Archives - Question of Cities

Five issues missing from our conversations on heat

The rising temperatures and heat waves are taking a toll on people across India. Last summer, at least 733 heat-related deaths and more than 40,000 heatstroke cases were recorded in 17 states between March and June, a report showed. Temperatures…

Community gardens redefine green, help combat heat

Collectively created and managed by communities in their neighbourhoods, community gardens, more than public or private parks, not only make the space more accessible to more people but can be tailored to local contexts and needs, offer produce such as…

Climate’s sizzling frontier: Northeast heats up, must plan with nature

Summer temperatures have risen to record highs and, importantly, nights have become warmer in Guwahati with the rapid urbanisation. People have taken to air conditioners and cold drinking water. Guwahati is not alone. From Shillong’s hills to Aizawl’s ridges to…

A feminist lens to address heat waves in India

The gendered impact of heat is beginning to be acknowledged but the need is for a feminist approach to address the issues of livelihood and health that arise from heat waves. This means centering well-being and care at the heart…

‘Coping with heat isn’t an individual problem, it’s a systemic challenge’

The unequal impact of heat on the marginalised in India’s cities is no longer in question. The chasm is deepening between those who can escape heat stress and those forced to work despite extreme heat. Apekshita Varshney, founder of non-profit…

How Delhi’s poor and homeless beat the heat on their own

The country’s capital recorded this year’s first heat wave in early April, with temperatures touching 40.2 degrees Celsius. With summer making an early and harsh onset, the most vulnerable people – the homeless – have only themselves to rely upon…

Placing platform workers in the city’s urban imagination

The city is the place of work for millions of platform or gig workers in India who number an astounding 7.7 million in official records but could well be three times that. Yet, the relationship between them and the city…

At Hyderabad airport, drivers agitate for the bare minimum

It took nearly ten years, collectivisation, and dogged unionising for the drivers of aggregator taxis at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport to get even a resting room for themselves. Their fight for other basic amenities continues. But, as two of…

‘Women’s access to gig work is challenged by their access to digital infrastructure’

Women gig workers form a niche and gender-segregated part of the expanding platform and gig economy. It will reportedly provide 90 million jobs in India but its structure is hardly women-friendly. “Even educated women have a lot of challenges when…

South Asian domestic worker abuse and activism in New York

This insightful and evocative paper, presented as senior thesis at Columbia University’s Department of History, traces the arc of the exploitation and abuse faced by South Asian domestic workers in the United States, and the building of collective organisations that…