The preparations for transforming Asia’s largest slum area of the world into an integrated planned township got underway on Friday, as the Maharashtra Government floated global tenders for the ambitious Rs 22,000-crore Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP).
Spread over 240-hectare area, Dharavi has remained an ugly face and a dark underbelly of Mumbai – a largest slum which has been romanticised in Indian films over the years. It has also been a cottage industry hub for decades on end.
The DRP is being seen as the biggest redevelopment effort undertaken for the region since 1972, after which there have been slum improvement Project in 1976, Slum Upgradation project in 1985, Slum Rehabilitation Scheme in 1995, and then the Dharavi Redevelopment Project of 2004.
In an apparent effort to derive political mileage in the run-up to the May 2019 Lok Sabha and the subsequent October 2019 State Assembly polls, the BJP-led saffron alliance government has embarked upon the DRP.
In advertisements seeking international bids for the DRP put out in major news papers, the Slum Redevelopment Authority (SRA) stated that the last date for submitting the bids for the project is December 28.
As per the guidelines notfied in the tender, the selected lead partner has to form a special purpose vehicle (SPV) with 80 per cent equity ( Rs 400 crore), while the Maharashtra government will hold 20 per cent equity ( Rs 100 crore) in the project.
The SPV will construct free houses for the eligible slum dwellers with amenities and infrastructure. The SPV will be entitle to construct houses in the free sale area and sell them in open market. The state government has fixed 4 as Floor Space Index (FSI) for the project.
Located between Western Railway’s Bandra-Matunga and Central Railway’s Sion-Matunga stations in north-central Mumbai, Dharavi has the highest density of population. The Mithi River slices through a portion of Dharavi into the Mahim Creek and then onto the Arabian Sea. Currently, it is home to over anywhere from 60,000 to 70,000 families
A mini-India of sorts where people belonging to different faiths live, Dharavi has s 28 temples, 11 mosques, six churches, 50 banks, 60 government schools, a mobile design museum, several slum tourism outfits, thriving criminal groups, and a tiny dilapidated fort.
Dharavi also has a small fort known as the Riwa Fort. Better known as Kala Qilla or Black Fort, it is currently in a dilapidated condition. It was built by the first Governor of Bombay, Gerald Aungier (1669–1677).
It was part of the larger Bombay Castle, and marked the northern portion of British-held Bombay in the 17th century. The castle was also used as a watchtower, guarding the territory against the Portuguese-held (and later Maratha-held) Salsette Island.
At that time, the entire area was a large swamp and primarily inhabited by Koli fishermen who made a living from the waters.
As the legend goes, the British built a dam on the Mithi river because of which there was no water to feed the swamp and it dried off.
The fishermen near the sea and a community of potters moved in here. In fact they could be called the first settlers of the region.
As Mumbai turned into a hub for textiles in the post Independence era, thousands of men from north India moved in as well and the slum as we know it started to take shape. Slowly and slow since the sixties, migrants – particularly those from south India started moving in – making what Dharavi is today.
Dharavi has several business units -- right from textiles to pottery to fabrication to leather industry. Plastic recycling and garbage segregation too is done here.
Mainly a hub of cottage industries, it has an estimated 5,000 business entities and 15,000 single-room factories. Goods produced here go to Middle East, South-East Asia, United States and Europe and several other places.