Urban development-induced displacement and quality of life in Kolkata

Abstract

This paper draws together issues of urban development-induced displacement and resettlement and the quality of life of the affected population over the longer term. It reviews settlement strategies related to the Kolkata Environmental Improvement Project, exploring residents’ recollection of the relocation process and comparing and contrasting the situation over time of two groups of low-income households: those who refused a resettlement package and chose to continue to reside in their canalside huts; and those who accepted the package and moved into new flats provided by the government. The paper highlights issues of livelihoods, social cohesion and sanitation among both sets of households to find out whether those who were resettled experienced improvement in these aspects of their lives. Findings point to resettled households’ overall satisfaction with sanitation despite periodic lapses in functioning, and a modicum of social support, but significant livelihood problems among the poorest households, and dissatisfaction with the small size of units.

Migrants’ Narratives on Urban Governance: A Case from Kolkata, a City of the Global South

“…A condition of the Asian Development Bank, the funding agency (meeting 69% of the project cost), was in situ resettlement or rehabilitation for dwellers, where eviction was unavoidable. From the five sites chosen as resettlement colonies for this project, 3468 families were selected to be resettled in Nonadanga [41,42]. With the rapid eastward development and expansion of Kolkata, a demand for cheap labor resulted in the development of new informal squatters close to the resettlement colony in Nonadanga.…”

A New Conceptual Framework for Understanding Displacement: Bridging the Gaps in Displacement Literature between the Global South and the Global North

“…Robinson 2000; Hall 1994; Baboo 1992; Hasan 2016; Baviskar 1999; Gizachew 2017; Cernea 1997; Mahapatra 1999; Dwivedi 1999, 2002), industrial factories and mining (Mathur 2006; Sahoo 2005; Dash and Samal 2008; Kumar 2006; Downing 2002; Owen and Kemp 2015), and enclosures of forestland for conservation (Igoe and Dan 2007; Agrawal and Redford 2009; Baviskar 2003; Brockington 1999; Ganguly 2004; Chatty and Colchester 2002; Snodgrass et al 2016), which displace tribal and indigenous people. Some authors use this term when discussing displacement caused by development in a city as well (Shaw and Saharan 2019; Ambaye and Abeliene 2015; Yntiso 2008; Megento 2013; Oyefara and Alabi 2016; Patel, Sliuzas, and Mathur 2015). Nevertheless, other scholars have pointed out that this utilization may dismiss some of the specific context emerging from displacement processes within the urban arena (Oliver-Smith 2009; Koenig 2015).…”

“…The terminology used in urban displacement distinguishes between events based on the urban processes that trigger displacement and represent a certain policy, stated goals, and practices. Among the prominent terms used in the literature are evictions (Roy 2017; García-Lamarca and Kaika 2016; Annunziata and Lees 2016; Kolodney 1990; Harms 2013), slum-evictions (Boonyabancha 1983; Miraftab 2009; Müller 2015, 2017; Broudehoux 2007; Bang Shin and Binggin 2013; Bob and Majola 2011; Maiello and Pasquinelli 2015; Silvestre and de Oliveira 2012; Rizzo 2017; Morka 2007; Orjuela 2010), slum clearances (Glen 1880; Greer 1965; Kaplan 1963; Collins and Shester 2013; Macharia 1992; Rahman 2001; Tarlo 2001; Bhan 2009; Benson 2016; Tibaijuka 2005), gentrification (Grier and Grier 1978; Marcuse 1986; Lee and Hodge 1984; Sumka 1979; for a full review see Zuk et al 2015), and development-induced displacement (DID; Shaw and Saharan 2019; Ambaye and Abeliene 2015; Yntiso 2008; Megento 2013; Oyefara and Alabi 2016; Patel, Sliuzas, and Mathur 2015). It appears that these terms are often used interchangeably in the literature.…”

The Effect of Urban Redevelopment Induced Displacement and Resettlement on Social Capital in Ethiopia

“…To mention few, dispersion and fragmentation of communities, dismantles patterns of social organization and interpersonal ties and scattering of kinship groups are among others More speci cally, loss of existing community-based mutual help and support, loss of customer-seller networks, loss of community-based saving groups. In this context, these social asset indicators were collected from studies made by Bhattacharya, Mal, Tripathy, Mandal, & Ghosh (2013); Jin et al (2020); Julianna (2014); Kaviarasu, Dinesh, & Cruz (2019); Kim, Marcouiller, & Choi (2019); Ying Liu, Geertman, Oort, & Lin (2018); Yuqi Liu, Wu, Liu, & Li (2017); Majrashi (2017); Markoç & Çinar (2018); Nikuze, Sliuzas, & Flacke (2020); Shaw & Saharan (2019); Tran (2015); and Vanclay (2017) through systematic review. Therefore, the above evidences suggests the following reasons why additional research in the area of urban redevelopment induced displacement and resettlement is needed in the context of Ethiopia in general and Gondar city in particular as one of an emerging urban center of the country.…”