What is the rate at which the built-up area in Bengaluru is growing per minute? “600 sqft per minute. That is the pace at which we are growing,” said Jaya Dhindaw, executive programme director, Sustainable Cities and Director, WRI India Ross Centre.
Rapid though the growth is, however, it is far from inclusive as a panel discussion titled Who are cities made by and who are cities made for? reiterated. “You realise that the vulnerable, the poor, the ones who have contributed least to the problems of urbanisation and climate change are the ones suffering the most because of it, and they will continue to,” said Ms. Dhindaw, moderator of the panel discussion, the highlight of a larger convening event spearheaded by the Bengaluru-based collective, Alli Serona, held at the Bangalore Creative Circus on Tuesday.
The event, which brought together some key stakeholders in the mobility and housing sectors, comprised panel discussions, an experience zone, a performance piece, and some film screenings, all of which strove to drive home this message: cities need to be more equitable spaces. After all, as human rights activist Isaac Selva, editor of the Kannada magazine Slum Jagatthu, asked at the panel discussion: “What have we built for people who have built our cities?”
