According to United Nations projections, India’s urban population will grow faster than that of any other country over the next 30 years, increasing by more than 350 million during that period. Despite this transformation, there are as yet few book-length treatments that address the political economy of the contemporary, post-liberalization Indian city in comparative perspective.
Contesting the Indian City examines the contradictions and contestations of India’s current urban moment, as historically entrenched urban forms, rooted in cultural dynamics and legacies of Nehruvian state-sponsored modernization, face mounting pressure with the emergence of powerful new political actors around the push toward economic growth and the commodification of urban space. Bringing together a collection of theoretical explorations and empirical studies, the volume offers important insights into issues of politics, equity, and space relating to urban development in modern India. In doing so, it deepens theoretical understandings of the changes that Indian cities are experiencing, and of the comparative implications of the Indian experience for contemporary debates about urban politics. Enlightening and timely, Contesting the Indian City contributes greatly to urgent debates about the political dynamics that underlie urban development in contemporary India.
