Beyond the Margins: Navigating Slum Redevelopment for the Urban Poor
The rapid increase in the population of urban poor and their dwellings in the organically grown neighborhoods, poses a significant challenge to the development of Indian cities and towns. The traditional approach to their rehabilitation involves ‘demolition’ of the existing slum and ‘reconstruction’ elsewhere. Considering this approach, the article seeks to raise the following questions: Do the residents inhabit the newly constructed cost-effective buildings which are devoid of any sense of home, their social network or employment opportunities? And does this ‘upgradation’ really stop the establishment of new slums in the future?