Challenges In Accessing Urban Infrastructure by The Poor

University of Birmingham Dubai

Challenges In Accessing Urban Infrastructure by The Poor: Delivering Sustainable Cities in India.

By Mohammed Abubakr Siddique

A dissertation submitted to the department of urban planning

University of Birmingham of Dubai

In fulfillment of the requirements

For M.Sc. in Urban Planning

I attest that the total word count is 12,262

This total does not include the title page, abstract, acknowledgments, list of contents, tables of data, figures and captions, appendices, and references.

I declare that this piece of work is all my own and that any work by others has been acknowledged.

Student ID: 2454052

Date: 07-10-2022

Abstract

An essential part of India's urban population management is attributable to infrastructure methods exploiting people’s fundamental necessities. This dissertation uses data collected over three months of ethnographic study in a Bengaluru neighborhood known as Shivajinagar to demonstrate the difficulties the low-income Muslim settlers (minorities) have in gaining access to the city's urban infrastructure There is a history of caste and religious-based segregation in India's planning system. These segregated communities, particularly those with lower incomes, exhibit a distinct set of features. It is critical to understand the background of regions where informality and segregation are a simplified version of lower-income planning development in the developing south. In the process, we also understand what it takes for a city to be sustainable from the perspective of urban infrastructure.

Furthermore, a framework is developed to evaluate the area of Shivajinagar by cutting through the principles of sustainability and SDG, where I have emerged with four key indicators that act as the critical basis for assessing the area. It is crucial to understand how these four sectors hold the utmost importance in delivering a sustainable community. In this dissertation, taking a qualitative approach, I conducted in-depth interviews with key participants by asking them openended questions and taking careful note of the area's physical characteristics. Overlapping the qualitative research of Shivajinagar and a comparative study of a higher-income neighboring area indicated that the people of Shivajinagar struggle to access a resilient infrastructure, which has added to environmental and health problems. It was also emphasized that infrastructure varies greatly between affluent versus low-income minority areas. The paper also brings a sense of awareness to why it is crucial to understand and highlight these situations and expressways to help the underprivileged from suffering for no fault of their own.

Dedication

Acknowledgments

Many thanks to: Dr. Rakib Akhtar for all of his support and supervision during this process. The interviewee participants who offered their time to assist me and with whom I had the honor of working.

To my friends, who have never stopped encouraging me. My parents for their endless patience, compassion, love, and support.

1 Chapter 1 - Introduction

1.1 Focus of the study

Making current cities and future urban development more ecologically grounded and habitable is a critical undertaking in the global push for sustainability. Urban infrastructure is a crucial component of every city's planning system for communities to grow and thrive. Its supply is essential to realizing sustainable neighborhoods and metropolitan areas. Today, India confronts tremendous development hurdles, with many urban and rural residents without access to basic infrastructure. For my research, I chose to focus on Bengaluru, a flourishing metropolitan whose economic progress has far outpaced its urban infrastructure and is often known as India's silicon oasis (Roy,2009). It is no longer a tranquil retirement community but one of India's newest and busiest metropolises. In my research, I will be enquiring about the access to urban infrastructure by the low-income minorities of a locally situated area within Bengaluru, India.

With astaggeringpovertyrateof 25%, closeto 81 million peoplein urbanareas of India livebelow the poverty line (Sharma, 2017). Most urban poor in India have dust and despair in their eyes instead of the aspirations for which they went to the city (Sharma, 2017) A unique layer of socioeconomic differences has been carved on a landscape of various enclaves and ghettos, known to be dominated by minorities within India's urban poor (Roy,2009). Adverse living conditions characterize these areas but first, let us understand who the minorities of India are.

Minorities of India?

Muslims, Sikhs, Christians, Buddhists, Jains, and Zoroastrians have been designated as minority communities under Section 2 (c) of the National Commission for Minorities Act (1992). (Parsis). According to the 2011 Census, minorities account for around 19.3 percent of the total population in the country (Government of India Ministry of Minority Affairs, n.d.).

Some urban areas have access to a large variety of services. In contrast, others are severely underserved by critical infrastructures, which is the basis of many current inequities in urban communities. Segregation has a long history in Indian cities, leading to the concentration of minority populations in specific locations. The literature will explore the context more in terms of its urban fabric and development, which include informality and how it influences the liveability of a community. The next section of the literature aims to explore the development of a framework used to provide a sustainable city whose components are closely connected with its surroundings. This framework is further used as an assessment criterion for enquiring about the challenges faced by the people of the chosen case study. Based on three months of ethnographic research in Bengaluru, I will show through a historically marginalized area known as Shivajinagar, dominated by a low-income Muslim population, how these settlers in central Bengaluru are being denied a proper urban infrastructure. To properly appreciate the literature review, it is necessary to first briefly grasp the geographical context. A substantial amount of research also emphasizes the relevance of sustainable sectors and factors in urban infrastructure development.

1.2 Aim

To comprehend and investigate the difficulties the urban poor (low-income minorities of Shivajinagar) faced in accessing the city’s urban infrastructure

1.3 Research Questions

It is found that in most parts of the world, mainly the minorities with low income/average earrings tend to or are forced to adapt to living compromised of proper infrastructure, unhealthy atmosphere, access to appropriate public transport spaces, and adverse living conditions. The following questions have been the focus of the whole study.

How would you deliver a sustainable city for India, particularly given the scenario of lowincome marginalized settlements (Muslim minorities)?

To ensure the long-term viability of India's metropolises, how would you design a plan to assess the urban infrastructure of a low-income minority neighborhood (Shivajinagar)?

1.4 Objectives

• Acquiring an understanding of the historical and contextual features of low-income minority neighborhoods.

• Creating a framework to produce a sustainable city intimately tied to the setting of urban infrastructure, as well as arriving at a conceptual framework further to evaluate the selected case study (Shivajinagar).

• Developing a method to include the framework and how to further study the issues that residents of the selected area have when accessing urban infrastructure.

• SharingfindingsanddebatingShivajinagar'spredicament withaneyeonhowtheconcept of sustainability may be applied there.

1.5 Bengaluru city: an overview of Shivajinagar

Silicon Valley, or Bangalore, is one of the world's most rapidly expanding megacities This article focuses on the city's historic downtown neighborhood, which also serves as its site of origin The origin of Bengaluru is identified with a settlement founded in 1537 by the regional chieftain Kempe Gowda (Pathak, 2020). After falling under British rule, Bengaluru is shown on a map from 1924, with its boundaries andmajorsites labeledforeasy comparison with modern-day Bangalore.

As early as 1806, the British were attracted to Bangalore's mild climate and set up a military cantonment there (Pathak, 2020). Starting in the early 1900s, the British invested in developing the neighborhood and an urban market, leading to the creation of what is today known as Shivajinagar, one of Bengaluru's most significant market districts and home to a large population of low-income minorities (Chand, 2018).

Figure 1 Bengaluru’s map of 1924 locating Shivajinagar (source: Pathak, 2020).

Although regions such as Shivajinagar remain crucial to forming such social collectives, they are pushed beyond the state's or other institutions' bio-political care (Anand, 2012). The Muslim provenance of the stores and eateries in the neighborhood is the key reason why Shivajinagar is recognized as a Muslim-dominated region. These urban marketplaces are often characterized by a feeling of chaos and the preservation of variety based on historical links, with religious and economic pressures seeming to be a common element (Patel, Furlan, and Grosvald, 2021)

The IT hubs in Bengaluru ushered in a period of gentrification, altering the city's social, physical, and environmental landscape. It has both good and bad effects on the city, the former being the increased investment in urban infrastructure near major IT centers and the latter being the decreased investment in infrastructure in neighborhoods away from them. Since every community has specific attributes based on the user group and activities, the study of locations like Shivajinagar is a vastly diverse academic study. The methodology chapter delves much more into the thinking behind the geographic context.

Of all countries, India has the highest percentage of its population living in multi-dimensional poverty, at 27% (Tewari and Mishra, 2019). One-third of Muslims in India are impoverished in several ways, including materially but also in terms of their health, nutrition, education, and level oflife(TewariandMishra,2019) BangaloreishometoaMuslimcommunityofalmost1.1million (14%) (www.census2011.co.in, 2011), and this research highlights the difficulties this group of people is having gaining access to essential services in order to promote sustainable development aimed at making the city more habitable for everyone.

