Contested Space: The Living Urban Heritage of Hyderabad & Shahjahanabad, Delhi

This paper draws from the experiences of redevelopment of historic precincts in the cities of Hyderabad and Shahjahanabad, Delhi. Close interaction with the people, administrators and political leaders of these precincts reveal a great enthusiasm amongst all to improve the residents’ general standard of living. But the notion of ‘public realm’ as perceived by the public officials and the public itself are radically different. The former see it as a commodity, while the latter lets the socio-cultural forces dictate its usage; and this difference hinders redevelopment.