The biggest slum in Asia, Dharavi in Mumbai, is getting a facelift that is intended to transform what is possibly one of the most densely-populated spots on earth into a cleaner, more ordered place.
Dharavi's pitiful shacks, made from discarded canvas bags, plastic sheeting, tyres and aluminium, sprawl over nearly 175 hectares in the heart of the city. They are home to nearly one million of the 12 million people who live in India's commercial capital. Attracted by the lure of jobs and better income, migrants from all over rural India have settled in this teeming slum where they live in the midst of open drains and stinking garbage dumps.
An overseas-based Indian architect, Mukesh Mehta, has roped in 12 charitable Mumbai developers to turn the thousands of higgledy-piggledy shacks into 70,000 proper homes and convert the tiny working units, where the enterprising slum dwellers manufacture an impressive array of goods, into safe commercial establishments.
'Our redevelopment plan includes leaving 15 per cent of the total area green and open, providing for nurseries and recreational facilities and building roads throughout the slum to connect the different parts,' Mr Mehta said.
The entire facelift is expected to cost around US$100 million (HK$778 million), all donated, and will be done in stages. Residents outside Dharavi will also inadvertently benefit from the facelift. At present, traffic on the surrounding roads is constantly choked by the activities of Dharavi inhabitants who wash, cook, eat, sleep, bathe and study on the adjoining pavements.
Built on marshy land, Dharavi was originally a small village with a tanning industry. Now it is a symbol of different things to different people. For middle-class Indians who believe the stereotypes peddled by Bollywood directors who invariably show mafia dons operating from Dharavi, the shantytown is a haven for thieves, murderers, smugglers and delinquents.