Figure 2 Map locating Shivajinagar in Bengaluru, India (source: SCHWARZPLAN.eu, n.d.)

2 Chapter 2 - Literature review

2.1 Introduction

India is known to have dramatic urban growth where it constantly outstrips even the most perspicacious planners’ vision (Roy,2009). The spatial context and background of the area have the capacity to assist us to generate an identity for the space. Following that, it serves as a foundation for establishing criteria for analyzing the area, which is required to determine future sustainable development. There is an even greater urgency in the case of emerging nations like India, which are spending heavily on urban infrastructure projects (Bhattacharya, Patro, and Rathi, 2016). In the second part, we examine the literature on urban sustainability sectors, the frameworks for conducting such an examination, and the fundamental tenets and ideas of sustainability that come from different fields of study.

2.2 History and context

2.2.1 What is urban infrastructure

In simple terms, the urban environment controls how we commute, work, gather, enjoy, and generally go about our everyday activities; to put it another way, the physical architecture of a city's streets and buildings dictates our actions. The fact that we, as users, are bound to rely on the built environment and have a special relationship with it makes it so blatantly clear when the system breaks down (Reiner and Rouse, 2017). There are two types of urban infrastructure: physical infrastructure and social infrastructure. The physical infrastructure, also known as hard infrastructure, comprises transportation, drainage, sewage, water, power, and so on. In contrast, the social infrastructure includes community amenities such as residential complexes, healthcare centers, parks, emergency services, and so on (Mahanta and Borgohain, 2022).

The fragility of the social, cultural, and economic systems that compose a city is tested by the disruption of our physical infrastructure, which also demonstrates how these sectors rely on the functioning of our infrastructure facilities (Reiner and Rouse, 2017) The social infrastructure, on the other hand, builds resilient communities and may be used to entice foreign investment and spur economic expansion. Social attributes enhance communities’ well-being and are crucial for integrating sustainable communities (Mahanta and Borgohain, 2022). Bengaluru, one of the leading global cities, has been dragged down by its infrastructure (Carvalho, 2022); it is one of the most desired places to live due to its weather conditions; yet, it requires adequate infrastructure, which has resulted in dire living conditions that have reinforced negative impacts of traits such as segregation and informality, resulting to low livability and aggravating the poor's situation.

2.2.2 Segregation of Minorities.

It is troubling that India's Muslim community, now the world's third-largest, is subject to residential segregation along religious lines (Susewind, 2017). Present-day India has a significant fraction of its Muslim population living in ghettos (Gupta, 2015a). When neighborhoods are mostly divided along racial, religious, or other social lines, we often use the word "ghetto" (Gupta, 2015a). The availability of public services, such as schools and hospitals, tends to be lower in Indian cities where the Muslim population is more significant Muslims of India are known to be historically disadvantaged people. The practices of racial residential segregation incorporate the social segregation of race with that of the materialistic segregation of property ownership (Armstrong-Brown et al., 2014). Low-income Segregation is a unique problem for India's Muslim population, which differs from other populations in the country (Susewind, 2017) India's religious communities have a troubled past, leading to widespread discrimination and segregation due to security fears and bias. (Susewind, 2017). African Americans in the United States experience segregation is comparable to that of India's minority groups. The same is true in India; caste segregation is associated with poorer incomes and educational opportunities in urban areas, just as it is in the United States (Adukia et al., 2019).

While religious persecution is not a major issue for Muslims in Bengaluru yet, they do have other worries about urban livability (Sen, 2013) The Muslim populations in Bengaluru have been thrown into instability and are starting to fear their security as a result of recent swings in political power, and this has led to more segregation and widened gaps in the city's socioeconomic structure. Shivajinagar is also a part of residential segregation but mainly due to its colonial past in the spatial distribution of the population. It initially started as a ghetto, a vital area that once witnessed the significant mobilization of Muslims in the city (Arif and Aminah, 2012). These low-income ghettos are often bagged with negative inputs where they are denied a proper urban infrastructure. Inhabitants in these regions are prone to relocations and are sometimes compelled to engage in interventions that violate government legislation.

It is known that Muslims living in a neighborhood with a 10% more Muslim population are 7.5% poorer, and the others are 6% poorer. One’s health and educational attainments may be negatively impacted by living in a neighborhood with a high minority population. A family's precarity is exacerbated when they must contend with the stresses of segregated neighborhoods with limited access to essential services (Gee and Payne-Sturges, 2004). Over time Shivajinagar, which once started as a ghetto through forced relegation has now become a home to low-income people and attracts new residents who see it much more as an enclave.

Figure 3 map of the Muslim demographic in Bangalore, based on the Muslim share of the electorate in 2014, indicating the density of population across Bangalore (source: Susewind, 2017).

2.2.3 Informality in urban infrastructure

In India's largest cities, the informal urban landscape is prominent. In affluent nations, problems were solved by tearing down whole cities or sections of cities, a process known as urban renewal; in India, however, the country's urban centers were never razed and rebuilt from scratch, leading to a more chaotic and unplanned form of urbanism (Vidhate and Sharma, 2017). Another explanation is the prevalence of urban difficulties such as unforeseen and unregulated urban expansion, a rise in the number of urban people living in informal settlements and slums, and the difficulty of delivering urban services to everyone (Sandoval, Hoberman and Jerath, 2019).

Since its founding 450 years ago, the city of Bengaluru has been a major trade Centre. It’s Shivajinagar neighborhood has served as its core market, with its avenues and plazas serving as informal public areas. (Patel, Furlan and Grosvald, 2021b). Roy describes 'urban informality' as "a condition of exception from the formal order of urbanization." (Roy, 2005) In a condition of informality, land ownership, usage, and purpose are not established by any legal or regulatory structure (Roy, 2009). Most cities in developing countries have slums or other forms of informal habitation that have grown over time. Slums in India are deemed informal, hiding a wide cultural variety under a veil of extreme poverty and limited access to services (Roy et al., 2018).

In areas such as Shivajinagar, the bigger question arises why some of these areas are now judged to be unlawful and subject to destruction while others are protected and formalized. Here, the variation does not exist between formality and informality but rather within informality (Roy, 2005). Indian cities' use of privatized planning and methods to ensure their future viability buying principles shows that the country would not be able to effectively plan its cities unless it gives urban informality a higher priority (Roy, 2009). Informal development has been a critical aspect in Shivajinagar regarding residential settlements Chandni Chowk is a small block of Shivajinagar that was formerly famed for its many courtyards. Still, these have been transformed into a collection of private buildings, which is a prime example of contributing to the area's congestion (Patel, 2018).

Figure 4 sequence of plans showing the informal development of a typical block in Shivajinagar, Bangalore (source: Patel, 2018).

The impoverished and the marginalized are not the only ones living in informality (Sandoval, Hoberman and Jerath, 2019); informality is a very diverse attribute often found in every aspect of urban interventions in India.

2.2.4 Urban infrastructure and its relation to Livability

Theareas dominatedbypoorminorities have caused majorconcerns regardingthequality of urban livability (Mahanta and Borgohain, 2022) There is currently a lack of research into the concept of urban livability, which is a behavioral function of the interplay between the urban environment and individual characteristics (Mahanta and Borgohain, 2022). It is an essential characteristic of a city to fulfill its users’ needs and expectations. Physical and economic well-being, fundamental security, cultural expression, and a feeling of belonging to a group or a place are all included in the broad definition of livability (Martino, Girling, and Lu, 2021). Urban infrastructure is a distinctive case of infrastructure that forms a close relationship with livability.

A city’s livability may be explained by assessing the quality of the city's urban infrastructure from the perspective of its citizens. Accessibility, equality, urban security, comfort, mobility, transportation, and urban transportation all contribute to a city's livability and are impacted by the same set of principles (Shabanzadeh Namini et al., 2019). In recent times, Bengaluru has just been ratedby theEconomist IntelligenceUnit as India'sleast livablemajormetropolis (Carvalho, 2022) The lives of those who reside in the neighborhood are strongly intertwined with the characteristics of informality and segregation, which have a significant impact on the livability criterion.

