Public Policymaking in a Globalized World: Revised Edition by Robin J Lewis

Author:Robin J Lewis [Lewis, Robin J]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781351362764
Goodreads: 35742253
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2018-01-19T00:00:00+00:00

Introduction to Kathputli Colony

The case discussed in this paper draws on the experience of citizens residing in Kathputli Colony, a squatter settlement, in New Delhi. New Delhi has a population of 16.7 million and is one of the most rapidly growing metropolises in India. The city recorded a growth of 21 percent between 2001 and 2011 (Census of India, 2011). Around three million people reside in Delhi’s slum, which is around 6 percent of total slum and squatter population in India (Solanki 2012). According to UN-HABITAT (2009), Delhi is the second largest megacity in terms of slum and squatter settlement population after Mumbai.

Kathputli Colony is located in Shadipur in the western part of Delhi metropolis. The term Kathputli is coined from two Rajasthani words, Kat meaning ‘wood’ and putli meaning ‘puppet’. The colony is inhabited by migrant communities from different parts of India. The settlement derives its name from an artisan community from the western Indian state of Rajasthan, where string puppetry is practised. Besides puppeteers, other artisans from the same state, including musicians, magicians, jewellers, carpenters, metal workers, and snake charmers, reside in the colony. A majority of artisans are from the Bhatti community of Rajasthan. They were once seasonal migrants to Delhi, frequenting the city for three months in a year, but over time settled in the city. These migrants moved to Kathputli Colony in 1956, when their camps in Old Delhi localities were demolished. Overtime, they were joined by tribals from Andhra Pradesh who prepared and traded herbal medicines and migrant labour working in the nearby industrial estates. The latter group of migrants moved to the city from different Indian states such as Maharashtra, Kerala, and Bihar. Today, there are thirteen different communities in the colony. The artisans from Rajasthan are the dominant group constituting nearly 50 per cent of the colony’s population. The 1,500–plus artisan households from Rajasthan trace their roots to 13 clans.

The colony is well-connected by the metro rail network and road transport to localities in central Delhi and other parts of the city. According to estimates, the number of households in the colony ranges from 3,200 to 3,400. The physical layout of the colony developed as dense enclaves of regional communities with lowrise structures. With the exception of houses along the main entry road of the settlement, access to settlement residences is difficult. The community lacks basic infrastructure. There is no piped water supply. The storm water drainage along the main entry road is used as sullage and sewage outlet. The main entry road to the settlement is paved, but the side roads are neither paved nor have they been provided with drainage. Consequently, the pathway is the place where sullage and sewage water is disposed. It gets inundated even with moderate rainfall and during the rainy seasons access to houses in the side-lanes is difficult.

Kathputli Colony was placed on the global map in the seventies by an influential artist – Rajeev Sethi – who is the founder of Sarthi (Friends of Artists in Need) and the Asian Heritage Foundation, with a mandate to preserve cultural heritage.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.