Inequality | Inequality and access to urban resources |

Kitchen stories: Documenting experiences in the least planned spaces of homes

The way a kitchen is designed in a house, it is usually not a comfortable place. The patriarchal thinking that a woman’s place is in the kitchen has pushed the most important space in a house into a corner. This…

What if women designed the city? A voyage from brutalism to biophilia

Biophilic design which addresses the disconnect between people and the natural world, when adopted by women, can foster healthier and beautiful places.…

The myths of ‘public trust’ and ‘affordable housing’ in speculative Mumbai

The development story of Mumbai rests on the routine breach of the ‘public trust doctrine’ which benefits the elite. The Maharashtra government,…

The modified public realm: A study of contemporary public spaces in Delhi

The definition of public space has changed. As ‘physical’ public spaces are turning ‘virtual’, social accessibility is now restricted. They are no…

Traditional urban planning fails women; make them visible in planning to transform cities

Do women feel safe in cities? Do they get equal job opportunities and amenities as men? A woman’s experience of safety, ease…

Climate migrants: From cyclone-hit Sundarbans to Kolkata’s miserable shanties

The real struggle for those battered by cyclones starts after the calamity when they are forced to leave behind their home, land…

A tall order: Housing as part of the ‘Right to the City’ is long, hard work

The Delhi High Court’s judgment in the Shakur Basti petition in 2019 foregrounded the Right to the City for slum dwellers, bringing…

The right to the Indian city: The need to spatialise human rights in urban India

Informal settlements, despite containing a majority of the people, are treated as an aberration whose marginality is portrayed as ‘the city within the city’. The poor survive in an Indian city because the reach of master planning is weak, granting them space…

Cities, amenities, people: How they stack up

Everyone who lives in a city has the right to the city. It’s a no-brainer but rarely does a city’s infrastructure and…

India’s urbanisation must not, cannot, leave behind her urban poor

People migrate to cities for work but most Indian cities lack housing, water and sanitation, employment opportunities, and basic services such as…