In 2017, The Odisha Land Rights to Slum Dwellers Act passed, which provides tenure security to those living in informal settlements and creates a legal base for improving the livability and conditions of informal settlements. After this act passed, the Odisha Liveable Habitat Mission (OLHM) was implemented across 114 urban areas of India’s state of Odisha, which includes almost 3,000 informal settlements. OLHM has five components, including an appraisal of informal settlements to understand issues faced, participatory planning, improvements of basic services, protection and development of communal facilities, and enhancement of social and economic infrastructure.
Within the first 18 months of the project, OLHM has mapped nearly 2,000 of the informal settlements, built 15,000 homes, granted land rights to over 50,000 families, and formed 1,725 Slum Dwellers Associations. Residents of informal settlements have long faced insecurity of tenure and lack of access to basic services – so the development of this project by the Odisha government marks a major policy shift in the treatment and recognition of rights of those in informal settlements.
Sources:
World Habitat. (2019) World Habitat Awards: Odisha Liveable Habitat Mission, Bronze 2019. https://world-habitat.org/world-habitat-awards/winners-and-finalists/odisha-liveable-habitat-mission/
World Habitat. (2019) Odisha Liveable Habitat Mission, India. World Habitat.