Gajjar Harshal Deepak

Gajjar Harshal Deepak studied urban planning (CEPT, 2011–15) and public policy (APU, 2015–17). His key research and policy interests include housing, as well as its intersections with work and climate. Developing and reimagining development control norms is one of his major interest area. He is currently a Senior Associate at the School of Human Development at IIHS

Harshal has spent the last five years as the coordinator of the Main Bhi Dilli campaign, a people’s campaign for Delhi’s next master plan, which has helped generate multiple forms of co-produced knowledge across issues such as gender, livelihood, housing, and disability in Delhi. Apart from this, Harshal has been involved in a number of research projects involving the evaluation of central and state housing schemes, vulnerability assessments of slum areas and the studies on non-ownership types of housing.

Harshal, as part of the School of Human Development, not only conducts research and practice projects in a variety of roles, but also teaches about city level campaigns and housing in the Urban Fellows Programme. In his last five years at IIHS, Harshal has also produced a number of op-eds and research pieces on topics such as home-based work, rented housing, coal-mine housing, non-state actors’ forms of relief during COVID-19, and self-employment in unauthorised colonies.