[Urbanstudy] India's extremes of diversity and exclusion work together to make urban governance far more complex than it need be

Tue Oct 18 06:38:44 CDT 2016

http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/delhi-s-greater-kailash-constituency-highlights-complexity-of-urban-governance-116101600805_1.html

Delhi's Greater Kailash constituency highlights complexity of urban
governanceIndia's extremes of diversity and exclusion work together to make
urban governance far more complex than it need be

Laveesh Bhandari October 16, 2016 Last Updated at 23:59 IST
[image: Residents of CR Park, which is part of the Greater Kailash
constituency, gather over water and sewage issues (Image: @Saurabh_MLAgk)]
Residents of CR Park, which is part of the Greater Kailash constituency,
gather over water and sewage issues (Image: @Saurabh_MLAgk)

Greater Kailash
<http://www.business-standard.com/search?type=news&q=Greater+Kailash>(GK)
was originally a plotted development by DLF through, what would now be
called, PPP mode. This land was given by the government to the private
sector operator, whereas the bulk of the urban planning and plotted
development was done by DLF, under norms and parameters specified by the
government. The plots were then sold and infrastructure upkeep was with the
government.  Greater Kailash
<http://www.business-standard.com/search?type=news&q=Greater+Kailash>(GK)
was initially planned as an extension to the earlier ‘brand’ of Kailash
Colony. The neighbourhood soon achieved a brand of its own and surrounding
areas also wanted to hitch a ride on this brand-wagon. Soon, we had GK 1,
GK2, GK3, GK4, GK Enclave 1, GK Enclave 2, GK Extension and other variants
of the original brand around the area. The legislative constituency is now
called Greater Kailash
<http://www.business-standard.com/search?type=news&q=Greater+Kailash>constituency
and also contains other neighbourhoods like Sainik Farms, Chittaranjan
Park, Alakananda DDA apartments, etc.

Greater Kailash
<http://www.business-standard.com/search?type=news&q=Greater+Kailash>is
undoubtedly among the more affluent parts of urban India but the
constituency also contains Sangam Vihar and the Talimabad slums, which are
among the lowest income areas of Delhi.  Alakananda is a complex of flats
originally built by the Delhi Development Authority under its Self
Financing Scheme for the middle class. Right next door would be Kalkaji,
the bulk of which is resettled immigrants from West Pakistan. CR Park,
residents comprising migrants from what was then labelled as East Pakistan.
South-west of that is Sainik Farms where farmland was divided up into
smaller residential areas without appropriate reasoning. The languages,
culture of engagement, character, expectations and needs all differ widely
within the area.

The area that falls under Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Member of Parliament
Meenakshi Lekhi’s constituency is represented by AAP MLA Saurabh Bharadwaj.
Its four wards are represented by councillors from both Congress and the
BJP. Across India, multiple tiers, multiple parties, and staggered
elections, frequently throw up such diverse political power centres and
coordination becomes problematic.  Especially so as elected representatives
willing to work with others are often accused of selling out within their
own parties.

The government servants that serve or oversee this area follow a soul-less
standardised process, blind to the variations in economy, society or
demography within the area. Some involved in law and order report to the
central government, some such as the public works department report to the
city government, and yet others such as garbage collection are overseen by
the municipal corporation. Within each of these, the officer in charge is
overloaded and under-resourced.  More, she follows a highly structured
mandate, with no flexibilities or power. In other words, the only thing the
functionary can do is follow the process.

The intervention of the local politician —‘local elder’ — strongman nexus
helps the government functionary incorporate the specific needs of specific
communities.  This intervention is not only via a side payment and could
include threats or quid pro quos. The illegality and immorality of this
politician-strongman-local elder nexus helps substitute for an
organisational design failure.  In other words, because governance
structures are straightjacketed, whereas the requirement is one of
flexibility, the local politician/strongman uses extra-legal and informal
pressure tactics to help meet the immediate needs of diverse communities in
his area.  Of course, he also extracts his monetary or non-monetary
premiums in the process.  The latter enables him to sustain his work.  In
yet other words, immorality is inherent in local political processes
because government processes are not flexible enough.

Of all of this cultural and economic diversity, what is perhaps most
important is the coexistence of massive slum and affluent areas.  Within
affluent areas as well, household help, occupants of illegal shacks,
construction workers and various service providers live next door to the
highly affluent. In low income areas as well, affluent shop and small
business owners, local leaders, etc, have incomes at par with those of the
affluent. This is a generic phenomenon in India and has some significant
economic advantages.  Proximity of low income to the affluent enables
generation of various income earning options for the poor.  Proximity also
eases access of the poor to good infrastructure. Cross-subsidisation of
water, gas and electric services becomes easier. More, proximity enables
lower retail costs – and therefore a large proportion of day-to-day retail
and service purchases of affluent and middle class households are sourced
from nearby low income neighbourhoods.

[image: Diversity and exclusion]
Local strongmen meet the supply gap created by the government and its
planners. They provide key ‘real estate
<http://www.business-standard.com/search?type=news&q=Real+Estate>services’
— both for residential and occupational purposes. In empty land that they
grab control over, they provide residential spaces, and in the planned
typically affluent neighbourhoods they provided spaces for carrying out
occupation.  All slums
<http://www.business-standard.com/search?type=news&q=Slums>have a highly
evolved and illegal space occupancy mechanism. This sometimes includes
illegal water and electricity supply and even local strongmen who enforce
(their own) laws.

The planned and typically affluent areas also have an illegal space rental
system, meant for the poor to carry out their occupations. Maids and
vendors pay to walk across certain short cuts, street vendors, paanwalas,
cycle mechanics, presswalas, sabziwalas, plumbers and electricians all pay
for their patch. Of course, the poor are harassed and are made to pay but
they add these costs to their affluent and middle class clients.  While we
can decry the immorality of all this, and we should, atleast the poor get
some avenues for both living and livelihood.

There is a lot that needs to be corrected, and the flavour of correction
will be different in every area. Therefore, the decentralised approach is
the only one that can work.  One way of decentralising is to strengthen the
ability of community driven organisations such as Resident Welfare
Associations (RWAs) and Market Associations (MAs).  This also entails
making local governance more answerable to such community-rooted entities –
a directly elected mayor who directly oversees the municipal commissioner
and all of local government is one obvious solution. This will
automatically reduce the power of the standardised, one-size-fits-all
process that has failed India.

[image: Diversity and exclusion]

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