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Over an extended period, threatening communications continued. Initially, allegedly from a former police officer and a former defense officer, subsequently from the police themselves. Finally, Mohammad Khurshid Shaikh claims he was summoned to law enforcement headquarters and warned explicitly: remain silent or encounter real trouble.

The leather artisan is part of a group opposing a multimillion-dollar project where Dharavi – a massive informal community with rich history – will be demolished and transformed by a multinational conglomerate.

"The distinctive community of the slum is exceptional in the globe," explains the protester. "However they want to destroy our community and stop us speaking out."

Dual Worlds

The narrow alleys of the slum stand in sharp opposition to the high-rise structures and elite residences that loom over the neighborhood. Homes are constructed informally and frequently without proper sanitation, informal businesses emit toxic smoke and the air is saturated with the suffocating smell of exposed drainage.

Among some individuals, the promise of the slum's redevelopment into a developed area of premium apartments, well-maintained green spaces, contemporary malls and apartments with proper sanitation is an optimistic future realized.

"We lack adequate medical facilities, paved pathways or water management and there's nowhere for youth to recreate," says a tea vendor, 56, who moved from his home state in 1982. "The only way is to tear it all down and build us new homes."

Resident Opposition

But others, such as this protester, are fighting against the redevelopment.

Everyone acknowledges that Dharavi, consistently overlooked as unauthorized settlement, is desperately requiring economic input and modernization. Yet they fear that this project – without resident participation – could potentially turn premium city property into a playground for the rich, evicting the lower-caste, immigrant populations who have been there since the late 1800s.

This involved these marginalized, relocated individuals who built up the empty marshland into a frequently examined example of local enterprise and commercial output, whose output is estimated at between one million dollars and $2m per year, making it a major unregulated sectors.

Resettlement Issues

Out of about a million inhabitants living in the crowded 220-hectare area, a minority will be qualified for new homes in the redevelopment, which is expected to take seven years to accomplish. Others will be transferred to undeveloped zones and saline fields on the distant periphery of Mumbai, risking break up a historic community. Certain individuals will receive no homes at all.

Residents permitted to stay in the area will be allocated flats in high-rise buildings, a major break from the natural, shared lifestyle of living and working that has sustained Dharavi for many years.

Commercial activities from tailoring to clay work and waste processing are projected to decrease in quantity and be transferred to an allocated "business area" far from people's residences.

Livelihood Crisis

For those such as Shaikh, a craftsman and long-time inhabitant to reside in Dharavi, the project presents a fundamental risk. His informal, multi-level operation makes apparel – tailored coats, suede trenches, studded bomber jackets – distributed in high-end shops in the city's affluent areas and abroad.

His family lives in the accommodations below and employees and garment workers – workers from other states – live in the same building, allowing him to sustain operations. Away from this community, housing costs are typically significantly costlier for a single room.

Pressure and Coercion

At the official facilities nearby, a visual representation of the transformation initiative shows a very different perspective. Slickly dressed residents mill about on two-wheelers and eco-friendly transport, acquiring international baked goods and pastries and enlisting beverages on a patio outside a coffee shop and Ice-Cream. It is a world away from the 20-rupee idli sambar breakfast and budget beverage that supports local residents.

"This is not improvement for residents," explains the protester. "This constitutes an enormous land development that will render it impossible for residents to remain."

There is also concern of the development company. Headed by a prominent businessman – among the country's wealthiest and a close ally of the national leader – the business group has faced accusations of favoritism and questionable practices, which it denies.

Although administrative bodies describes it as a joint project, the developer invested a significant amount for its controlling interest. Legal proceedings claiming that the project was questionably assigned to the business group is being considered in the top court.

Sustained Harassment

After they started to vocally oppose the development, protesters and community members state they have been faced an extended period of harassment and intimidation – including phone calls, clear intimidation and suggestions that speaking against the development was equivalent to opposing national interests – by individuals they allege are associated with the developer.

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