This is a study of the spatial and economic transformation of Bholakpur in Hyderabad and its emergence as a thriving scrap market. Using participatory mapping, this case identifies the market’s trade areas, its key institutions, and the flows of waste and recycled material allow alternative narratives to emerge, providing rich insights about how resources come together, about everyday negotiations and governance, and about how communities build critical spatial imaginations.  A series of annotated maps, a “Right to the City” manifesto, and a participatory mapping playbook can help learners map and engage with emerging urban geographies.

About the Case Author
Anant Maringanti is an geographer with a PhD from University of Minnesota and has taught graduate courses at the National University of Singapore and University of Hyderabad.His research and teaching interests centre on questions of urbanization and globalization from the South Asian vantage point. He is currently the director of Hyderabad Urban Lab, a multi disciplinary research programme run by the Right to the City Foundation. He is widely published in national and international academic journals on social movements, politics of development and urbanization.