Where Are the Real 'Slums' in Bangalore? (2013-2014)

Using satellite images, iterated with ground verifications and accompanied by household interviews, this project team examined a typology of low-income settlements in Bangalore. Making up half or more of the population in several cities like Nairobi and Mumbai, slums cover a range of types with vastly varying characters. Concrete buildings, at the high end, are homes to a lower-middle class invested in upward mobility. But at the low end, each day is a struggle for survival and from day to day there is little sense that things are better. In between, there are two (and possibly three) other types of slums. Uncovering what is behind the visible differences will help frame better-informed slum policies in the future. Recommendations for other cities can be similarly developed.

Timing

2013-2014

Team Outcomes

Anirudh Krishna, M.S. Sririam, Purnima Prakash. “Slum Types and Adaptation Strategies: Identifying Policy-Relevant Differences in Bangalore.” 2014. Environment and Urbanization 26(2):568-585.

This Team in the News

'Real' Slums of Bangalore Surveyed by Bass Connections Team

This project team was originally part of the Education & Human Development theme of Bass Connections, which ended in 2022. See related team, Where Are the Real 'Slums' in Bangalore? (2014-2015).