Title

On the origins and reasons behind nonprofit involvement and non-involvement in low income housing in urban India

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Title

Cities

Publication Date

1998

Abstract

The article examines the origins of Indian nonprofit organizations (NPOs) involved in the low income housing sector in urban areas and explores the reasons for NPO “involvement” or “non-involvement” in the sector by analyzing a series of case studies. Three types of NPOs are discussed: nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), secular welfare churches' organizations (WCOs), and community based organizations (CBOs). The analytical framework is drawn from: propositions on the local state developed in the context of industrialized nations; literature on the voluntary sector which considers broader socioeconomic and political factors and is also developed in the context of industrialized nations; and studies of Third World NGOs which incorporate institutional histories, political, social, and economic realities, associational cultures, and human agency. Drawing from this literature, the article suggests two ways of understanding the origins and reasons behind NPO involvement and non-involvement in housing. These are analyzing NPOs as organizations of human agents which have identities, objectives, and institutional and social histories; and local conditions, institutional behavior, associational culture, local politics and actions of local agents.

DOI

10.1016/S0264-2751(98)00017-1

Disciplines

Urban Studies and Planning

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