Dharavi Redevelopment Project Update: Upper-Floor Residents Eligible For Flats Elsewhere In Mumbai

Residents of Dharavi, who owned tenements above the ground floor before November 15, will be allotted 300 square feet of apartments in other parts of Mumbai on a hire-purchase basis, according to a government resolution (GR) issued by the housing department. These residents will pay a nominal monthly rent for 25 years, after which they will gain ownership of the flats, according to the Hindustan Times (HT) report.

Traditionally, residents of upper-floor tenements in slums were considered illegal and excluded from slum rehabilitation projects. However, this new GR offers relief by ensuring that eligible residents are accommodated within Mumbai, provided they can present documents proving ownership of their tenements before the specified date.

Dharavi Redevelopment Project Progress

Dharavi, spanning over 600 acres, is one of Asia's largest slum clusters. Its redevelopment is managed by Dharavi Redevelopment Project Private Limited (DRPPL), a special-purpose vehicle where the Adani Group holds an 80 per cent stake, with the remaining 20 per cent owned by the state government.

The government had earlier announced that only residents owning ground-floor tenements before 1 January 2000 were eligible for rehabilitation within Dharavi. Ineligible residents were to be relocated to other parts of the city. Unlike other citywide slum rehabilitation projects that require ineligible residents to pay Rs 2.5 lakh upfront, this scheme exempts Dharavi residents from any initial payment.

Allocation And Maintenance

So far, 542.25 acres of land have been allocated for housing ineligible Dharavi residents. This includes 125 acres at the Deonar dumping ground, 256 acres of salt pan land in Mulund and Kanjurmarg, 21.25 acres of Kurla Dairy land, and 140 acres at Madh Island. DRPPL will maintain the buildings for 10 years, after which the residents will take over.

The government has yet to decide on the rental rates and the purchase price for the flats. Residents can also opt for a lump sum payment during the 25-year period to acquire ownership.

A detailed survey launched on March 18, is underway to identify eligible and ineligible residents. Surveyors have numbered around 60,000 tenements and completed work for 25,000 of them. In a previous survey conducted in 2007-08, 49,643 tenements were identified, including 39,208 residential units and 10,435 commercial units. Observers note that the number of tenements has grown significantly since then.

This redevelopment initiative aims to improve living conditions for Dharavi residents while addressing long-standing issues of eligibility and legal ownership.