Nikeita Saraf - Question of Cities

‘The greatest threat to wetlands is, ironically,
government agencies’

In a landmark order in December 2024,[1] the Supreme Court directed every state to appoint its Wetland Authority, complete ground truthing, and notify wetlands to protect 2.3 lakh wetlands across India from landfilling and construction. In the absence of being…

Walking the faultlines of a forest in the city

Amidst the chaos and cacophony of urban life in Mumbai and Thane, the lush green and quiet paths of the outer areas of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park offer a refuge and bring people close to nature. As the Brihanmumbai…

‘If the forest and animals exist, so will we. Otherwise,
it’s all over.’

In the fierce debates over protecting the Sanjay Gandhi National Park, its core area and buffer zone, the voices of the Adivasis, its oldest residents, are rarely heard. They or their ancestors were here before it was designated a protected…

When high-rises occupy Mumbai’s salt pans, where will the water go?

Often forgotten as a crucial part of the city’s estuary formation, Mumbai’s salt pan lands are under threat. Nearly 256 acres were sanctioned earlier this year to house people displaced by the Dharavi Redevelopment Project. Although notified as wetlands, the…

The anatomy of density in our cities: A storyboard, a way of seeing

Density, in urban planning, is often reduced to a simple metric: the number of people within a given land area.[1] But it is more than just bodies per square kilometre. It is also the concentration of housing units, the total…

Mumbai’s healthcare system shows the public, not the private, matters

With its tertiary and secondary hospitals hardly functioning, the pressure falls on the large public hospitals, most of which are located in south and central Mumbai. These also see a large influx of patients from outside Mumbai. As the presence…

Community-based tourism offers hope and sustainability in the Northeast

Away from the colour and clamour of mega festivals, in a few towns and villages of Sikkim, Nagaland and Meghalaya, community-based tourism is gaining ground. Local communities provide travel experiences in ways sustainable to themselves and ecology, showing that tourism…

In art, climate change is sometimes a storm,
sometimes rubble

Landscapes and nature have always been a part of the artistic oeuvre but, in the present context, how has art addressed or interacted with climate change and its complexities? Has it even? Contemporary and younger artists are finding various forms…

Shab-Parak: Night fliers of Delhi bus that’s a community

As India’s national capital sleeps, night buses keep the city connected and their commuters find the true meaning of accessible and affordable public transport. Shab-Parak, a short film which won the silver at the Nagari 2024 awards, captures the story…

‘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…