Chat with us
General Studies 2024 GS Paper I 10 marks 150 words Compulsory Discuss

GS Paper I — Q5

Why do large cities tend to attract more migrants than smaller towns? Discuss in the light of conditions in developing countries…

Why do large cities tend to attract more migrants than smaller towns? Discuss in the light of conditions in developing countries. (Answer in 150 words) 10 marks

हिंदी में प्रश्न पढ़ें

छोटे शहरों की तुलना में बड़े शहर अधिक प्रवासियों को क्यों आकर्षित करते हैं? विकासशील देशों की स्थितियों के आलोक में इसकी विवेचना कीजिए। (उत्तर 150 शब्दों में दीजिए)

Q5 of the 2024 UPSC Mains General Studies GS Paper I, as printed
The question as printed in the 2024 General Studies paper
Evaluate your answer to this question → See all 2024 General Studies questions

Model answer

Written by UPSC Answer Check against this question's marking rubric, to the 150-word length. UPSC does not publish answers for Mains — this is one way to score well, not an official key.

In developing countries like India, rapid urbanisation is characterized by unbalanced spatial growth, where large metropolitan areas attract a disproportionate share of migrants compared to smaller towns.

Economic Drivers and Agglomeration: Large cities generate powerful agglomeration economies, concentrated markets, and deep informal sector absorption capacity (e.g., Mumbai’s Dharavi, Delhi’s unorganized hubs), offering diversified employment and higher wages unavailable in smaller towns.

Rural Push and Infrastructure Asymmetry: Severe agrarian distress, land fragmentation, disguised unemployment, and climate vulnerability push rural workers outward. Migrants bypass smaller towns due to stark disparities in tertiary healthcare, higher education, reliable utilities, and transport infrastructure.

Social Networks and Policy Gaps: Well-established migrant clusters enable chain migration, significantly lowering information costs and settlement risks. Conversely, historical policy and governance gaps leave Tier-2 and Tier-3 towns starved of industrial corridors and planned capital investments compared to mega-cities.

Mitigating hyper-congestion in mega-cities requires balanced regional development, strengthening smaller towns as counter-magnets through targeted investments under schemes like AMRUT and the Shyama Prasad Mukherji Rurban Mission.

What "Discuss" is asking you to do

Lay the issue out from more than one side — how it arose, what is claimed for it, what is held against it, and where it now stands. UPSC attaches discuss to broad topics with several live dimensions, so coverage of the dimensions earns more than the strength of your opinion.

Structure that answers it

Set the issue up → the case as it is made → the case against → the dimension both sides leave out → where the balance now lies

Where marks are lost

Listing facts with no thread between them, or arguing one side throughout and calling it a discussion.

All UPSC directive words, compared →

How this answer will be evaluated

Approach

Framework: Push-Pull Theory of Migration. discuss: intro > 3-4 dimensions > example > balanced close Full marks: Clear push-pull analysis with specific developing country context and agglomeration logic.

Key points expected

  • Identify push factors in rural areas (poverty, landlessness).
  • Identify pull factors in large cities (jobs, services).
  • Explain the 'agglomeration effect' or concentration of opportunities.
  • Contextualize within developing country conditions (informal sector, lack of rural infrastructure).

Evaluation rubric

Each sub-part is marked on its own, against the marks and word limit printed on the paper.

  1. The answer Explain why large cities attract migrants over smaller towns in developing countries. 10 marks · 150 words

    discuss— intro → 3-4 dimensions → example → balanced close

    Must cover

    • Identify push factors in rural areas (poverty, landlessness).
    • Identify pull factors in large cities (jobs, services).
    • Explain the 'agglomeration effect' or concentration of opportunities.
    • Contextualize within developing country conditions (informal sector, lack of rural infrastructure).

    Loses marks

    • Focusing only on economic factors, ignoring social/educational pull.
    • Describing migration without explaining the 'why' (mechanism).
    • Treating large cities and smaller towns as identical in opportunity.

    Earns more

    • Mention 'rural-urban migration' as the specific phenomenon.
    • Reference 'perceived' vs 'actual' opportunities.
    • Note the role of education/healthcare concentration in cities.
    • Mention the 'magnet effect' of megacities.

    Extra mark

    • Cite a specific statistic on urbanization rates in developing nations.
    • Reference a specific developing country example (e.g., Mumbai, Lagos, Dhaka).

Practice this exact question

Write your answer and it is marked point by point against the model answer above — what you covered, what you missed, what you got wrong.

Evaluate my answer →

More from General Studies 2024 GS Paper I