Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides an overview of the concerns that have dominated the formulation of urban policy and shows how these have changed continuously. It examines an aspect of policy framework—the lack of a clear understanding of what constitutes the problem and the manner of implementation. The book focuses on the vulnerabilities experienced by women living in resettled areas in the peripheries of the city. It discusses the informal sector in Ahmedabad. The book also discusses how economists, geographers and sociologists have analysed inequalities and exclusions in housing and work in contemporary India. It highlights the dissonance of policy from realities that organise the urban worlds in India. The book also focuses on the informal labour that manages the waste economy in the town, describing the conditions under which the labourers, both men and women, dispose waste.