2.3 Delivering a sustainable framework for cities

2.3.1 Concept of sustainable cities

The situation in many of our contemporary cities is such that only a few can access infrastructure and services that are of higher quality and equivalent to first-world levels; most others are denied access to even its most rudimentary form (Benjamin and Bhuvaneswari 2006). Ecologically sound urban environments and natural environments are founded on solid infrastructure. Infrastructure is commonly misinterpreted in urban studies, which view it through the lens of massive construction projects rather than the lens of people going about their everyday lives (Taufen and Yang, 2022b). Sustainable development may be thought of as the kind of growth that helps the current generation without sacrificing the potential of future generations to cope with their own demands (Nkhabu, 2021) Understanding how the urban environment interacts with people's unique traits is crucial for creating a sustainable city because it continues the process of changing urban infrastructure to improve the quality of urban space.

As India creates a lens to guide the sustainability of urban infrastructure, this article will identify elements of sustainability that have been overlooked in locations like Shivajinagar, which is also the situation for most of the ghettos across India (Bhattacharya, Patro, and Rathi, 2016) Creating sustainable urban development indicators is an ongoing process that has received a lot of attention and resources. There are three mainstays of sustainability that must be established to build a framework that provides for sustainability. A practical framework must incorporate the three most crucial pillars: economic, social, and political. (Bhattacharya, Patro, and Rathi, 2016). The framework which will be developed will act as a mechanism that will be responsible for the entire assessment, inquiries, and monitoring of urban infrastructure within Shivajinagar. A better understanding of the challenges faced in Shivajinagar is crucial for designing future sustainable cities since low-income communities are often exposed to negative living situations. To better grasp the present state of affairs, I will construct a framework for assessing global and Indian indicators across urban infrastructure sectors, taking into account the 3E's of sustainability.

United Nations member states have accepted a set of goals outlined in "Changing our planet: the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development" with the express purpose of forging a link between the three pillars of sustainable development (Leal Filho et al., 2018). It is essential to consider the SDG, which plays a crucial role in understanding sustainability based on the context. India was 121st out of 163 nations on the Global Index of Sustainable Development in 2022. The position steadily dropped between 2018 and 2021 (Bansal, 2022). This paper proposes a framework for the four central guiding principles principle which will cross-cut the three pillars and the SDG objectives which are closely related to urban infrastructure. The following section describes each aspect briefly, which will further help us set out questions for the people of Shivajinagar.

2.3.2 Accessibility in urban infrastructure

When talking about a city, "accessibility" refers to how convenient it is for residents to access various services and opportunities. There is a strong correlation between inequity in urban neighborhoods and barriers to accessibility. The gentrification processes in developing countries, along with residential segregation and informality, have, over time, forced low-income minority groups to dwell in urban neighborhoods that have degraded and been denied access to a significant fraction of government investment (Nicoletti, Sirenko, and Verma, 2022) Increasing accessibility for specific populations is critical since it will allow them upward socioeconomic progress and significantly curb urban social isolation and disparity. Access to a neighborhood mainly depends on the ease with which people can travel throughout the city. Transportation is one of the most critical factors in making cities long-term sustainable. Individuals who are disabled confront extensive barriers to accessing built environments ranging from roads and houses to public buildings and places in developing cities. Inadequate accessibility places disabled persons in precarious circumstances, resulting in excessive poverty rates (www.un.org, n.d.). Accessibility should be considered a long-term investment that contributes to successful, sustainable, and equitable development for everybody, rather than just a cost or compliance concern (www.un.org, n.d.) Low-income individuals and families Nowadays, having access to essential services is more of a luxury than a right. A proper and well-executed infrastructure is derived from well-planned accessibility to demonstrate its commitment to economic reform, be it roads, schools, business centers, housing, hospitals or health centers, markets and social centers, parks, stadiums, etc., Inaccessibility issues have arisen in many parts of India due to historical neglect of religious minorities and current social unrest between religious groups (Adukia

et al., 2019)

2.3.3 Inclusivity in Urban Infrastructure

Inclusive is an ideology that believes that the possibilities and benefits of progress should be extensively shared with all members of society (Florida and McLean, 2017) The potential for a moreinclusivefutureis crucialto thesuccess oftheworld and its cities oftomorrow. Toendsevere poverty and promote economic stability, it is essential to understand that the concept of inclusive cities requires an inclusive range of spatial, social, and economic considerations (World Bank, 2017). As a result, the most recent efforts in global development have had to place a greater emphasis on environmental challenges, such as providing infrastructure in transit, homes, health, sanitation, and social health. It is crucial to comprehend and build a concept containing elements like urban inclusion to guarantee that current and future cities give opportunities and improved living situations (Majid Cooke, 2006, p.208). The most disadvantaged members of society need to have their rights protected and be given a fair chance to participate in society as a whole. This is especially important in today's urban areas, where residents are increasingly being asked to share their opinions on the causes and effects of social and economic unrest. However, many city dwellersarestill unableto reap theadvantages ofgrowth becausethey lack access to basicservices (World Bank, 2017).

The worldwide social and economic components of urban inclusion are closely intertwined and tend to follow a negative route, trapping people in poverty and denying them opportunities; hence, a more corrective and suitable strategy is needed that may raise people out of exclusion and better their lives. (World Bank, 2017). Inclusion and sustainable infrastructure need to be evaluated and integrated through a Governing body (Municipal) that will make it function successfully over the long term and cover all city segments. Services that exclude the poor are not inclusive as, over a period, they fall into neglect or disrepair or deplete the area’s natural resources. Therefore, it is necessary to have a comprehensive plan through an upfront assessment to be incorporated in the designs and implementation process, thereby successfully able to control and sustain the infrastructure networks for an extended period (50 years) before another round of significant capital upgrades (USAID, 2011).

2.3.4 Health and well-being in urban infrastructure

Health is a crucial concept for sustainable and urban development since it directly affects people's morality and well-being via the activities and interactions they build in their surroundings (Stimson, 2013). Factors like social setting, environmental exposures, toxicity, social structures, mental health, and physical health all add to the whole lifespan. At the same time, socioeconomic status, education, nutrition, housing, and access to vital utilities all contribute to good living conditions and are therefore of paramount importance (Yang and Taufen, 2022). Well-being is the domain of comprehensive measure of health, and the main factors that influence good health, and well-being are driven by its relationship to urban parks, cultural centers, and places of social interactions.

A modern measure of well-being is evaluated through aspects of day-to-day life activities and accessing how society facilitates or inhibits the enjoyment of life (Larson, Jennings, and Cloutier, 2016). Today it is seen from a broader perspective to the growth factors like physical, and mental health, community attachment, and economic security are more fully interdependent within the domain of health and well-being (Larson, Jennings and Cloutier, 2016). It is found that residents with access to greener urban areas display a more positive indication of mental health and selfconfidencehencethe concentrationofparks andgreenspaces arekeycorrelatesofhealthand wellbeing (Larson, Jennings and Cloutier, 2016).

Intheglobal south, informal areas showvulnerability thatmayplayasignificant rolein developing health problems. Many people are more likely to be exposed to environmental contaminants such as air pollution, which may lead to elevated stress levels (Gee and Payne-Sturges, 2004). Air pollution is one of the biggest concerns in Indian cities and is closely related to the city's transportation system Bengaluru is now the most congested city in the world (Mishra, 2020), with rising difficulties in air quality and non-communicable diseases. Seventy percent of fatalities in India over the last two years have been attributable to NCDs (Kanwal, 2022).

Mobile phone gaming has surpassed outdoor activities among both young and elderly, and the proliferation of social media has replaced face-to-face interaction, leading to increased isolation and a decline in physical activity (Banerjee, 2019) Long hours spent in front of screens at the

workplace have been a significant contributor to the rise of the sedentary lifestyle in recent years due to shifts in the work culture, particularly after the release of covid-19 (Banerjee, 2019) and the lack of green spaces in low-income ghettos has aggravated the issue of having an active lifestyle within the community.

