SOCIO-SPATIAL ORDER OF NEOLIBERAL AHMEDABAD Sejal Rajnikant Patel Graduation committee: Chairman/Secretary Prof.dr.ir. A. Veldkamp University of Twente Promoter Prof.dr. P.Y. Georgiadou University of Twente Co-promoter Dr. R.V. Sliuzas University of Twente Members Prof.dr.ir. M.F.A.M. van Maarseveen University of Twente Dr. R.M. Bennett University of Twente Prof.dr. S.K. Acharya Jawaharlal Nehru Univ., Delhi, India Prof.dr. E. Schmidt-Kallert Technical University of Dortmund, Germany Prof.dr. W.T. de Vries Technical University of München, Germany ITC dissertation number 296 ITC, P.O. Box 217, 7500 AA Enschede, The Netherlands ISBN 978-90-365-4261-6 DOI 10.3990/1.9789036542616 Cover designed by Benno Masselink Printed by ITC Printing Department Copyright © 2016 by Sejal Patel SOCIO-SPATIAL ORDER OF NEOLIBERAL AHMEDABAD DISSERTATION to obtain the degree of doctor at the University of Twente, on the authority of the rector magnificus, prof.dr. T.T.M. Palstra, on account of the decision of the graduation committee, to be publicly defended on Wednesday 14 December 2016 at 11.00 hrs by Sejal Rajnikant Patel born on 18th October 1971 in Ahmedabad, India This thesis is approved by Prof.dr. P.Y. Georgiadou, Promoter Dr. R.V. Sliuzas, Co-Promoter Dr. N. Mathur, Co-Promoter Acknowledgements The last but not the least important task is to acknowledge the support of mentors, colleagues, friends and family who have contributed to the culmination of this thesis. Though nearly an impossible task to thank everybody who was directly or indirectly involved, I will try my best. It has been a considerably long journey riddled with personal and scientific experiences that have enriched my life and changed me as a person. It has been a journey with highs and lows, interspersed with moments of happiness but also of frustration and despair. It has been a journey of scientific investigation but also of self-discovery where I my strengths, weaknesses and finally learnt to be at peace with myself. It has been an honour to have a supervisory team who kept faith and belief in me all these years. Prof. Yola Georgiadou and Dr. Richard Sliuzas, this thesis would not have been possible without you. Yola, you have redefined mentorship. Your selfless dedication to scientific research and students’ progress and impeccable time management is inspirational. Your prompt responses and critical feedback and often the much needed shove helped me finish the thesis draft. In the initial stage of my journey, from an opinionated practitioner to a researcher, your reminders on ‘difference between opinion and research’ sensitized me to the role of a researcher. Richard, you were my most resolute support while I was in Netherlands and also in India. Words are not adequate to express the strength I derived from you during personal and scientific trials and tribulations in these years. Thank you for your unconditional support and for keeping faith. I deeply cherish your brilliant suggestions on concepts, emphasis on scientific details and precise narrative style during endless exchange of chapter drafts. I extend my appreciation for the steadfast support of a mentor and friend, Dr. Navdeep Mathur. He has witnessed and contributed to my journey from a positivist urban planning practitioner to an interpretivist urbanist. Thank you for being the sounding board, the critique and the editor. I have been enriched from our many discussions in our offices, cafes and kitlis over the years on my research and on the state of affairs in the world. I am indebted to the European Commission for the Erasmus Mundus fellowship to carry out research at ITC. Prof. Martin van Maarseveen was my first contact in ITC. Thank you for your warmth and guidance in the initial days, for introduction to the right people and for keeping the faith through the years that I will see this through. Thanks to Monika, Javier, Mark, Liza, Arvind, Frans for being warm and wonderful colleagues in PGM. I will cherish the numerous conversations with David Rossitier on India and China in the cafeteria. i I am deeply grateful to Petra Weber and Loes Colenbrander for steadfast and efficient support in every PhD related issue , Marion Pierik for efficiently coordinating the financial issues, Paul van Dijk for listening to the PhD woes patiently, Theresa for meticulously handling the bureaucratic issues and Carla Gerritsen for the library support. There was no book in the world that was not in Carla’s reach or no query on Endnote that she could not answer. Andrea and Tina thank you for your friendship and warm welcomes on my return after long gaps. Aiko and Gerrits Polman from the IT-helpdesk are the Samaritans of PhD journeys. They have solved endless IT related issues with patience and a smile. Being at ITC is a culturally