This paper examines Delhi’s first slum in situ redevelopment project under public-private partnership undertaken by the Delhi Development Authority in Kathputli Colony. At a time where the principle of community participation is recognised in policy documents, this research focuses on its implementation in this project, at the ground level, highlighting the challenges of participation in the context of a settlement with multiple communities. A preliminary assessment raises a series of questions regarding the management of such redevelopment projects.

The redevelopment and beautification of the capital for the making of a "world-class city' have entailed a heavy cost in terms of slum demolitions. A survey documenting the change of land use that has taken place on the sites of demolished slum clusters highlights the emerging processes and trends. Some of its findings question the stated principle of the Delhi slum policy, namely, the removal and relocation of squatter settlements only when the land is required to implement projects in the "larger public interest'.