2.3.5 Reliability and resiliency of urban infrastructure

Our daily lives entail contact with a wide range of vital infrastructure, which puts individuals in the position of its reliability, where reliability may be defined as the capacity to not fail. Reliability is the key to efficient cities since it directs and analyses a city's performance in terms of resources to accomplish the city's objectives (Bhattacharya, Patro, and Rathi, 2016). The present state of our nation's infrastructure is primarily due to degradation caused by age and a lack of asset maintenance, which directly impacts its resilience (Reiner and Rouse, 2017). Another essential aspect of reliability is resilience, which is defined as a system that performs the same tasks or recovers fast after stress or disruption. Infrastructure resilience is critical in surviving natural disasters, with flooding being one of the most severe difficulties that Indian towns face. Urban flooding produces substantial infrastructural challenges, massive economic losses in terms of output, and severe damage to property and products; it not only ruins physical buildings but may also impede or entirely obstruct movement (Ramachandra and Mujumdar, 2009)

Rises in impermeable surfaces are a leading cause of flooding because land use shifts from open to impervious surfaces in the catchment region due to increased urban development (Ramachandra and Mujumdar, 2009). As a result of corruption, city planners in India only focus on short-term problems. Corruption also adds to crumbling infrastructure; recently, a group representing state contractors accused state authorities and officials of pressing them to contribute a commission of 40% on govt contracts (Carvalho, 2022), demonstrating that it is challenging to finish a new project, let alone maintain the existing infrastructure. For resilient infrastructure, rapid recovery from stress or absorption of the impact is essential, but there is a gap between the directions for hazard intensity and post-disaster restoration and the day-to-day problems of public works and utility management. Achieving the aims of sustainable development requires a strong and long-term perspective, which may be gained via the regular practice of foresight. This will foster a dedication to highlighting the city's long-term concerns and objectives, and it will assist construct the capacity to address future disasters.

2.4 Conclusion

The literature research makes it clear that sustainability is a multifaceted concept that depends on a web of interconnected variables that work together to better the lives of people. Additionally, this has assisted in developing the conceptual framework for evaluating the Shivajinagar neighborhood's urban infrastructure.

2.5 Conceptual framework

The ability of individual countries to adapt the global indices to their contexts will significantly impact how far they have come in achieving the SDGs. A growing body of literature shows how factors local to an individual, particularly segregation and informality, have a role in shaping their upbringing and hence their subsequent abilities and character (Kling and Liebman, 2004; Chetty and Hendren, 2018).The literatureledto theformation ofaframeworkbasedonthefourindicators such as inclusivity, accessibility, mental health, and reliability, which act as the background to evaluate further the current situation of the picked neighborhood (Shivajinagar).

The first 11 sectors are selected as they are recognized by the ULBs (Urban Local Bodies) in India and evolved from the basic requirements within the context of physical and social infrastructure. The 4 indicators extracted from the concept of sustainability will be used as a basis for developing questions on the 11 urban infrastructure sectors. The diagram below explains the conceptual framework of the research as we next move on to the methodology.

Figure 5 Conceptual framework. (Source: developed by the author).

2.6 Research gap

It is essential to highlight the challenges being faced as increasing poverty within these segregated neighborhoods may deter human capital accumulation and further encourage crime (Adukia et al., 2019). As I completed the literature review, I identified a gap in the research within the context of minorities. many pieces of research on low-income minority areas have been done using quantitative methods without understanding the context's background and essence. It is essential to know that the concept of sustainability is context-specific and has different annotations in diverse cultural and geographical contexts (Zetter and Georgia Butina Watson, 2017) Especially in Bengaluru, no efforts have been made to understand the people’s situation of the marginalized group and their accessibility to urban infrastructure. Most of the studies I read on Shivajinagar focused solely on the city's politics, and the few that touched on urban revitalization efforts there were quite limited. This raises the topic of what is going on in this area, which has sparked the interest of several scholars. This is where I step in, aiming to fill the hole of how a ghetto’s urban infrastructure, such as Shivajinagar's, is failing and, more significantly, how it impacts the people who live there.

3 Chapter 3 - Methodology

3.1 Introduction

The extensive accounting and methodical as well as a thorough intensive study that has gone into understanding the issues faced by often-isolated local communities in terms of access to physical and social infrastructures is one of the most significant characteristics of case studies (Connell and Waddell, 2011). The dissertation is an attempt to understand the challenges faced by the lowincome minorities in segregated neighborhoods of Bengaluru. It seeks to comprehend the processes through which Shivajinagar is conceived and depicted., following an ethnographic approach to examine the people and the relationship of their space.

3.2 Shivajinagar the case and its significance

Shivajinagar is one such example of many such ghettos and enclaves which are present not only in Bengaluru but across India that portray similar characteristics to each other. The segmented and deteriorating areas of Juhapura in Ahmedabad and Shivajinagar in Mumbai, where marginalization seems to deepen after each religious violence, are two outstanding instances of this viewpoint (Adukia et al., 2019 The developed theory shows that a similar pattern of minority settlement is formed throughout India. However, of course, there are dangers in making claims about larger processes based on a single project if the area is in its infancy. Still, as we know, Shivajinagar is known to be a historical place and emerged during the British rule over India. Shivajinagar is more than just a little neighborhood; it has well-connected ties and networks to markets around Bengaluru and even India. As such, it supports the claim that a single location may provide context for understanding a system more broadly. Many different groups from government and politics to non-governmental organizations and local communities, as well as religious institutions and commercial enterprises contribute to the neighborhood's rich tapestry of life. It's possible this case will serve as a precedent; thus, it merits its own investigation.

3.3 A comparative neighborhood

Ihave been living in Bengaluru since my childhood and as a resident of thestate, have been largely dependent on Shivajinagar as one of the most significant marketplaces in the city. Another reason for choosing Shivajinagar is that I've witnessed the region in disrepair for a long time and felt compelled to highlight the people's plight. The neighborhood’s boundaries are clearly marked by poor infrastructure and accessibility, unlike its surrounding localities. After realizing the differences between the neighboring area, I decided to pick another locality, Benson town, located right next to it, to understand their situation, challenges, and differences, which would give me a better understanding of my main study. Benson town can be termed a citadel, populated mainly by the upper middle class and also dominated by minorities. This idea of comparison evolved from the sustainable goals of having an inclusive city where there are stark comparisons between different areas of the varied classes This small comparison can help us uncover patterns of explanations Assuming that the two locations are examples of the same phenomenon's evolution, contrasting their differences is a method based on the belief that their commonalities can be easily refuted and any effort to identify the reasons for those differences will soon link directly to the findings (Dilworth, 2020).

Figure 6 map locating Shivajinagar and Benson town in Bengaluru, India (SCHWARZPLAN.eu, n.d.).

3.4 Philosophy and framework

In a rapidly urbanizing economy, urban infrastructure, along with the interventions it generates, increasingly influences people's daily lives in ways that may not always take the individual city inhabitant into consideration. To complement these critical studies, I have decided to take an ethnographic approach to study urban infrastructure, especially by highlighting the lives of the residents affected by it. The first one is an observation that would help us understand the urban spaces’ place and space-making. In this research, I used both planned and naturalistic observation techniques in this study to evaluate the region's physical characteristics (Byrne, 2021, pp.127 149). This method also discovered non-visual observations such as soundscapes, smell, and pollution. For the interviews, the participants were questioned with the same open and closedended series, which facilitated an answer or further discussion. After the public interviews, further questions were prepared to ask the governing authorities based on the situation of the people and the area.

Another critical aspect was language. Most of the interviews were conducted in the native language, which is Urdu. Multiple factors influence the interactions, including the researcher's and the respondents' language competence and language choice and usage (Marschan Piekkari and Reis, 2004). Speaking the local language made interviewees more comfortable, leading to more open discussions and cooperation, improving data quality. (Marschan Piekkari and Reis, 2004) Using triangulation, researchers may combine multiple research strategies, strengthening the validity and reliability of their findings (Turner, 2015). It is a method often used in qualitative data collection. The qualitative nature of both methodological approaches enabled the data obtained to be unique (Noy, 2008) and current to the circumstances in Shivajinagar. Residents and shop owners are the target population in this structure, and their identities are formed in response to the intervention.

Figure 7 Diagram explaining the framework of methodology (source: developed by the author).

