Subaltern urbanisation, shifting periphery and rural-urban dilemma in Bengal Delta: Rethinking planetary urbanisation in a densely populated deltaic region

Lefebvre's concept of a metaphorically complete urban society became popular among Western urban studies by developing the idea of planetary urbanisation in a globalised capitalist framework. In this article, we critique the idea of planetary urbanisation, arguing how it cannot explain the case of the Bengal Delta with a densely populated rural sphere. Through a comparative analysis of two fast-growing primate cities, Kolkata and Dhaka, this article unravels the impacts of urbanisation on the deltaic environments. The article critiques the universality of planetary urbanisation in understanding urban processes in the Global South, arguing that the high-density rural settlements in the Bengal Delta do not necessarily align with metropolitan hierarchies or the spatial logic of extended and differential urbanisation posited by planetary urbanisation theory. Instead, the study proposes that these rural settlements exhibit distinct growth, transformation, and structural change trajectories, driven by localised factors rather than by the forces of complete urban processes. Consequently, the high-density rural settlements in the Bengal Delta are better understood through the lens of subaltern urbanisation. This perspective underscores the inadequacy of planetary urbanisation in capturing the complex and differentiated urbanisation process in this region. The findings demonstrate that the urbanisation of the Bengal Delta follows alternative pathways, challenging the homogenising assumptions of planetary urbanisation and offering critical insights into urbanisation processes in the Global South.