Series 1 | 2023-2024:  Walk 2 - Jamia Nagar

The second walk took participants to Jamia Nagar, a settlement that was first constructed incrementally, and outside formal planning regulations, near the banks of the river Yamuna. The area was regularly flooded during the monsoon season. The river has since shrunk, and the wetlands at the edge of the river have been claimed by the state for infrastructure projects. 

Jamia Nagar remains a high-density settlement with a great deal more traffic than its narrow lanes can accommodate. The large group was often walking in a single file. Residents told us that although flooding is no longer the kind of problem it used to be, there are a few low-lying spots where even light rains leave pools of water standing for weeks. 

We also learnt that the closeness to the river has diminished, not only in terms of distance to the receding edge of the water, but also in terms of activities. There are far fewer dhobis, and the play areas that the waterfront and wetlands provided is neither pleasant nor easily accessible. The river has become less relevant to this settlement, except on occasion when heavy rains refresh old anxities of living with risk. There is a case to be made for ecologically sensitive waterfront development as a recreational space, but without displacing existing users and sources of livelihood.