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Over an extended period, threatening communications recurred. At first, supposedly from a former police officer and an ex-military commander, later from law enforcement directly. Finally, a local artisan states he was summoned to law enforcement headquarters and instructed bluntly: stop speaking out or face serious consequences.

This third-generation resident is one of many resisting a multimillion-dollar initiative where one of India's largest slums – an iconic Mumbai neighborhood – is scheduled to be razed and redeveloped by a large business group.

"The unique ecosystem of this area is like nowhere else in the globe," states Shaikh. "However the plan aims to destroy our way of life and prevent our protests."

Contrasting Realities

The narrow alleys of the slum present a dramatic difference to the towering buildings and luxury apartments that loom over the neighborhood. Homes are assembled randomly and often without proper sanitation, unregulated industries release harmful emissions and the atmosphere is permeated by the unpleasant stench of uncovered waste channels.

For certain residents, the promise of Dharavi transformed into a glistening neighborhood of premium apartments, organized recreational areas, contemporary malls and residences with two toilets is an aspirational dream come true.

"There's no sufficient health services, proper streets or sewage systems and we have no places for kids to enjoy," says A Selvin Nadar, 56, who migrated from his home state in 1982. "The sole solution is to tear it all down and build us new homes."

Resident Opposition

But others, including Shaikh, are fighting against the project.

None deny that Dharavi, historically ignored as an illegal encroachment, is desperately requiring economic input and modernization. However they are concerned that this initiative – without resident participation – is one that will transform valuable urban land into a playground for the rich, displacing the lower-caste, immigrant populations who have resided there since the nineteenth century.

These were these shunned, relocated individuals who developed the vacant wetlands into an extensively researched phenomenon of local enterprise and commercial output, whose economic value is estimated at between one million dollars and $2m annually, making it a major informal economies.

Relocation Worries

Of the roughly a million people living in the packed 2.2 square kilometer area, fewer than half will be able for new homes in the redevelopment, which is projected to take an extended timeframe to complete. Additional residents will be moved to wastelands and salt plains on the remote edges of the city, risking divide a long-established social network. Certain individuals will receive no housing at all.

Residents permitted to remain in the neighborhood will be allocated apartments in tower blocks, a major break from the natural, communal way of living and working that has sustained Dharavi for many years.

Industries from garment work to pottery and recycling are expected to reduce in scale and be relocated to a specific "business area" far from people's residences.

Livelihood Crisis

For those such as Shaikh, a leather artisan and third generation inhabitant to reside in the slum, the redevelopment presents a fundamental risk. His rickety, multi-level workshop produces garments – formal jackets, suede trenches, fashionable garments – marketed in premium stores in upscale neighborhoods and abroad.

Household members lives in the rooms below and his workers and sewers – workers from north India – reside on-site, permitting him to afford their labour. Outside this community, accommodation prices are frequently tenfold as high for minimal space.

Pressure and Coercion

At the official facilities close by, an illustrated mock-up of the redevelopment plan depicts a contrasting outlook. Fashionable residents move around on bicycles and eco-friendly transport, acquiring western-style bread and croissants and enlisting beverages on a terrace adjacent to a coffee shop and dessert parlor. It is a stark contrast from the affordable idli sambar breakfast and budget beverage that maintains the neighborhood.

"This is not progress for us," explains the protester. "It represents an enormous property transaction that will price people out for us to survive."

Furthermore, there's concern of the corporate group. Run by a prominent businessman – among the country's wealthiest and a supporter of the national leader – the corporation has faced accusations of crony capitalism and ethical concerns, which it denies.

While the state government labels it a partnership, the corporation paid $950m for its 80% stake. A lawsuit claiming that the project was unfairly awarded to the business group is pending in India's supreme court.

Sustained Harassment

From when they initiated to publicly resist the redevelopment, local opponents assert they have been faced an extended period of coercion and warning – including messages, clear intimidation and suggestions that speaking against the initiative was comparable with speaking against the country – by individuals they assert are associated with the business conglomerate.

Among those suspected of making intimidations is {a retired police officer|a former law enforcement official|an ex-c