THE INTERPLAY OF URBAN NATURAL CAPITAL AND LIVELIHOODS: A STUDY OF COMMUNITY PERCEPTIONS AND ECO-RESTORATION EFFORTS ALONG THE COOUM RIVER, CHENNAI

This research investigates the critical impact of forced resettlement associated with the Integrated Cooum River Eco-Restoration Project on the Natural Capital of the urban poor in Chennai. While the project aims to restore a vital natural asset, its implementation required the displacement of thousands of families, fundamentally altering their livelihood strategies. Using primary data from the resettled population, the study found that 65.7% of respondents perceive environmental problems, and critically, space/land-related issues (52.0%) are cited more frequently than water quality problems (30.0%). This emphasizes that for the resettled urban poor, the loss of proximate, secure living space a core component of natural capital in dense cities is the primary capital shock. (Kozhikode, 2020)The paper concludes that for restoration efforts to be equitable and sustainable, the mandated infrastructural improvements must be complemented by robust social strategies that compensate for lost natural capital at the resettlement sites.