The Affordability of Aspirations

For millions of the urban poor, aspiration becomes a distant choice when survival itself is at stake. It is vital, therefore, that efforts to address urban poverty recognise them as equal and rightful citizens of the city — not as outsiders to its prosperity.

It was Valentine’s Day. A pleasant evening in Noida. My wife, daughter, and I had just finished dinner at Logix Mall. It was one of those rare evenings — no office deadlines, no family chores, just food, laughter, and conversation about life and purpose. Were we doing enough? Were we still excited by our work? Are we doing enough for our daughter? What are our ASPIRATIONS!

At 10:30 pm, as we walked back to the open parking lot, a frail girl, around 11-12 years of age, came running toward us. Her eyes were moist, and her feet were tired. Clutching a bunch of roses, she said:

“Bhaiya, gulaab lelo, apki jodi salamat rahe.” (Brother! Please buy these roses — may you and your partner stay blessed.)

Her voice carried both urgency and innocence. She was Sazia. 

That moment froze in time. In Sazia’s voice, I heard both struggle and aspiration. A child who should have been asleep by now — preparing for school the next day — was instead out in the cold night, selling roses to strangers. Her presence answered some questions I had been asking myself, but not in ways I wanted to hear them.

A Girl in the City

India’s cities are expanding at breathtaking speed. By 2030, around 600 million people (40%) will be urban residents in India. Cities now contribute over 60% of India’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

But prosperity has bypassed many. More than 65 million Indians live in slums (Census 2011). Only about 25.4% urban Indian women are employed or seeking employment (PLFS Bulletin, Aug 2025).

Children like Sazia are the most vulnerable. With parents stuck in insecure, informal jobs, they often trade children’s education for survival. Their childhoods become collateral damage in India’s urban growth story.

Limits to Aspiration

Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs reminds us that aspiration is difficult when basic survival is at stake. For millions of urban poor, the challenges are multidimensional:

• Housing: Overcrowded slums with insecure tenure and constant risk of eviction.
• Livelihoods: More than 80% of the urban workforce is informal, without job security or social protection.
• Health: Dense, unsanitary settlements worsen disease and malnutrition.
• Education: High dropout rates as children enter the workforce too early.

Addressing urban poverty requires holistic and interlinked solutions – connecting housing, livelihoods, healthcare, education and climate adversities while recognising the urban poor as equal citizens of the city, not outsiders to its prosperity.

Can We Aspire Together?

I could not bring myself to ask Sazia about her dreams. That night, she was not dreaming, she was surviving. Perhaps she wanted to be a florist, a student, or simply someone able to help her siblings live better lives. Or perhaps, for her, aspiration had been reduced to a single struggle: to make it through tomorrow.

Can we afford a nation where three out of four girls above age of 15 have no aspiration to work, earn, and live their dreams?

That night, as Sazia pressed her roses forward, she placed a rose in my hand and a big question in my mind: Are we doing enough to let her dream?

The author is Saurabh Shukla, National Program Manager – Women Economic Empowerment, PCI India