enriching experience given the different nationalities and cultural diversity of colleagues and students. I am fortunate to have friends who shared their ideas about various things, life experiences and of course, food! Divyani, Maitreyi (birdy) and Priya, thank you for being the family in NL. Divyani, thank you for your nurturing and standing by me in the toughest moments, for being the 3 am friend. Words are not adequate to express how much your friendship has contributed to the culmination of my PhD. Birdy, thank you for being the listener, for patiently allowing us to chat non-stop and for being the giver. Priya, thanks for all the support. Fangfang and Pu Hao were the best office-mates and we shared memorable times in and out of office. Christine thank you for the sarcastic humor over you-know-what over the years that allowed us to laugh our way through adversities. The unwinding of the Dutch umbrella by hapless scientists will be remembered by us and others for a long time. Sincere thanks to my friends Yamini, Gaurav, Tanmoy, Liang, Xuanmei, Flavia, Parveen, Paresh, Mitava, Devashree, Noor, Ahmad, Abdul, Talat and Remi. I really cherish the enjoyable (and sometimes stressful!) times we shared together in ITC. Friends and colleagues at CEPT have contributed in different ways in culmination of my PhD. Saswat, Ashwini, Shrawan, Dr. Ray, Vishal, Anil, Mona, Utpal, Madhu, Subrangshu have cheered and encouraged through the highs and lows over the years, brainstormed with me over concepts, empirical findings and discoveries and critically read through the draft papers. Thank you for being part of my journey. Finally, I express my deepest gratitude towards my family. Mom and dad have set an example of extraordinary spirit in life where age does not fade away the passion for life. Your positivity, fortitude and resolute intellectual, emotional and moral support have helped me sail through life and this journey. I dedicate my thesis to you. My sister Nisha, brother-in-law Vijay and nephew Aditya have been eternal sources of love and support. Heartfelt thanks to uncles, aunts and cousins whom I could count on for anything, anywhere and anytime. Thank you all for your prayers and for the implicit confidence in me. ii Table of Contents Acknowledgements ................................................................................ i List of figures ..................................................................................... vi List of tables......................................................................................viii List of abbreviations ............................................................................. x Chapter 1 Understanding issues and the context ...................................... 1 1.1 Introduction ..................................................................... 2 1.2 Emerging issues ............................................................... 4 1.3 Empirical context .............................................................. 5 1.3.1 Decentralisation and participatory governance framework in India and implementation in Gujarat and Ahmedabad ............ 5 1.3.2 Economic liberalisation and globalisation policy in India .......... 7 1.3.3 Neoliberalisation and globalisation in Gujarat ........................ 7 1.3.4 Neoliberal turn in governance in Ahmedabad ...................... 11 1.3.5 Indian Constitution and the judiciary’s stance on shelter rights ............................................................................ 14 1.4 Stance of Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation on slums .......... 21 1.4.1 The changing stance of AMC on right to basic services .......... 23 1.4.2 The changing stance of AMC on shelter rights ..................... 23 1.4.3 Neoliberal socio-spatial reconfiguration and consequences? ... 26 1.5 Empirical context in a nutshell .......................................... 27 Chapter 2 Theoretical framework and research strategy .......................... 31 2.1 Review of extant literature on key concepts ........................ 32 2.1.1 Decentralisation .............................................................. 32 2.1.2 Neoliberalisation ............................................................. 33 2.1.3 Citizens’ rights and well-being .......................................... 34 2.1.4 Socio-spatial order .......................................................... 36 2.2 Review of extant literature on key relationships ................... 36 2.2.1 Consequences of decentralisation on citizens’ rights, well-being and social inequalities ...................................... 36 2.2.2 Consequences of neoliberalisation for citizens’ rights, well-being and social inequalities ...................................... 38 2.2.3