Somebody somewhere in Indian cities are coining the word again and again...and this time it has reached nearly at policy level. Thats calling "Slum Free India - 2050 AD" or 2020 AD. May be the groups supporting the agenda wants to say India would not have slums.. What a total disregard of the academic inputs for last three decades? Even the countries claiming to be developed could not eradicate it on the face of it, yet it has managed to throw interest on the so called quasi-subject experts citing visible changes at one locality or other. Whehter "Slums" are misunderstood..by professionals..yes to an extent they have claimed to remove slums by changing the physical apprearance ..no matter it reverts back to some other form or new clusters develops somewhere else.
National Slum policy...(For eradication of slums..) sic..throw them away from the city heart, costly lands, river banks, ponds, near posh (high value ) clusters. Just make them invisible from the urban morpohology. People supporting the BUSP projects are back in action, without adhering or listning to impact of major shift or change in location on the overall the social systems, character, spaces, family security or work-place relationships of the slum dwellers. The poor persons in urban India is back in limelight with all projects adhering to servicing the poor. Atleast on paper there are claims. ..What has happened in cities is worse. The fight for space between those who have and those who do'nt has increased. In our recent visit to field in Gujarat s commercial hub, we are aghast by manner in which people living in 400 slums are proposed to be packed up in far of places. People are lured to adhere to housing offer..at the cost of loosing the present house. Little consultation, understanding or study has been conducted with those people who would be forcibly removed. Keep the medium and small towns for the project where its vote bank politics or power struggle that throws the weight behind who's who of getting housing. In metropolitan cities, people are at the loosing end looking at local goons, leaders and officers to allot a peice of land, allow them to stay, finance the housing or at best let them live in peace.
We know we are minority voice in professional way of dealing with urban issues. Let hear from you..
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