Section Article

Urban Transformation and Social Stratification in Contemporary India
Author(s): Imran Khan

Abstract
Indias urban landscape has undergone unprecedented transformation in recent decades driven by economic liberalization infrastructural expansion and demographic shifts. However these changes have not been evenly distributed. Urban transformation in contemporary India is deeply intertwined with processes of social stratification that shape and are shaped by class caste gender and spatial inequalities. This paper critically examines the dynamics of urbanization in India through the lens of social stratification arguing that urban growth often reproduces and amplifies existing hierarchies rather than dissolving them. Drawing on theoretical frameworks empirical data and case studies from major Indian cities the research explores how urban planning informal economies and governance structures intersect with historical and structural inequalities. The paper concludes by assessing the potential for inclusive urban development and the challenges that remain in addressing systemic exclusion in the Indian urban context.