An exploration of natural capital in the context of multiple deprivations

Urban poverty research has moved from income-consumption perspective to a more informed and multi-dimensional approach. Issues such as powerlessness, insecurity, exclusion and many others which did not find much acceptance in this domain earlier are increasingly being considered the key to understanding the multiple deprivations that the poor face. Urban environmental issues, which may affect the poor in their own way, still get little attention. This research, using remote sensing techniques is an attempt to understand the environmental aspects of deprivation for the Indian city of Kalyan-Dombivli. An index of environmental quality was constructed using thermal information, vegetation and building density. The final index shows that environmental quality is worst in areas occupied by slums.