Formality versus Reality: An Exploration of the Development Process for Mega Townships in India

Abstract

Kate Fisher argues that while the government strives to improve the economic, social and environmental status of India, the immense economic inequity between the middle-and high-income groups and the lower income and economic weaker sectors remains one of the driving forces of informality within Indian society today. The formality of legislations andprograms implemented by the government are juxtaposed against the informality that, for citizens living in a developing nation, characterizes their way of life. The Top Down planning approach seems practical in theory and paints an inviting picture for overseas investment opportunities. However, in reality, the informality on which the developing world survives is inherent still in India. There are two worlds co-existing within the one civilization, the formal, and the informal and the tension between the informal and formal is ever present throughout every stage of the development process.