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Dharavi, one of Asia’s largest slum housing clusters with a population of around one million people is located in the heart of Mumbai, and is set to undergo redevelopment.
According to real estate developers and consultants, Dharavi redevelopment and rehabilitation will not only mark the beginning of a slum-free Mumbai but will be one of the biggest factors that is expected to impact Mumbai’s real estate market, especially Central Mumbai, where launches and sales are currently subdued on account of non-availability of land for executing new projects.
Here are five things you need to know about Dharaviโs redevelopment project.
1. What is Dharavi?
Dharavi is a slum cluster spread across 600 acres and is home to several small-scale, unorganized industries manufacturing medicines, leather, footwear, and clothes. It is located close to the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), also known as India’s costliest commercial office complex.
Also Read: Office buildings in Mumbaiโs Bandra Kurla Complex command higher prices than Manhattan
The estimated population of Dharavi is close to one million. The slum cluster has shot into the limelight twice in the last two decades. First was after the release of the Hollywood blockbuster Slumdog Millionaire in 2008, and second was during the Covid-19 pandemic when it was one of the worst hit slum clusters in Mumbai.
2. Dharavi redevelopment and rehabilitation
In the last 17 years, the Maharashtra government has made close to half a dozen attempts to redevelop Dharavi but failed. It was in November 2022 that the Adani Group won the bid to redevelop the slum cluster with an initial investment of โน5069 crore.
3. Project timelines
The project completion timeline is 17 years. However, the rehabilitation portion of Dharaviโs redevelopment is to be completed within seven years after the approvals for the project are in place.
4. Current status
The Adani Group that will be redeveloping the cluster and rehabilitating the dwellers in Dharavi is currently carrying out a survey of the slum cluster. The survey will decide whether the slum dwellers are eligible to get their 350 sq ft homes. Dharavi Redevelopment Project Pvt Ltd (DRPPL), a joint venture between the government of Maharashtra and the Adani Group, is also in the process of preparing a master plan for the project.
The company in January 2024 had announced a partnership with architect Hafeez Contractor for the Dharavi project.
5. What happens to small scale industries and commercial establishments inside Dharavi?
While the redevelopment and rehabilitation of Dharavi slum cluster will ensure that slum dwellers will get their 350 sq ft homes in a building, the industrial and commercial units will also be rehabilitated within Dharavi itself.
The DRPPL has maintained that all eligible industrial and commercial units redeveloped as part of the Dharavi redevelopment project will enjoy benefits such as a refund of the state Goods and Services Tax (SGST). The eligible commercial and industrial units will be reimbursed the state’s share of GST for five years from the date of issuance of the occupation certificate (OC) as part of an incentive offered by the government.
Also Read: Mumbai real estate: 10 things homeowners of societies looking to get their buildings redeveloped should keep in mind
