-Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh (October 2004)
Shanghai dreams in
Mumbai’s eyes
It’s a race between the tiger and the dragon and while some
economists believe that the gap is fast closing in, for Mumbai to take the
Shanghai route is an uphill task, its biggest road block being the vibrant
democracy.
"I have a dream that we can do it," the Prime Minister
said in 2004. And the Congress-led state government in Maharashtra drew up $
6.5 billion plan to make this dream a reality.
Shanghai skyscrapers on
Dharavi debris
Dharavi’s underground
business
According to the state government[2],
eight out of the fourteen million people in Mumbai live in slums with 600,000 to
a million living in Dharavi, a world of massive, sprawling slums, heart
wrenching poverty and squalor. In its twisted lanes and back alleys runs a
conglomerate of cottage industries of export quality garments, leather,
pottery, ceramics, artefacts, electronics, savoury snacks among others. The
annual turnover is estimated to be Rs 3,000 crore ($750m) a year.
On an average each of them earns Rs. 3,000 to Rs. 15,000 ($75-370)
monthly, with major exporters making as much as Rs. 300,000 to Rs. 400,000
($7500-10000) a month. At its lowest, Dharavi generates Rs. 4 crore ($1m) a day[3]. Dharavi is one of the most inspiring economic
models in Asia but most of its businesses are illegal. No taxes are paid and
the government gets no revenue.
Dharavi Redevelopment
Project (DRP)
The DRP proposes that slum dwellers with names in the 1995 electoral
roll and with existing structures, which
are about 57000 families, will be rehabilitated for free in a self contained
tenement with a carpet area of 225 sq ft through developers appointed by the state
government.
For all slum rehabilitation schemes in the city, the consent of 70
per cent residents has been mandatory to make them transparent and democratic.
But as per a government notification, the state said no consent from Dharavi
residents is required. “The argument is that the state is the guarantor that
people will get homes, so consent is not required,” said the then Slum
Rehabilitation Authority (SRA)[4]
executive officer on special duty, I S Chahal. [i]
It's a stance which has seen the birth of the Dharavi Bachao Andolan
(Save Dharavi Movement)[5].
“There is no transparency in the process. At least another 35,000 families
should be rehabilitated,” said Jockin Arputham[ii],
Magsaysay award winner and the president of India’s National Slum Dwellers
Federation.
Dharavi Inc and Concerns
With the implementation of DRP, several cottage industries will shut
down. The Khandares, owners of a leather processing unit have lived in Dharavi
for generations. “In 1920 my grandfather came to Dharavi and built on this
marshy land from scratch,” Madhukar Khandare[iii]
says proudly. Over four generations, the
Khandares have seen Dharavi grow into the hub of export-quality leather- a Rs 3
crore ($7.5m) industry employing over 200,000 people.
“Development is very important as the living conditions are
pathetic. But it is equally important to protect the industries,” says Khandare.
As we walk through Dharavi’s 90 feet road, named for obvious
reasons, we meet Zainab Sheikh[iv]
who invites us for tea and conversation. An offer we couldn’t pass. Zainab’s
story is all about numbers. Her husband works in a recycling plant earning Rs
3000 ($750) a month while she earns half of that through odd tailoring jobs.
Zainab’s family of eight lives in a 15x10 room. “The nearest municipal tap is
50 feet away and we need to stand in queue for two hours for water that is
often contaminated,” she says.
Zainab estimates her room would sell for Rs 10-12 lakh
($25000-30000). “If we stay, we will get new homes, bigger ones,” she says.
“But the workshops will all go. A home with water and electricity would mean higher
maintenance costs but with no jobs, how will we pay the bills?”
The DRP wants all polluting and hazardous processes to go. And the
recycling plants in Dharavi’s 13th compound are on the road to closure.
Abu Khalid Anjum[v],
a bespectacled man in his late forties, is the owner of a plastic recycling
plant and the chairman of Dharavi Business Welfare Association representing
20,000 warehouses. His position gives us easy access to many units, otherwise
away from public scrutiny.
Running all along this
labyrinthine are scavengers- mainly children bringing in the treasures found in
municipal dumps. Piles of tin cans, plastic bags, computer parts, car
batteries, oil cans are then segregated for recycling.
Sound of grinding, hammering, drilling echoes loudly on our way to Anjum’s
unit where two men sort plastic waste into multicoloured bins. These will then
get grinded and melted to be made into toys.
