Neoliberal regime of land grabbing: A study of Bhubaneswar
- Nagarlok: Quarterly Journal of Urban Affairs
- 53(1), Mar, 2021: p.38-58
Unprecedented urban growth in India is affecting urban land use and land distribution extensively. This article examines the effect of neoliberal policies and processes—namely accumulation, dispossession, conversion and annexation, on urban land use in Bhubaneswar. Indian government’s smart city drive to control unplanned urban growth is also tampering with existing urban land use. Under this backdrop, the author first argues that the ultimate outcome of all this is land grabbing. Further examination also reveals that the existing theoretical perspectives offer only a partial understanding of the land grabbing process, with respect to Bhubaneswar. Complementing the theoretical gap, the use of ‘regimes of dispossession’ as a concept helps us to compare and critically interrogate the specific economic purposes that the state, at any given time, seeks to legitimise ‘development’. – Reproduced
Smart city, Neoliberal policies, Urban space, Dispossession, Land grabbing