Like many cities in the global South, New Delhi has not been built by architects, engineers or planners, but by residents themselves. One form of such auto-construction is the basti-an urban settlement that houses income-poor residents. A basti marks years of an urban life, built slowly and incrementally. It is more than a ‘slum’- it is a claim to development and citizenship. In the moment of the basti’s eviction, this claim is erased, ...
