Settlement refers to the occupation of land for human living space.
Settlements are places where people live and to which they bring
materials for consumption and for transformation into other objects.
Activities in settlements place demands on other lands and produce
wastes out of proportion to their size. As land cover, settlement
represents the most profound alteration of the natural environment by
people, through the imposition of structures. Settlements also create
demands that lead to other land-cover changes. The area of land actually
covered by the structures of settlements is small, but it nevertheless
marks the most massive change in the flows of energy, water, and
materials on the earth's surface. The study analyzes the impact on
physical (abiotic) eco system i.e. Land - Air - Water due to
urbanization process in a growing urban centre in India.