2024 Reports

Urban Agriculture in Informal Settlements in India:Insights From Pune and Bangalore

Singh, Chandni; Patil, Sheetal

Urban agriculture (UA) has been heralded as a way to provide sustainability and wellbeing benefits in cities where issues of liveability, inequality, and increasing climate risks are defining urban life. However, how do informal settlements in expanding cities in the Global South engage with and benefit from UA? Do constraints of space and input availability serve to exclude communities or is UA accruing to meet goals of sustainable cities (SDG13) while improving food and nutritional outcomes, quality of life, and incomes? We use empirical data from two large cities in India—Bangalore and Pune—to examine these questions. Despite barriers such as tenure insecurity and space constraints, we demonstrate a range of UA practices in informal settlements, with small yet significant benefits around thermal comfort, wet waste and water recycling, mental health, and placemaking. Recognising and scaling UA as a low-cost nature-based solution can add to the repertoire of urban sustainability initiatives.