ABSTRACT
This chapter explores a politic-cultural perspective for development of sustainable cities. For too long communities and individuals in the South Asian countries have been ignored in decision making, planning and implementation of urban development programmes. Cultural theory is introduced to address the problems of urban governance systems in the cities of South Asian countries and to provide a simple but deliberative quality in urban governance. Local urban governance and people's participation systems prevalent in South Asia differ from one country to the other. However, sustainability of cities can be achieved if sustainable urban development principles that are inspired by cultural theory are adopted. The cultural theory maps a fourfold typology of social solidarity namely: the individualist, hierarchicist, fatalist and egalitarian. Although the different approaches to participation of the South Asian countries' stakeholders, public and community may not categorically be attributed to cultural theory-based politic-cultural perspectives, direct and indirect evidence of such mechanisms and frameworks and success stories are observed.
