Fractal urbanism: City size and residential segregation in India

We present the first ever large-scale snapshot of urban residential segregation in India at neighborhood-scale. Our analysis from 147 largest cities contemporary shows how caste-based is independent city size (our sample includes all with least 0.3 million residents 2011). The extent metropolitan centers over ten closely tracks that are nearly two orders-of-magnitude smaller. also show across a large swathe mirrors spatial geometry rural India. findings call into question one central normative promises modernization and elsewhere — gradual withering traditional ascriptive identities such as caste. paper contributes to emerging debates by developing an interdisciplinary framework for analytical empirical operationalization neighborhood unit.