Their average plot size is tiny: less than a hectare.

ECONOMIST: No title

Local communities make a bad situation worse by using planning laws, such as minimum plot size, to exclude low-income families. (Many ritzy suburbs will not allow a property to have a second kitchen for fear that the owner might take in tenants.) Meanwhile, many of the same communities compete to attract high-value commercial developments.

ECONOMIST: Urban planning

So when the state turned over 187 hectares (460 acres) of forest for a planned refinery near Badama, a plot the same size had to be found for the Forest Department.

ECONOMIST: Poverty in India