Politics of eviction and Resettlement: Governing urban Transformation in Kolkata

The rapid expansion of infrastructure in cities across the Global South has triggered waves of urban displacement, often framed as the necessary cost of modernization. In Kolkata, metro railway construction and environmental improvement programs have led to multiple episodes of eviction and resettlement, reshaping the spatial and political landscape of the city. This paper examines how these processes of eviction and relocation have been governed, resisted, and negotiated, focusing on the interplay between state institutions, community agency, and urban planning. Drawing on institutional theory, urban political economy, and case studies from the East-West Metro project, the Kolkata Environmental Improvement Project (KEIP), and canal bank evictions, the paper situates Kolkata’s experience within broader global patterns of urban transformation. It argues that eviction and resettlement are not only outcomes of technocratic planning but also deeply political processes embedded in contested institutions, informal negotiations, and the evolving logics of urban governance. By analyzing how governance structures respond to displacement and how affected communities adapt or resist, the paper reveals the complex politics underpinning resettlement in contemporary Kolkata.