ABSTRACT
In Delhi there is a system of ‘lal dora’ (literally ‘red line’: meaning the area which has a red line drawn around it) which allows the government to declare older settlements as ‘abadi’ or ‘urban villages’ exempt from planning and building law. This is sometimes used to include overspill within the ‘lal dora’ boundary. Hence South Delhi has an array of these urban villages which are steadily being engulfed by both planned ‘colonies’ and completely illegal settlements.
Within the area originally enclosed by the walls of old Jahanpanah (the fourth city of Delhi, see Chapter 4 for fuller description of the cities of Delhi) there are a number of such urban villages which have been granted ‘lal dora’ status including Lado Serai, Khirki Village and Chirag Delhi. Holding planning law in abeyance has created an opportunity for urban villages to specialise in particular commercial activities without government control. Chirag Delhi, for example, boasts a range of metalworkers operating from workshops embedded in the north wall. Here, encroachment on footways has proceeded to such an extent that there is very little public open space remaining within the settlement. A zone surrounding the settlement on three sides was reserved for public space and in 2005 a substantive tall house, built in this zone in contravention of the policy, was being demolished by the authorities.
