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For months, coercive communications recurred. At first, allegedly from a former police officer and a former defense officer, and then from the police themselves. Finally, a local artisan asserts he was called to the police station and warned explicitly: stop speaking out or experience severe repercussions.

This third-generation resident is part of a group resisting a multimillion-dollar project where this historic settlement – an iconic Mumbai neighborhood – is scheduled to be razed and redeveloped by a multinational conglomerate.

"The culture of the slum is exceptional in the world," says the protester. "Yet the plan aims to destroy our social fabric and silence our voices."

Dual Worlds

The cramped lanes of this community sit in stark contrast to the high-rise structures and luxury apartments that overshadow the neighborhood. Homes are constructed informally and typically missing basic amenities, unregulated industries produce dangerous fumes and the atmosphere is permeated by the overpowering odor of exposed drainage.

To some, the promise of a renewed Dharavi into a modern district of premium apartments, neat parks, contemporary malls and homes with two toilets is a hopeful vision realized.

"We don't have adequate medical facilities, paved pathways or sewage systems and there's nowhere for youth to recreate," says A Selvin Nadar, 56, who moved from southern India in the early eighties. "The single option is to clear the area and build us new homes."

Local Protest

However, some, such as the leather artisan, are resisting the project.

None deny that Dharavi, historically ignored as unauthorized settlement, is desperately requiring economic input and modernization. Yet they worry that this plan – without public consultation – could potentially turn valuable urban land into a playground for the rich, evicting the lower-caste, working-class residents who have resided there since the nineteenth century.

It was these marginalized, migrant workers who built up the vacant wetlands into a frequently examined example of local enterprise and economic productivity, whose production is worth between $1m and $2m annually, making it among the globe's biggest unregulated sectors.

Resettlement Issues

Of the roughly 1 million people living in the crowded sprawling zone, a minority will be eligible for new homes in the development, which is estimated to take a significant period to finish. Additional residents will be moved to wastelands and coastal regions on the distant periphery of the metropolis, threatening to break up a historic neighborhood. Some will be denied residences at all.

People eligible to remain in Dharavi will be allocated units in multi-story structures, a significant rupture from the evolved, collective approach of living and working that has maintained the community for generations.

Commercial activities from tailoring to ceramic crafts and waste processing are likely to reduce in scale and be relocated to a specific "industrial sector" separated from homes.

Livelihood Crisis

For those such as this protester, a workshop owner and multi-generational of his family to live in this community, the redevelopment presents an existential threat. His rickety, three-floor facility makes garments – tailored coats, luxury coats, decorated jackets – marketed in high-end shops in the city's affluent areas and overseas.

His family lives in the rooms underneath and employees and garment workers – workers from other states – also sleep on-site, permitting him to manage costs. Outside Dharavi's enclave, accommodation prices are often 10 times more expensive for basic accommodation.

Pressure and Coercion

In the official facilities close by, a conceptual model of the redevelopment plan illustrates an alternative perspective. Well-groomed inhabitants move around on two-wheelers and electric vehicles, acquiring continental baguettes and pastries and having coffee on a terrace near Dharavi Cafe and Ice-Cream. It is a complete departure from the 20-rupee idli sambar morning meal and budget beverage that supports the neighborhood.

"This represents no progress for our community," explains Shaikh. "This constitutes a massive real estate deal that will price people out for us to survive."

There is also skepticism of the business conglomerate. Managed by a powerful tycoon – among the country's wealthiest and an associate of the national leader – the business group has encountered allegations of crony capitalism and questionable practices, which it disputes.

Although the state government labels it a partnership, the business group invested $950m for its 80% stake. Legal proceedings claiming that the project was improperly granted to the corporation is pending in the top court.

Ongoing Pressure

Since they began to vocally oppose the redevelopment, Shaikh and other residents state they have been faced ongoing efforts of pressure and threats – comprising phone calls, explicit warnings and insinuations that opposing the development was tantamount to speaking against the country – by individuals they assert represent the developer.

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