality of life, has accelerated it. It is evident that tens of thousands of people move to cities each year where they think they will have better careers and earnings. Secondly, city-centric education, healthcare, and other amenities have tempted people to move to cities. Take my grandfather as an example who moved to our capital city approximately 45 years ago with the hope that he would ensure better education for his children. This colossal movement of population to metro areas has increased the cost of living while declining the living standard.
The government needs to find effective solutions to check the mass migration of people to cities, and also prevent the deterioration of these municipalities and people’s living standards there. Firstly, the construction of pristine societies where environmental standards can rival what used to be in our cities in retrospect could be a great initiative. Then, the authority can encourage people to live in towns and rural areas by providing important facilities, such as health coverage, free education, and child benefits. For instance, if people in suburban areas are offered health insurance and education for free, they would not plan to move to cities where treatments and child education are generally much more expensive. Moreover, the development of the suburban area to create more jobs is also essential without compromising its green nature. This could be achieved by constructing more schools, offices, and business centres while also setting higher minimum wages in these areas.
In conclusion, the explosion of population in municipalities kills our future and hope. So we – the government, civil societies and individuals, must tackle this crisis before it aggravates beyond our control.
Sample Answer 2:
Rapid developments in megacities and mass migration of population to these metropolitans with the hope of better life, career and future have ushered in a perplexing conundrum that leads to a worsening life standard, crowd and pollution in such big cities. City-centric development, better-earning prospects and amenities in large cities have primarily stimulated the development of this situation. The government needs to decentralise and focus on the development of suburban and rural areas to reverse the scenario.
Most megacities develop faster than any other part of the country and attract millions of people who migrate from other areas. This situation stems from the fact that the authority enables city-centric growth which makes the big cities the hub for business, trade, manufacturing, education, research, employment and so on. This city-centric development forces people to move to big cities to add more woes to the already deteriorating situation there. A large factory, for example, in a city can hire thousands of people, and most of these employees come there for a better career. Moreover, most universities, colleges, hospitals, offices and other amenities are located in the heart of the large cities, and people move there to access those facilities. A recent statistic points out that more than 80 thousand students move to our capital city each year to get enrolled in different college and university courses.
To solve the ever-increasing population burden and pollution in metropolitan areas, the government has to move out many offices, colleges, factories and so on to remote areas. Without relocating those, the expectation of reducing pollution and crowd in big cities is far-fetched and impractical. For instance, at least 2.5 million factory workers live in our capital city who can not afford proper accommodation, sanitary bathrooms and clean drinking water. Diseases can spread faster there than anywhere else and could risk the whole city in the process. To move those people to suburban or rural areas, the government has to decentralise. Moreover, the development focus should not be only city-centric. It should rather be properly distributed. This will make sure people have jobs in rural areas and are not forced to move to a large city.
In conclusion, the phenomenal growth of cities poses different problems and increases pollution, and traffic congestion, and decreases living standards. Decentralisation and rural area-centric development can reverse the situation to a great extent.