3.5 Data collection

3.5.1 Observation

Bengaluru would be where I call home. It is the place with which I am most connected and at home. I landed in Bengaluru on the 29th of June to initiate my research project and started to conduct my fieldwork from July 2022 to September 2022. As a resident of Bengaluru and living in the neighboring area of Shivajinagar I thought that the process of the fieldwork would be easy work. Researching the neighborhood was deeply frustrating. I faced difficulty gathering basic information due to a lack of data from the government, problems in setting interviews, and challenges during my observation of the area. I started my research by observing urban settings to comprehend my surroundings better

On July 18, I met with a local informant and social worker to learn about Shivajinagar. The informant arrived at my office at 11 am, and we described my project to him. He quickly saw a political component to my concept and stated that it would assist the governing party in obtaining information on what the people felt about the MLA. I added that it was for academics and wouldn't engage in conversation. Later, we agreed to explore the region, and he showed me around Shivajinagar, where I was astonished by the situation of the people and its infrastructure. He then described how each section operates in Shivajinagar, which is separated into two parts controlled by various criminals. He even showed me their offices, which Ididn't believe. Visiting the location helped me organize future interviews and observations.

On the 19th of July, as I was observing the site and taking pictures, I came across an incident in Shivajinagar, a place called Gujri (a market where spare parts are sold). As my friend and I were moving down the area, taking pictures of the roads, we were immediately stopped and surrounded by a group of people asking what we were doing in the area and why we were taking pictures. It was a terrible scenario, and I saw weapons since the locals are renowned as butchers. I was informed I couldn't take photographs in that location and had to pay 5000 rupees (about $60) to the road committee, but we managed to persuade them it was for a study project but had to erase the photos taken there. Later, I went back to the guy who led me to the neighborhood and was told those regions are under certain criminals and one cannot take photographs or recordings without his prior approval, which worried me about the interviews I needed to do with people.

3.5.2 Interviews

Doing interviews in Shivajinagar was a murky business. I had to adopt the snowball effect (Noy, 2008), which helped ease the interview recruitment after understanding the area’s situation. The first situation I encountered in interviews was that the routine of the people in the area was quite different from other areas. Most people wake up after noon and sleep very late at midnight. This automatically pushed all my time for the interviews to later in the evenings of the day. Meeting theinformants was achallenging taskas theyareswampedin theirday-to-daylife,andthemoment they hear the word interview, they tend to get suspicious and immediately deny it. The interviews

which took place had an average time of 25mins each, a little shorter than the ideal interviewing conditions outlined in books on anthropological methods (Weiss, 1995). To meet face-to-face, I had to adjust to their routines. Some contacts ignored me for days or weeks before agreeing to my terms. Some pulled out even after being assured that the interview wouldn't be released and was for academic purposes alone.

After a few days, I had the chance to meet the MLA, the elected leader of Shivajinagar. He visited my house owing to my family’s reputation in Bengaluru. I was shocked when he spoke about all the characteristics of urban infrastructure. I did not expect the knowledge he gave me on the topic, which was helpful and oriented toward sustainability I brought up the issues of criminals in the area, but even he suggested I would take someone along with me and avoid where they reside. He also pointed out a few slums where I can go and take interviews that are safe to visit. On the 18th of august, I had an interesting discussion in one of the slums inside Shivajinagar. I entered the slum along with an informant, and immediately when I explained the project was surrounded by people wanting to present their situations which led to a critical group discussion inside the slum area; as the interview was going on immediately, a person from the political party came down and influenced everyone to stop the interview smartly by telling them that their problems would be solved but until then I had gotten quite a lot of information. It was not only the government authorities who were secretive but also the area’s residents Living in a society where data is sold for money and the exchange of information may disrupt both the course of events and the lives of people in this region serves as an illustration of the power hierarchies inside the neighborhood.

Observation and interviews of Benson town

It was averystraight forwardssituationin Bensontownwhere Ifacednochallenges when it came to the observation of the area. As far as the interviews the informants were easy to access and agreed easily to give interviews. The interviews with the people of Benson town were more professional as most of the people were educated and were not hesitant to discuss the situation.

3.6 Ethics

Essential elements of ethics include respect for individuals' right to privacy and discretion and the ethical implications of various data-access techniques. My research aim led me to examine and understand many practices that sometimes felt unethical. These were mainly about the allegations of corruption made by the people on the government authorities and the intervention of illegalities within the system All my interviews were recorded with the verbal consent of the interview, the project was explained beforehand, and I reminded them that the recorder could be turned off. They could withdraw at any given time. Also, I ensured that my phone used to record was visible during the interview. My identity as a researcher was made clear to all the interviewees and all the group discussions. Research misconduct was minimized by obtaining ethical approval before conducting the interviews.

3.7 Conclusion and Limitations

This chapter discussed how the project was framed and designed to answer the research questions. The process led to understanding the critical elements of achieving a sustainable urban infrastructure. Shivajinagarareawas usedto study thelow-incomeminority groupto movebeyond the common trend of urban poor. A separate layer within the poor who are at times regarded to be abject residents of the country. I identified vital places within the area for a detailed analysis. The following chapter will outline the ethnography of the accessibility of the urban infrastructure of the area.

I had the opportunity to interview 25 people from various groups (locals, NGOs, social workers, and government officials) who all were directly involved with the work. I discontinued interviewing once I reached saturation, and it got tough to find additional residents, given the neighborhood's circumstances. The criminal angle of the area was a significant setback for conducting interviews in many parts of Shivajinagar. The project's time was limited in many aspects, and the techniques utilized included observations and interviews that provided a profound insight into the condition of the area and its people.

Definitions of elected members

MLA (member of legislative assembly) – is elected by the people of the constituency in this case the constituency is Shivajinagar.

Corporator – an elected member who manages and runs the local corporation of the constituency such as BBMP in the case of Bangalore for a particular ward of the area.

4 Chapter 4 - Empirical data and Discussion

4.1 Introduction

This section of the dissertation presents the analysis and discussion of the research data. It is essential to have a sense of clarity while presenting data and findings of the research. Below is a table mentioning the people with whom the interviews have been conducted to understand the data better The conclusion explains why it is vital to commence sustainable development in impoverished ghettos in light of the difficulty experienced by the people.

Table 1 is a list of interviews taken in Shivajinagar and Benson town (source: author)

4.2 Analysis and Discussion

The graphic below shows how information obtained from the interviews and observations has pinpointed certain sections of the city's infrastructure that are the root of the people's most pressing problems.

What was anticipated of a sustainable city and its infrastructure was a factor in the selection process. As this was a study project with limited resources, only a few sectors could be considered for their potential to shed light on Shivajinagar's predicament. The selection process also involved what was being said in the interviews overlapping with a detailed observation within the area.

Definitions

Building development authority (BDA): This is a government agency in charge of infrastructure development, land management, and delivery of services, and it also addresses the housing requirements for the low-income people of the city (www.bdabangalore.org, n.d.).

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP): The Greater Bengaluru Metropolitan Area is governed by the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which is in charge of public services as well as certain infrastructure development (site.bbmp.gov.in, n.d.).

Abjection: a political and sociological phenomenon in which some groups of people get marginalized from receiving biopolitical services from the state or other institutions, yet continuing to play an essential role in forming social groups.

Figure 8 framework for data analysis (source: author).

4.2.1 Housing of Shivajinagar

The housing market delivers an essential service to society by addressing the fundamental need for a safe and secure place to live. It might potentially be a substantial source of personal wealth (Grum and Kobal Grum, 2020). Shivajinagar is a neighborhood that is struggling to maintain its status as a residential neighborhood. It is primarily characterized by illegality in housing, in which individuals do not follow BDA laws, providing any setbacks, insufficient ventilation, and up to three times the permissible number of floors. The lack of designated parking spaces exacerbates congestion on the area's small roads.

'People here do not obey any of the BDA's (Building development authority) norms and regulations (Building Development Authority). They keep piling storeys on top of one other without providing parking. This is a major issue since individuals from neighboring streets park in front of my property. Everything is driven by bribery, and the authorities are unconcerned.'= Saleem Bhai

The neighborhood has become denser over time, and individuals are continuously converting their homes into stores due to the high demand for retail space, affecting the residential areas' ambiance and producing problems. As a result, the line between market and residential districts has blurred.

‘The ground floors are given to retail spaces, the upper floors are used as storage units, and the land owners have their houses on the topmost floors. This change has caused tremendous pressure on roads, parking spaces, public transport, and shops usually tend to occupy footpaths. = Tajammul (Resident & Shop owner).

The slums provide further contrast to the more affluent housing options nearby. These homes are dangerous and threaten the community's standard of life. Small, poorly ventilated, and challenging to enter, these homes average just 15 to 20 square meters in area. The following image sequence does a much better job of depicting the scenario.

