Intimidation, Apprehension and Hope as India's financial capital Slum Dwellers Await Demolition

Over an extended period, intimidating phone calls persisted. Initially, reportedly from a former police officer and a former defense officer, and then from the authorities. Finally, Mohammad Khurshid Shaikh claims he was ordered to law enforcement headquarters and instructed bluntly: keep quiet or experience severe repercussions.

The leather artisan is part of a group resisting a expensive redevelopment plan where one of India's largest slums – one of India’s largest and most storied slums – is scheduled to be demolished and redeveloped by a corporate giant.

"The culture of the slum is unparalleled in the world," says the resident. "Yet their intention is to destroy our social fabric and prevent our protests."

Contrasting Realities

The narrow alleys of this community sit in stark contrast to the towering buildings and elite residences that dominate the settlement. Residences are constructed informally and often without proper sanitation, informal businesses emit toxic smoke and the air is saturated with the overpowering odor of uncovered waste channels.

To some, the prospect of Dharavi transformed into a glistening neighborhood of premium apartments, well-maintained green spaces, contemporary malls and residences with two toilets is a hopeful vision achieved.

"We lack proper healthcare, roads or drainage and we have no places for youth to recreate," states a chai seller, fifty-six, who moved from Tamil Nadu in 1982. "The sole solution is to clear the area and build us new homes."

Resident Opposition

However, some, such as this protester, are resisting the redevelopment.

All recognize that Dharavi, consistently overlooked as unauthorized settlement, is desperately requiring investment and development. But they worry that this plan – absent of resident participation – is one that will turn a piece of prime Mumbai real estate into a luxury development, displacing the marginalized, migrant communities who have lived there since generations ago.

It was these shunned, displaced people who developed the empty marshland into an extensively researched phenomenon of self-reliance and business activity, whose production is valued at between one million dollars and two million dollars annually, making it a major unregulated sectors.

Resettlement Issues

Out of about one million residents living in the packed 2.2 square kilometer area, a minority will be able for new homes in the project, which is projected to take an extended timeframe to accomplish. Additional residents will be moved to wastelands and salt plains on the distant periphery of Mumbai, risking divide a historic community. A portion will be denied housing at all.

Residents permitted to stay in the neighborhood will be provided units in multi-story structures, a significant rupture from the evolved, collective approach of living and working that has supported this area for generations.

Businesses from clothing production to ceramic crafts and material recovery are expected to decrease in quantity and be moved to a specific "business area" separated from homes.

Existential Threat

In the case of the leather artisan, a craftsman and third generation of his family to call home Dharavi, the project presents a fundamental risk. His informal, multi-level operation creates leather coats – sharp blazers, premium outerwear, studded bomber jackets – marketed in high-end shops in south Mumbai and internationally.

Relatives lives in the rooms downstairs and his workers and garment workers – migrants from other states – reside on-site, enabling him to afford their labour. Outside this community, accommodation prices are typically 10 times costlier for a single room.

Threats and Warning

At the official facilities nearby, a visual representation of the Dharavi project illustrates a very different vision for the future. Slickly dressed people move around on bicycles and eco-friendly transport, buying international baked goods and pastries and enlisting beverages on a terrace adjacent to a coffee shop and Ice-Cream. This depicts a complete departure from the 20-rupee idli sambar first meal and low-cost tea that supports Dharavi's community.

"This isn't improvement for our community," explains the artisan. "This constitutes a massive property transaction that will render it impossible for us to survive."

Furthermore, there's concern of the business conglomerate. Managed by a prominent businessman – among the country's wealthiest and a supporter of the national leader – the conglomerate has faced accusations of crony capitalism and questionable practices, which it disputes.

Even as administrative bodies labels it a partnership, the corporation invested a significant amount for its controlling interest. A case claiming that the initiative was unfairly awarded to the developer is being considered in the top court.

Continued Intimidation

Since they began to publicly resist the project, Shaikh and other residents state they have been subjected to a long-running campaign of pressure and threats – involving messages, clear intimidation and insinuations that opposing the project was comparable with anti-national sentiment – by people they claim work for the corporate group.

Part of the group suspected of issuing the threats is {a retired police officer|a former law enforcement official|an ex-c