Alternative approaches to informal settlements in Delhi

Abstract

Urban rehabilitation in Delhi increasingly targets jhuggi settlements in the name of modernization, aesthetics and land speculation, often displacing residents from the city, the economy of which they are a vital part. This thesis examines the current and former rehabilitation efforts through Henri Lefebvre’s concept of the ‘right to the city,’ arguing that Delhi’s contemporary regime extends the logic of the ‘Industrial City,’ prioritizing exchange value with the idea of a ‘world‑class city’ as its main driver, over the everyday life of informal residents. A study on state‑ and market‑led schemes, including the current in‑situ redevelopment of Kathputli Colony, to analyze how participation, urban form, and material choices reconfigure social ties, livelihoods, and access to the city for jhuggi dwellers. In addition, the thesis compares alternative projects and concepts that have been proposed by other architects and planning agencies, focusing on participation, form, materiality, and ownership. The case based approach has been conducted through primary and secondary sources. The thesis concludes that Delhi’s current approaches largely treat jhuggi dwellers as obstacles to be managed, producing standardized, inflexible environments, and precarious tenure. In response, it proposes a set of principles for architects and planners that suggest methods of collective tenure, material and spatial adaptability, and meaningful community organization that has been examined from alternative design perspectives.