Figure 9 images depicting the deteriorated nature of slums (source: author).

‘We live in a tiny house, as you can see, where we don’t even have space to sleep. Seven people live in this house; there are no toilets. A common toilet is provided where we have to wait for hours in line. We don’t even have a place to take a bath.’ = Salma (slum dweller).

The area's situation has remained the same for the past 40 years, and no changes have been made. The benefits of living in the slums, such as inexpensive rents, subsidized services, and charity, mean that residents seldom do not worry about ownership or tenure security. (Nassar and Elsayed, 2018). They only want to improve their livability within the slums where their social challenges are improved, such as health, education, and facilities.

4.2.2 Urban Mobility

Being a multi-functional space, home to a vast market space and a residential area, road networks within Shivajinagar is a narrow street layout for which the area faces numerous challenges. Public transport systems are plagued by chronic corruption, overcrowding, inefficiency, undependable services, and an operating system that is chaotic and completely uncoordinated (Pucher, Korattyswaroopam, and Ittyerah, 2004) Constant bottleneck problems emerge due to the narrowness of the roads, leading to clogged commutes and other traffic disasters. Walkability within the area is no less than encountering an accident due to escalating vehicular population and footpaths not being used by pedestrians. The pathways of the place are either dilapidated or used for informal activities such as street vending, shops encroaching, and restaurants setting cooking stations on the footpaths. This is one of the biggest challenges in the area where the people are pushed on walking on the roads risking their lives.

‘The roads are in a horrible situation, and there is constant digging of roads and footpaths. When it rains, vehicles start floating, and people should use boats instead of vehicles. The shop owners acquire the footpaths for their businesses. They think if they display their products on the footpath, it will help them attract better customers, and the police take no action as they have a commission from them daily which at the end affects the people walking on the streets.’ = Yusuf Shariff (Shop owner).

‘Walking on the roads is no less than endangering yourself, especially for the senior citizens due to the lack of lane discipline and most importantly, no rules are followed by the two-wheelers as there are no driving regulations in place, especially the youth riding bikes have become a significant threat within the area.’ = Tajammul (Resident).

The public transport for the area is an alarming issue as there are no busses allowed within the area due to the congested roads Even though Shivajinagar is home to one of the city's most

Figure 10 image showing a typical street of Shivajinagar (source: author).

significant bus stops, the location is towards one end of the area, which is far and inefficient for most people. Here, buses have to compete with a wide variety of other vehicles, including those pulled by animals, automobiles, bicycles, scooters, auto-rickshaws, pedestrians, and street sellers, in a narrow space without special privileges (Pucher, Korattyswaroopam, and Ittyerah, 2004). The popularity of inexpensive motorized two-wheelers has surged at a rate about four times that of buses in recent decades (Pucher, Korattyswaroopam, and Ittyerah, 2004).

The needs of people with disabilities are not considered in the region's planning. Everyone mentioned that you would have to take care of yourself and be very cautious while moving around the area

‘Being a senior citizen of age 65, I cannot come in a car to the area I have to depend on twowheelers, there is no hint of buses as they cannot enter the area, and you have to be careful while riding or even walking because you never know when you will go inside a pothole or a ditch.’ = Ahmed (Resident).

The only hope in the area is the development of the metro, where everyone hopes that once the project is completed, it will ease some congestion within the site. Still, the work of the metro was started nearly ten years back in the area, and the progress is plodding.

Figure 11 images capturing shop encroachment on sidewalks (source: author).

4.2.3 Services of Shivajinagar

The growth of informal settlements in developing nations has outpaced progress in meeting the objectives established for delivering basic amenities to its residents, especially the slums (Narayanan et al., 2017). The availability of water in the area has some issues. Firstly, the water is not pure, and much contamination happens when it gets mixed with sewage water during rainy seasons. The water has to be treated before use, and everyone uses water purifiers in their houses. There is an irregularity in the availability of drinking water (Deccan Herald, 2022)

‘We receive the supply of drinking water once every two days, and there are no issues with electricity except during the summer and rainy seasons when there are many power cuts.’ =Ahmed (Resident).

The residents have good connections to the sewage lines, but due to old pipelines, it often results in stagnation. Another reason is that restaurants discard grease and oils in drains, which leads to hardening inside the channels and blockages. The more significant issue is the exposed rainwater drain that runs throughout Shivajinagar, which adds to the pollution and unhygienic situation of the area.

Figure 12 images showing the threat of open rainwater drains and also open drains on the roads (source: author).

4.2.4 Health and well being

The health sector is one of the more robust suites of the area, where there are five major hospitals within the neighborhood. The people have good access to hospitals; however, the majority of the people do not have health insurance primarily due to a lack of trust in policies (hassle), and also, the Muslim population avoids keeping insurance due to Islamic laws, which have put people in a difficult situation during emergencies where they have to rely on spending their own money for their treatments. The low-income group is given a BPL card (below the poverty line), where they get subsidies on food (ration), gas, and discounted prices on medical treatments. Even though the government hospitals are well equipped, the quality and standards are not maintained. However, the process is very lengthy. People are often set with the mindset that private hospitals would give them better treatments and results. The NGOs and charitable trusts in the area are assisting the needy in paying their medical expenditures. They are also supported by clinics across the region that monitor minor ailments for a lower charge and provide free medication; these organizations havehelpedthepeoplemorethanthegovernment itself.Another problem was that thepeoplewere unaware of the government health schemes launched in response to low-income people.

‘Government hospitals are getting better, but still, the treatments are not good, the doctors are not responsive, and the procedures are very lengthy. unless you have some influence, the treatments don’t progress.’ = Usman (resident)

We use government hospitals as we get discounted prices on showing the BPL card, but the process is prolonged, and the patients are left unattended. We are not aware of any health schemes offered by the government. It would be helpful if you could explain more about such projects.’ = Shahid (slum dweller).

During covid, thesituationin Bengaluruandits medical system was tested,with thousands battling for beds and no one being able to seek care unless they knew someone prominent. A more significant concern is the lack of green spaces in the vicinity. There are no public parks within the area; people must go to neighboring areas to use the parks. The lack of adequate public transport and the rise of people using two-wheelers has reduced people’s walkability. The children have no public grounds available for them to play on, as the government acquired the grounds for metro work and stations.

‘The playgrounds have been taken up for metro stations The children have no place to play and have become a nuisance playing in the streets, causing trouble to their neighbors. Also, there are no parks in the entire area, and we have to travel to other neighborhoods to access them. ’ = Shahid (slum dweller).

Due to its quick informal expansion, Shivajinagar lacks the giant trees typical of the city, such as the enormous alley trees for which the city is famous It is evident that the area has fostered a range of environmental (pollution) and social (lack of green spaces, segregation) pressures that make people more inclined to have medical issues. It's crucial to realize that ghetto dwellers may benefit from urban parks in ways that are helpful for their well‐being. However, efforts are being made to accommodate rooftop playgrounds and parks in government buildings in the area due to the lack of space in the vicinity

4.2.5 Sanitation

The developing world is pervasive with social inequalities, such as unequal access to sanitation, disregard for the disabled, and the explicit challenges faced by slum dwellers, making sufficient and equitable sanitation a crucial intervention (Mara and Evans, 2018). The area has good newly built public toilets in the market area. The situations within the slums of the site are not the same. They have shared sanitation facilities that are poorly operated and maintained (Mara and Evans, 2018)

‘The BBMP demolished the old toilets promising us to build new ones. It has been nearly five years, and they did not build any new toilets, and the situation has worsened.’ = Wajid (slum dweller).

It has already beenestablished and also recognized by WHOthat a successful modelofcommunity design where shared sanitation has proved to be a sound sanitation system for those living in highdensity slums (Mara and Evans, 2018). The slum dwellers of Shivajinagar are given false promises for the better situation of sanitation but have always been ignored, and this pattern of ignorance has to be broken.

Figure 13 images showing the poor sanitary conditions of the area (source: author).

4.2.6 Pollution

The characteristics of a mixed-use area are different, where the noise levels are higher up to 6 pm It is a combination of increased pedestrian and vehicular traffic associated with the concentration of many wholesale and commercial establishments. The people of the area have gotten used to such high noise levels and donot show any concern about it.The airquality ofthe areais a concern mainly due to the constant work on roads and the metro constructions, where no precautions are taken to reduce the spread of dust during the work. People have shown concerns about the rise in infections and allergies due to the dust and pollution of auto-rickshaws and two-wheelers. More importantly, the restaurants are not following norms and setting cooking stations on the streets, causing the smoke to enter the streets, not the chimneys.