‘My imported machines emit no toxins,’ explains Anjum. “People think
Dharavi is a dirty place. But if you stop recycling, entire Mumbai will become Dharavi,”
he says.
Anjum continues, ‘Here old is recycled into new. Similarly Dharavi’s
old homes and businesses will have to go and new ones come in its place. But
how do we operate our business from the fifth floor?’ asks Anjum.
We move to Kumbharwada, the paradise of potters. Raju Chouhan[vi]
shows us his workshop- a 3000 sq ft two storey structure with a brick oven in
the backyard where red mud is made into clay. A rickety wooden ladder links the
floors where men churn pots at breathtaking speed, and women paint designs on
diyas (earthen candles) that are shipped to Europe and America.
“I need a 3000 sq ft workshop. How can I operate out of 225 sq ft? I
can’t even fit my family of twelve in it,” argues Chouhan.
Smaller homes, sky high
prices
A few kilometres away lies Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC), one of
Mumbai's gleaming business districts. Real estate prices in BKC are Rs. 40,000
a square foot, four times of Dharavi.
The DRP will release 7 crore square feet for construction of which the
developers can sell at least 4 crore square feet in the open market. That's
twice the size of Mumbai’s premier business districts Nariman Point and BKC together.
Mukesh Mehta[vii],
the architect behind DRP says this will turn Dharavi- an encroached land- into
a valuable resource. Residents will get a free 225 sq ft self contained
tenement with township amenities like school, colleges, hospitals and parks.
Employment will be generated through a special economic zone[6]
having gems and jewellery, ceramic, and other industries.
On the demand for bigger homes, Mehta says, “A practical solution
for residents with larger house would be for the government to give 225 sq ft
for free and 50% to 70% additional area at discounted rate.”
But Raju Korde[viii]
who leads the Dharavi Bachao Andolan from an office of the Communist Party of
India (Marxists) says, “No slum dweller will be able to pay market rates for
additional area.” Korde believes it is all a political game influenced by
powerful builders. “The residents are poor victims caught in this political
battle,” he says.
A reason to celebrate
On April 4, the Supreme Court allowed the state to extend the eligibility
criteria to January 1, 2000 (from 1995). “The figure has gone up to 87,200
families from the initial 57,000 families” says Ravindra Adsure[ix],
standing counsel for Maharashtra in the Supreme Court.
Also the government recently promised to review the resident’s
biggest problem with DRP – Space. A proposal to extend the area from 225 sq ft studio
flat to a bigger 275 sq ft apartment is in the pipeline.
But in India, democracy means that one has to take the staircase to
economic development, not the elevator, as in China.
And as Jockin says, “A battle may have been won, but the war is far
from over.”
[1] Bidding criteria
excludes companies whose net worth is less than $700 mn and whose annual turnover
in the past three years was under $600 mn. They must also have experience
developing seven million square feet in at least one 100 acre township.
[2] Slum Rehabilitation
Authority is the state’s special cell to look into redevelopment of slums. Its
chairman is the Chief Minister of Maharashtra Vilasrao Deshmukh.
[4] SRA is the Project Implementation Agency for DRP. Its Executive
officer on Special duty monitors all aspects related to project planning and
implementation of DRP.
[5] Dharavi Bachao Andolan
(Save Dharavi Movement) is a coalition of over 20 groups opposing the DRP.
[6] A special economic
zone is proposed in Dharavi to increase the present contribution of Dharavi
businesses/industries to the GDP of the nation. This SEZ will house gems and
jewellery factories, leather industry, InfoTech and other non-polluting
industries. This together will generate a turnover of approx Rs 7000 crore and
employment opportunities for 150,000 people.
[i] Interview with Iqbal
Singh Chahal, Officer on Special Duty, Slum Rehabilitation Authority for
Dharavi Redevelopment Project at SRA office, Griha Nirman Bhavan, Bandra East,
Mumbai.
[ii] Interview with Jockin Arputham, President,
National Slum Dwellers Federation at NSDF office, Mahim, Mumbai
[v] Interview with Abu
Khalid Anjum, Chairman, Dharavi Business Welfare Association, owner of plastic recycling plant, 13th
compound, Dharavi
[vii] Telephonic interview
with Mukesh Mehta, architect and urban planner for Dharavi Redevelopment
Project.
[viii] Interview with Raju
Korde, leader of Communist Party of India (Marxists) and President, Dharavi
Bachao Andolan (Save Dharavi Movement), Dharavi
[ix] Telephonic Interview with
Ravindra Adsure, standing counsel for Maharashtra state in the Supreme Court.
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