Final master plan for Dharavi revamp expected in a month

Mumbai's Dharavi redevelopment master plan is due in a month, aiming to transform the slum with a ₹3 lakh crore investment, but lacks public consultations.

Mumbai: The final master plan for the ambitious Dharavi redevelopment project is expected to be ready within a month, with the state government directing Adani Group-backed Navbharat Mega Developers Private Limited (NMDPL) to make revisions. The project, estimated to require an investment of nearly ₹3 lakh crore, aims to transform one of Asia’s largest slum clusters.

The project, estimated to require an investment of nearly ₹3 lakh crore, aims to transform one of Asia’s largest slum clusters(HT Photo)

Once approved by the state government, the master plan will be made public. However, no public consultations or hearings are scheduled before its release, despite its wide-scale impact across 640 acres in central Mumbai. “Of the total area, only around 240 acres is developable,” said S V R Srinivas, CEO of the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP), on Thursday.

To accommodate ineligible tenements, DRP is in the process of acquiring an additional 1,220.3 acres across locations such as Kurla, Malad, Deonar, Mulund, and Matunga (excluding certain areas). The master plans for these plots will be submitted at a later stage. Earlier this month, DRP took possession of a crucial 50-acre plot at Kurla’s Mother Dairy.

The redevelopment project envisions constructing 10 crore sq ft of rehabilitation structures and an additional 14 crore sq ft of saleable property. An estimated ₹25,000 crore will be invested in building rehabilitation units. Of the total projected investment of ₹3 lakh crore, nearly ₹2,000 crore has already been spent, with NMDPL’s board approving another ₹2,000 crore for upcoming expenditures.

A fresh survey launched on March 18, 2024, has covered 80% of Dharavi so far, identifying approximately 84,000 commercial and 53,000 residential units. The survey is expected to conclude by mid-April. Authorities have urged residents who were absent during the initial survey to visit field offices to confirm their eligibility, warning that non-compliance could lead to exclusion from the rehabilitation process.

DRP officials anticipate that the proportion of eligible and ineligible tenements will be roughly equal. Under slum rehabilitation rules, regardless of how many tenements an individual owns in Dharavi, only one unit will be allotted. Each rehabilitation unit will be 350 sq ft in size, an upgrade from the 300 sq ft provided in other slum redevelopment projects. Ineligible residents will be relocated outside Dharavi to rental housing complexes under a hire-purchase arrangement.

Meanwhile, some resident groups are demanding that each eligible family receive a 500 sq ft unit and that all displaced residents be rehabilitated within Dharavi itself.

The survey has also identified approximately 90 religious structures out of an estimated 300. Authorities will assess their eligibility and potential relocation based on existing guidelines, particularly in cases where no registered Trusts oversee these structures and where associated community or religious halls exist.