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Land is one of the major factors of production in Economics. But urban land, which derives its economic value from acquired characteristics like location, accessibility and availability of amenities. did not get its due from the mainstream economists. This work goes throughan extensiive survey of literature, not only from economics but also related disciplines like geography, town planning and sociology for the world in general and India in particular. it then relates the history of urbanisation and consequent political and economic changes in the Calcutta Metropolis (West Bengal, India) with its urban land use. It also uses econometrics to determine the factors resposible for the urban land use in the area.

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Mahalaya Chatterjee did her postgraduation and doctorate in Economics from University of calcutta. Actively engaged in teaching and research, she is currently working as a Reader at the Centre for Urban Economic Studies, Department of Economics, Calcutta University. She lives in Kolkata with her Husband and two sons.

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