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For months, coercive phone calls continued. Initially, allegedly from a former police officer and an ex-military commander, and then from law enforcement directly. In the end, a local artisan claims he was summoned to law enforcement headquarters and warned explicitly: remain silent or encounter real trouble.

This third-generation resident is part of a group resisting a high-value initiative where Dharavi – a massive informal community with rich history – will be razed and redeveloped by a large business group.

"The unique ecosystem of this area is exceptional in the world," states the protester. "Yet their intention is to dismantle our community and stop us speaking out."

Contrasting Realities

The narrow alleys of this community present a dramatic difference to the high-rise structures and Bollywood penthouses that overshadow the settlement. Residences are built haphazardly and often without proper sanitation, informal businesses produce dangerous fumes and the air is filled with the overpowering odor of exposed drainage.

To some, the prospect of a renewed Dharavi into a glistening neighborhood of high-end towers, well-maintained green spaces, contemporary malls and residences with two toilets is an optimistic future come true.

"There's no sufficient health services, paved pathways or drainage and we have no places for kids to enjoy," explains a tea vendor, in his fifties, who relocated from his home state in that period. "The sole solution is to demolish everything and build us new homes."

Resident Opposition

However, some, such as this protester, are resisting the plan.

None deny that this community, long neglected as informal housing, is desperately requiring financial support and improvement. But they fear that this initiative – without resident participation – is one that will transform valuable urban land into an elite enclave, displacing the lower-caste, working-class residents who have lived there since the late 1800s.

It was these shunned, relocated individuals who established the empty marshland into a frequently examined example of community resilience and economic productivity, whose output is estimated at between a significant amount and $2m a year, making it among the globe's biggest unregulated sectors.

Resettlement Issues

Among approximately 1 million residents living in the crowded 2.2 square kilometer neighborhood, a minority will be qualified for new homes in the project, which is expected to take a significant period to finish. Additional residents will be moved to wastelands and salt plains on the distant periphery of the city, threatening to divide a generations-old community. Some will receive no homes at all.

Residents permitted to continue living in the area will be allocated flats in tower blocks, a substantial change from the natural, communal way of residing and operating that has sustained the community for so long.

Businesses from clothing production to pottery and recycling are projected to decrease in quantity and be moved to an allocated "commercial zone" far from residential areas.

Livelihood Crisis

In the case of this protester, a leather artisan and long-time inhabitant to live in Dharavi, the plan presents a survival challenge. His makeshift, multi-level workshop produces garments – formal jackets, premium outerwear, fashionable garments – distributed in premium stores in upscale neighborhoods and abroad.

Relatives dwells in the spaces downstairs and his workers and sewers – workers from different regions – reside there, permitting him to manage costs. Away from this community, accommodation prices are frequently significantly as high for a single room.

Harassment and Intimidation

Within the administrative buildings nearby, a visual representation of the redevelopment plan depicts a very different outlook. Slickly dressed inhabitants gather on cycles and electric vehicles, acquiring international baked goods and croissants and socializing on a patio near a coffee shop and treat station. This depicts a complete departure from the affordable idli sambar morning meal and budget beverage that maintains the neighborhood.

"This represents no improvement for our community," explains Shaikh. "It's a massive real estate deal that will price people out for residents to remain."

There is also concern of the development company. Headed by an influential industrialist – among the country's wealthiest and an associate of the government head – the corporation has faced accusations of crony capitalism and financial impropriety, which it denies.

Even as local authorities labels it a joint project, the business group paid a significant amount for its 80% stake. Legal proceedings claiming that the project was improperly granted to the business group is being considered in the top court.

Sustained Harassment

After they started to vocally oppose the redevelopment, Shaikh and other residents claim they have been faced a long-running campaign of coercion and warning – including phone calls, clear intimidation and insinuations that opposing the project was equivalent to speaking against the country – by individuals they claim represent the business conglomerate.

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