🔗 Share this article

Across several weeks, intimidating phone calls recurred. Initially, supposedly from a retired cop and a retired army general, later from law enforcement directly. In the end, one resident states he was ordered to the local precinct and told clearly: stop speaking out or experience severe repercussions.

The leather artisan is among those opposing a multimillion-dollar initiative where this historic settlement – one of India’s largest and most storied slums – faces bulldozed and transformed by a large business group.

"The culture of the slum is unparalleled in the globe," states the protester. "Yet their intention is to dismantle our social fabric and silence our voices."

Opposing Environments

The cramped lanes of the slum sit in stark contrast to the soaring skyscrapers and luxury apartments that overshadow the area. Residences are built haphazardly and typically without proper sanitation, small-scale operations emit toxic smoke and the air is permeated by the overpowering odor of uncovered waste channels.

Among some individuals, the prospect of a renewed Dharavi into a glistening neighborhood of high-end towers, well-maintained green spaces, shiny shopping centers and homes with proper sanitation is an optimistic future come true.

"We lack proper healthcare, paved pathways or drainage and we have no places for youth to recreate," explains a tea vendor, 56, who moved from southern India in 1982. "The only way is to clear the area and construct proper housing."

Local Protest

However, some, like this protester, are opposing the plan.

All recognize that this community, consistently overlooked as informal housing, is urgently needing economic input and modernization. However they worry that this plan – without resident participation – could potentially turn premium city property into an elite enclave, forcing out the lower-caste, working-class residents who have been there since generations ago.

This involved these marginalized, migrant workers who developed the uninhabited area into a frequently examined example of self-reliance and commercial output, whose production is valued at between one million dollars and $2m per year, making it among the globe's biggest unregulated sectors.

Relocation Worries

Out of about a million people living in the packed 2.2 square kilometer area, less than 50% will be eligible for alternative accommodation in the project, which is projected to take seven years to accomplish. Additional residents will be transferred to undeveloped zones and saline fields on the distant periphery of the metropolis, threatening to break up a historic neighborhood. Some will be denied homes at all.

Residents permitted to stay in the area will be provided units in multi-story structures, a substantial change from the natural, shared lifestyle of residing and operating that has sustained the community for many years.

Commercial activities from tailoring to pottery and material recovery are expected to reduce in scale and be relocated to an allocated "industrial sector" separated from homes.

Survival Challenge

In the case of this protester, a leather artisan and long-time inhabitant to reside in Dharavi, the plan presents a fundamental risk. His rickety, three-storey facility makes garments – sharp blazers, premium outerwear, fashionable garments – marketed in high-end shops in the city's affluent areas and abroad.

Relatives dwells in the rooms below and employees and tailors – workers from different regions – also sleep on-site, enabling him to manage costs. Beyond Dharavi's enclave, Mumbai rents are frequently 10 times costlier for basic accommodation.

Harassment and Intimidation

At the government offices nearby, an illustrated mock-up of the transformation initiative depicts an alternative perspective. Slickly dressed people move around on two-wheelers and electric vehicles, purchasing continental bread and croissants and socializing on a patio outside a coffee shop and dessert parlor. This depicts a stark contrast from the 20-rupee idli sambar morning meal and 5-rupee chai that sustains Dharavi's community.

"This represents no progress for us," explains the artisan. "It represents a massive real estate deal that will price people out for residents to remain."

Furthermore, there's skepticism of the development company. Managed by a prominent businessman – among the country's wealthiest and an associate of the Indian prime minister – the conglomerate has encountered allegations of crony capitalism and questionable practices, which it disputes.

Even as local authorities calls it a partnership, the developer invested a significant amount for its majority share. A lawsuit alleging that the redevelopment was improperly granted to the developer is under review in the top court.

Continued Intimidation

From when they initiated to vocally oppose the project, local opponents claim they have been experienced ongoing efforts of coercion and warning – including communications, clear intimidation and insinuations that speaking against the development was tantamount to speaking against the country – by individuals they claim represent the corporate group.

Included in these alleged to have delivering warnings is {a retired police officer|a former law enforcement official|an ex-c