URBANIZATION AND PRIVATE HOSPITALS: A STUDY ON THEIR INTERDEPENDENCE AND SPATIAL IMPLICATIONS WITHIN AIZAWL MUNICIPAL CORPORATION (AMC) AREA
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53555/akktje98Keywords:
Urbanization, Private Hospitals, Urban Health Systems, Migration and Urban Growth, Spatial Implications, Production of Urban Space, Healthcare-Led Urban TransformationAbstract
Urbanization in rapidly growing cities has reshaped not only demographic patterns but also the spatial organization of essential urban services, particularly health care infrastructure. In India, the expansion of private hospitals has emerged as a defining feature of urban growth, often responding to the limitations of public health systems while simultaneously transforming urban space. This study examines the interdependence between urbanization and the growth of private hospitals, with specific attention to their spatial implications within the Aizawl Municipal Corporation (AMC) area. Adopting an integrated quantitative–qualitative research design, the study combines demographic analysis, correlational assessment, institutional data, and qualitative insights from private hospital proprietors collected through interview schedules administered via KoboToolBox. Findings indicate that a substantial proportion of Aizawl’s population growth between 2011 and 2026 is attributable to migration-driven urbanization, and that urban population growth exhibits a strong positive association with the expansion of private hospitals. Beyond this demographic relationship, the study reveals significant spatial outcomes, including spatial concentration of hospitals in central urban areas, vertical intensification of land use, and the emergence of health care-led micro-economies comprising pharmacies, food establishments, and informal vendors. Drawing on Henri Lefebvre’s theory of the production of space, Robert K. Merton’s concept of latent functions, and Setha Low’s interpretation of space as socially and culturally produced, the study argues that private hospitals function not merely as health care providers but as influential urban institutions actively shaping spatial practices, land use, and everyday urban life. The paper concludes by emphasizing the need for integrated urban and health planning frameworks, particularly in spatially constrained hill cities such as Aizawl.
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