Archives - Question of Cities

QoC salutes Dr Madhav Gadgil

Among the strongest advocates for the conservation of the Western Ghats, Dr Madhav Gadgil, who passed away on January 7, left behind a huge ecological legacy. A celebrated scientist, ecologist, and scholar, Dr Gadgil embodied the idea and belief that…

The Aravallis at the crossroads: Facts, fallout, and the fight

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Following the arc from the Aravallis to Delhi’s air

The need of the hour is to recognise Delhi’s rising air pollution from an integrated ecological perspective. Indeed, various anti-pollution measures of the past years must continue – and be implemented more seriously – but the acute crisis demands more.…

They fight so that the Aravallis can stand tall

Sheer passion, deep commitment to their land, and raw anger at the daylight robbery of the hills they have called home forever have driven scores of people to gather in small and large numbers across the Aravalli hills and range…

Saving the Aravallis with songs, poems and art

People, including professional artists, have been using every medium at their disposal to draw attention to the Aravallis. While locals across Rajasthan and Haryana have taken to songs, poems, and art works to protect their beloved hills, activists in Delhi,…

Beyond the Aravallis, other hill ranges in gradual destruction

The Vindyas, the Satpuras, the Himalayan range, the Western and the Eastern Ghats play an important role in protecting us from heat and dust. Their rich ecosystems support human health and provide food security. As the voices to save and…

Imaginations, protests and politics for better cities in 2026

The rapid development and redevelopment in cities in the business-as-usual mode has meant an extractive cost to nature with millions of people having no say. Cities built this way have led to unimaginably high levels of pollution, rising heat and…

Reading cities through stories, writers and lenses

Cities unravel layers in their books through trivia, history, lived experiences captured in books, monographs and other pages. The written word matters even in this digitally-driven age and books bring alive people of a city, its streets and neighbourhoods, hidden…

Community filmmakers tell lesser-known stories of
their cities

Cities are often spoken about through master plans, metrics and futures imagined top down. Often lost in these are how people live every day, adapt and adjust, resist and remake their city. The arts and films are ways to capture…

How changing climate and cities influence people’s lives

When the world is confronted with climate change and its intensifying effects, studies and research give concrete shape to the impacts. International and national reports, some short-term work and others long-term depth work that focus on rising heat, river pollution,…