‘People eat food which is sold on the streets mixed with dust, emissions, and no hygiene is followed during the preparations of the food.’= Dr. Jabeen (medical center).

‘The air feels different when you enter Shivajinagar. It is so dusty due to the road works and emissions from the traffic.’ =Himayat (resident).

Many parts of the area are littered with garbage creating garbage black spots, which eventually become the breeding spaces for diseases (Deccan Herald, 2022). The people started complaining about the rare collection, but the MLA explained the situation upon being asked.

‘We send the BBPM to collect garbage early in the morning, but the people do not wake up then and end up dumping the trash on the roads However, we have changed the timings to pick up the garbage later in the day so that everyone can dump it on time, but still, many people have the habit of throwing it on the roads.’ = Sujauddin (corporator).

The authorities and the people mentioned that the people themselves are responsible for creating these garbage spots, and efforts are made to clear them every day. The area does not have dustbins; as simple as it sounds lack of dustbins enables people to throw things on the roads and footpaths, and no one is questioned.

Figure 14 image showing the unhygienic conditions within the area (source: author).

4.2.7 Safety and resilience

The post-pandemic economic crisis in urban areas as people who lost their jobs are yet to find replacements, and little has been accomplished after the lockdowns for the revival of livelihoods in the informal sector in the urban areas. There has been a surge in crimes within the area, most of which are petty thefts. The area’s atmosphere shifts rapidly during the night, where it has become a hub for late-night food streets and also for youths involved in illegal activities such as drugs.

‘There are certain areas such as chowk where you need to be careful because people in those areas search for trouble. It’s better to look down and walk because if you stare, you are in for some trouble.’ = Yusuf (shop owner).

‘The police of the area are responsive, but they come after everything has been sorted. The thefts have increased rapidly. You have to be careful while carrying your valuables in these areas.’ = Salman (shop worker).

For understandable reasons, adults of all ages are reluctant to go out at night, and parents have restricted their children from playing on the streets after dark.

Resilience is key to sustainable urban infrastructure. The area is known for its historical buildings such as Russel market butcher house, Jamia masjid, and St Mary’s Basilica. The site is a prime example of aging infrastructure causing threats to people. One of the oldest markets, known as the Russel market, is in dilapidated conditions where the market is still used for groceries. The structure has been preserved over time but not its condition.

‘The government wants to reconstruct the market, but it isn't considering what the people want. Instead, it is pushing its plans, which aren't in the best interests of the store owners.’ = Tajammul (shop owner & resident).

'Even if we have historic sites in the neighborhood, there is no use in retaining them if they are not maintained; instead, they should redevelop and offer areas that serve society.' = Yusuf (shop owner).

The people have well maintained the religious places while the govt fails to do the same job for the historical market areas. The situation in the area changes drastically during the rainy season. The area is already on a lower topography than its surroundings. The roads are impassable due to a poor drainage system that overflows every time it rains, water enters houses causing extensive damage to their belongings, and sewage water mix with drinking water, contaminating it. The slums experience worse situations due to narrow spaces. People have to wait for hours after the

Figure 15 image of Russel Market built-in 1927 (source: author).

rain has stopped for the water to drain out. Electricity wires which are left exposed come in contact with the rain posing a threat to the people walking. The poor quality of road works and footpaths is seen during the rains as it washes out the pavers and tar of the road, leaving potholes and broken paths. Those living at a higher elevation are safe, but the situation is dire for those living in lowerlying areas.

‘We are on a higher level, so the rain does not affect us, but water starts entering the houses as you go down.’= Usman (Resident)

When it starts raining in this slum you cannot enter the area and the water enters our homes due to which all of us sit on the beds and hang our clothes on the ceiling and have to wait for the rain to stop and the water to drain away but we have to clean and replace the damages being done.’= Wajid Pasha (slum dweller)

The response to solving the issues is quick but the frequency of the problem is very high for the authorities to cope with.

4.2.8 A neighboring citadel

The area known as Benson town, present right next to Shivajinagar, has different dynamics altogether. The place is marked with wider roads, better footpaths, clean streets, good access to hospitals, and a park within the area. The area is situated on a higher level, so there are no issues during the rainy season. However, problems such as dug-up roads, poor access to bus stops, privatization of footpaths, inadequate lighting at night, and thefts have recently been witnessed in the area. There is good water access, but it needs to be treated before drinking.

‘We need much wider roads in the area, security cams need to be installed, a better quality of roads is required and constant digging of roads must be stopped.’ = Fairoz (resident)

‘Our area has a welfare community where all the problems raised by the residents are put across to the authorities and made sure action is taken on that, while the low-income people in Shivajinagar sell their vote to the government for a small amount and stand no place to question the authorities.’= Inayat (NGO).

Despite the fact that the region contains a lot of informality in terms of housing, such as unlawful floors, it is not perceived that way and is considered a formal setting, which raises the issue of why the discrepancy persists.

It is evidentthat thereis a starkdifferencein infrastructurebetweenthe higher-incomeneighboring areas of Shivajinagar and the low-income ghetto of Shivajinagar, and the interviews highlight the differences in expectations between the people of the area, thereby emphasizing the situation of low-income ghettos such as Shivajinagar.

4.3 Theoretical Development

Our goal in this paper was to investigate the relationship between accessibility and inclusiveness of the city’s infrastructure. It is analyzed that there is inequality in accessing the infrastructure in the area of Shivajinagar. The most important of all is the disparity that has evolved in having an active lifestyle and access to public transportation, where the options are scarcely dispersed and have progressed poorly due to government ignorance, bribery, and a lack of community involvementin makingdecisions forthe area,whichhas shapedthesociety's decisions to bereliant on automobiles and poor livability.

The government has purposely ignored the area for over 40 years, and the people have been ignorant about such matters. Choosing the wrong leaders over time has also been a significant factor in the poor development of the area. The minority areas have to press their issues and force the problem to the government to get results.’

= Rizwan Arshad (MLA)

A standard set of patterns has been identified within the area that portrays similar situations in lowincome ghettos throughout India. In India, urban infrastructure is updating as years progress, and provisions are not made for these changes. Much damage is caused to the infrastructure to bring the necessary change, affecting the people using it. A typical situation of lack of coordination amongst different participators in the development of infrastructure has caused concerns such as delay and rebuilding. Violations in planning are not only the situation of Shivajinagar, but the entire of Bangalore, which has in a way helped the city in many ways (Sundaresan, 2019a), but its side effects have put pressure on the infrastructure, such as flooding, shortage of water,

Figure 16 images showing the streets of Benson town (source: author).

overloading of drains, etc. due to high density in these ghettos. It is seen that many informal situations such as violations, encroachment, and lack of regulations (transport, pollution & safety ) have been going on for an extended period where the people’s voices are unheard. This is blamed on the ruling authorities, such as the corporators and MLA, who then further blame their superiors, which runs in circles. The bigger problem that everything points to is the corruption (bribery in the case of India) engraved in the system, and it’s only getting more profound. Nobody can take responsibility as this informality does not point fingers.

The community's interesting feature is the interconnected nature of its problems. Marginalized communities highlight the interconnectedness of issues related to intersectionality and aid in identifying oppressive government practices (Nash, 2008). The interviews have shed light on the adverse effects of deteriorating infrastructure on the local population. Still, they have also shown that exclusion is often indirect, happening through poor accessibility and gentrification, driven either directly or indirectly by ethical interpretations of who is regarded as a resource to the city. It is also made evident through the comparative study that the low-income groups are structurally underserved by urban infrastructure as compared to the least disadvantaged groups.

Compared to other neighborhoods, I feel that my area (Shivajinagar) has been left behind in its progress, and it gives me a feeling of exclusion from the city to be living in the area. At the same time, the rising hatred for the Muslim community from the government makes me want to live in an area surrounded by our people. = Saleem (Resident).

The people in the minority and low-income neighborhoods may choose to remain in those areas due to the strong bond they have forged within the community (Soja, 2013), where the people themselves have come out strongly to fulfill the needs of the poor. Despite having to deal with difficult circumstances regarding their basic needs, people still feel much safer within their communities because of the rising worries of communal hatred. Even though the people have been challenged with a tough situation, they have managed to preserve the place’s culture. The area is known for its food items and the market area, which is a significant economic strength for the people. To put it in context, sustainable efforts boost the quality of life and kick off a gradual, long-term improvement process (Nassar and Elsayed, 2018b). Nonetheless, the case studies present compelling arguments for seeking progress while fighting to keep their culture alive (Connell and Waddell, 2007, p.246)

5 Chapter 5 - Summary

5.1 Conclusion

This paper attempted to highlight the fast-worsening urgency of India's urban crisis in locations with a high minority population. The zone of abjection that is Shivajinagar has not only been experienced due to people’s ignorance but mainly due to the chauvinistic politics of the city, a politics with which each group intimately knows and lives with, and is marked by differences According to the literature, we understand that the establishment of a built environment is the bedrock of social and environmental sustainability. It is necessary first to fulfill and meet the needs of the present only then can we sustain future generations. Explanation of background and history helped to create the location's unique character. A character that shows similarity throughout India in the Muslim-dominated ghettos. The literature has extensively emphasized that sustainability frameworks built on specific principles constitute the foundation of urban infrastructure planning, design, execution, and assessment. The research suggested four principles, inclusivity, accessibility, health & well-being, and resilience, for critically analyzing a set global indicator for assessing the infrastructure.

It's vital to comprehend the unique local context in which people live and work. It is found that urban mobility, the housing condition in the slums, essential services, parks, aging infrastructure, and green spaces are all identified as severe shortcomings in the area's physical attributes. Inequality, security, and a lack of social interactions are a few significant societal costs. Environmental problems, such as pollution and lack of sanitation, have worsened due to all these factors. Development programs in Shivajinagar cannot resolve sustainable and equitable models unless they first address the neighborhood's highlighted issues. These questions about sustainable communities and their relationship to infrastructure are central to this. So, I needed to assess social inclusion and necessities so that residents could make their voices heard and organize to better their lives with a resilient urban framework. Principal policies and practices of sustainable urban planning and design, together with an adequate institutional and statutory framework, can help ease the distress.

It is vital to understand that all sections of society across the city are the stakeholders in the sustainable development process. The government needs to make the area's growth more participatory and inclusive to reduce inequality and promote sustainable development. It is possible only through inclusive governance where the Muslim minorities of India are viewed through the lens of equality. Planning is not a solution for informality; this characteristic makes the area unique, but at what cost? When communities in the informal sector have the resilience to endure and bounce back from setbacks, we can say they are sustainable. For the people of Shivajinagar, the current situation represents a form of infrastructure control that is not only unfinished and reversible but also fraught with instability, leaks, and slippages of authority. The current research not only validates prior discoveries but also contributes to the expanding body of knowledge supporting people-centered urban planning.

5.2 Project limitations and further research

As a case study, Shivajinagar also has its limitations due to its unique location in Bangalore. The area is politically sensitive gave rise to various challenges such as increased risk in randomly interviewing people in the area and threats during observations made it quite tricky as time was short. Due to time constraints, I could not investigate all areas of sustainability and had to choose those strongly connected to urban infrastructure. The analysis could not cover two components of the evaluation, education, and opportunity, since I required much more time to grow on these issues to analyze the situation thoroughly. The categories were selected to best meet the aim and satisfy the study questions. To prevent disputes and prejudice, the political side of the region was not explored. Furthermore, it hindered the project's ability to reflect all low-income populations' experiences.

Further work and research are needed on the governing processes and regulation of higher authorities responsible for infrastructure development, as the research has indicated that lowincome people have no power to question their situations to the authorities. It is essential to understand the processes of development planning and implementation of the urban infrastructure within the government’s structure. Additionally, we can further expand the study to know how these situations impact climate and its environment. We can also delve more into the notion of inequality, where the role of women is often overlooked. This can be an exciting field of study given the status of women, particularly in low-income communities.

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7 Appendix

7.1 Evolution of questionnaire from sustainable framework

This section will depict how the questions were formed through the literature using the framework

7.1.1 Accessibility

• What is the status of average infrastructure accessibility?

• How is your access to health infrastructure

7.1.2 Inclusivity

• Comparative study of Benson town was done to understand the differences.

• Access to similar infrastructure as other neighboring area?

7.1.3 Health and well being

• Do you have access to parks?

• Are you aware of the health schemes offered by the government?

7.1.4 Reliability and resilience

• What do you have to say about the safety of the area?

• what is the situation of the area during heavy rains?

7.2 Interview questionnaire

Introduction

1. What is your name?

2. How old are you?

3. What do you do for a living / what is your current state of employment?

4. How long have you been residing in this area?

URBAN INFRASTRUCTURE

Urban Mobility

1. Are you satisfied with the current situation of the roads?

2. Do these road conditions bother you?

3. What do you have to say about the constant digging of roads? Why do you allow them?

4. How do you travel on these roads during the rainy season?

5. What do you have to say about the discarded garbage on the roads?

6. Do you discard the garbage on the road? If yes, why?

7. Will an ambulance reach your home, considering these road conditions?

8. How do the elder people of the house cope with the roads of the area?

9. Do you face parking issues?

1. What mode of transport do you use?

2. Do you have access to public transport?

3. on a scale of 1-10, how would you rate the public transport system?

4. How many vehicles do you have?

5. What do you have to say about the footpath encroachments?

Housing conditions

1. How many members live in the house?

2. How is your access to daily drinking water?

3. Do you face difficulties with the supply of electricity?

4. Do you have problems during the summer or winter season?

5. Do you face issues of flooding during the rainy season? If yes, how do you manage?

6. How do you sleep with such high noise levels outside?

7. Does the sewage smell bother you?

8. Do you pay taxes for the house?

Health and well being

1. Do you have access to the park?

2. What type of physical activities do you do during the day?

3. What is your daily routine?

4. Are you aware of mental health (depression)? If yes, do you face any mental health issues?

5. How is your access to the hospital? During an emergency, which hospital do you use?

6. Do you have health insurance?

7. Are you aware of the health schemes offered by the government (Ayushman Bharath)?

8. Do you face any health issues?

9. How is your access to a physician (doctor) in case of health issues?

10. What was the most challenging issue you faced during covid-19?

11. Can an ambulance have access to your house? Will an ambulance even respond if called during an emergency?

12. Have you done a health assessment for yourself? has the government approached the senior citizens for any health assessments?

13. Are you aware of the facilities and benefits for senior citizens?

Water / electricity / sewage

1. Do you have access to clean water?

2. Do you have a continuous supply of drinking water throughout?

3. Do you have a proper supply of electricity?

4. What do you have to say about the exposed sewer running throughout the area?

5. Do you have proper toilets in the house?

Metro obstructions

1. Has the metro work caused damage to your structures?

2. Where do the children play, considering the metro stations have consumed the public grounds of Shivajinagar?

Security

1. Do you feel safe walking around the area?

2. How safe is the area during the night?

3. Are the children allowed to go out to play?

4. Have you come across any crimes in the area?

5. How is the access to the police department in case of emergency?

Context

1. Why has the place remained the same over time?

2. Cultural buildings have been preserved, but at what cost?

3. Do you think the present situation in the area is affecting your health?

Education

1. Do you have access to good schools and institutes?

2. Do you utilize the low-income categories for education?

3. What do you have to say about job opportunities?

4. Do you feel your income is sufficient for today’s lifestyle and how much do you earn?

7.3 Political Framework of Shivajinagar constituency

Karnataka is divided into 225 constituencies and each constituency elects one member of the Legislative Assembly. The members of the Legislative Assembly are known as MLA. I had the chance to interview the head of the constituency and corporator of Shivajinagar. The person who directs below the MLA is the corporator. Corporators have the agency and opportunity to attend to, if not solve, the most immediate and proximate woes of an urban citizen. The problems faced by the people are taken to the corporator and if the matters are serious it is taken to the MLA. The MLA is responsible for sanctioning all the major development projects for their respected area except transit projects such as metro and railways. The projects will have to be approved from the local government of the state.

Important points:

The methodology introduces and explains more on the geographical context of the neighborhood hence the increase in word count.

The results and discussion have been fused together and the theoretical development gives a brief summary and discusses further on the topic.