How Slum Redevelopment Homes in Mumbai Got Bigger Over the Years
Mumbai's slum residents are getting bigger homes, but they aren't necessarily livable. The Adani Group's Dharavi Redevelopment Project promises 350 sqft homes, 50 sqft more than the norm.
Slum RedevelopmentMumbaiDharaviAdani GroupSlum Rehabilitation AuthorityReal Estate MumbaiSep 19, 2024
Real Estate Mumbai:Mumbai's slum residents are getting bigger homes, but they aren't necessarily livable. The Adani Group's Dharavi Redevelopment Project promises 350 sqft homes, 50 sqft more than the norm.
The Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) was established in 1995 with the aim of making Mumbai slum-free. The minimum carpet area stipulated was 180 sq ft, which is smaller than a one-car garage. However, over the years, the government has revised the carpet area to provide better permanent alternative accommodation to slum dwellers.
In 2018, the Maharashtra government started giving houses measuring 315-322 sq ft under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scheme. The Dharavi Redevelopment Project Pvt Ltd (DRPPL) proposes to almost double the minimum carpet area to 350 sqft.
Developers operating in the SRA space said they have started getting demands from slum residents to increase home sizes to 350 sqft—to be at par with Dharavi. However, bigger homes do not necessarily mean better or even livable homes. Among the 1,697 SRA schemes in Mumbai, some are success stories, while others end up being vertical slums with a myriad of problems.
The government has decided that apart from private players, government agencies will also partake in the mission to make Mumbai slum-free. In a joint venture with the SRA, state agencies such as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), and others will redevelop 228 slum pockets across MMR.
Will there be further revisions in the size of homes given to slum dwellers? It is very likely, said a developer who requested anonymity. Vote bank politics can further push the envelope, while the law-abiding and taxpaying citizen buying a home continues to adjust their families in a shrinking space.
However, there's more to it than vote bank politics. There also has to be a balance of multiple factors, such as the economics, planning, and the humane side of rehabilitation, said retired bureaucrat UPS Madan. Any family should ideally have at least a bedroom and a common area. Even the aspirations of the people need to be factored in.
That said, Madan believes there must be a limit for the size of homes, adding that politics should not come into the picture. Another methodology that can be looked at is contributory form to provide bigger homes, one of which could be paying to get a bigger home in the housing project.
The Adani Group has offered bigger homes than what is mandatory to ensure there isn't resistance to the project, said Rajiv Agrawal, co-founder of Saarathi Realtors and former chief operating officer at Omkar Realtors and Developers. The fundamental premise of the project is housing for all in humane conditions.
Around 4 km east of Dharavi, in Wadala's Bhakti Park area, an unfurnished 1BHK apartment with a 340 sqft carpet area is currently going for anywhere between ₹1.15 crore to ₹1.30 crore in the open market, depending on which floor the flat is on, according to a local real estate agent. For a 500 sqft flat, the size that Dharavi residents have also been demanding, a home buyer in Mumbai has to pay more than ₹1.5 crore, with home loans spread over 20-25 years.
The project will generate a revenue of ₹20,000 crore. Calculations and estimates show that the project will generate a revenue of ₹20,000 crore.
As years passed by, the governments took a policy decision to revise the carpet area to provide better permanent alternative accommodation to the slum dwellers, said Rama Mitkar, deputy chief engineer of the SRA.
SVR Srinivas, chief executive of DRPPL, said the fundamental premise of the project is housing for all in humane conditions. Everyone who is eligible will get a good quality, spacious home in Dharavi.
The Navjeevan SRA in Malad East made news on September 5 with the death of four labourers during the construction of one of the four buildings. Vishnu Suvare, a resident of the SRA project, claimed that while the first meeting with the developer took place 18 years ago, construction commenced in 2014 and about 400 of the more than 700 families were handed over their tenements only in 2022.
Within a year of us moving in, we have been adjusting ourselves to residing in a home that has perennial leakage. Our complaints are falling on deaf ears, said Vishnu Chaurasia, another Navjeevan SRA resident.
One of the success stories is the 42-storey Dhobi Ghat SRA project in south Mumbai's Mahalaxmi area, where four such buildings comprise the rehabilitation component. Several of the nearly 16,000 residents have an unobstructed view of Mahalaxmi Racecourse, the Mumbai Coastal Road, and the Arabian Sea.
The Maharashtra government decided that apart from private players, government agencies would also partake in the mission to make Mumbai slum-free. In a joint venture with the SRA, state agencies such as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), and others will redevelop 228 slum pockets across MMR.
We will get additional housing stock of approximately 5,000 homes under this scheme, said an MMRDA official. This redevelopment project will generate 75 lakh sqft built-up area for commercial sale and is estimated to fetch ₹10,000 crore from developing the space.
The number of projects undertaken by these agencies are as follows MMRDA (5), BMC (77), Mhada (24), MSRDC (46), CIDCO (6), Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (57), Mahatma Phule Renewable Energy & Infrastructure Technology (57), and Maharashtra Housing Development Corporation (1).
MMRDA has launched among the first such redevelopment schemes that will free up open land that has been encroached upon for decades. On September 3, chief minister Eknath Shinde, in an official ceremony, handed over rental cheques to the residents of Kamraj Nagar and Mata Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar in Ghatkopar to mark the commencement of the MMRDA's slum redevelopment project.
Under this project, spread over 33.15 acres, 16,575 slum dwellers will be allotted 300-sqft houses.
The Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) was established in 1995 with the aim of making Mumbai slum-free. The minimum carpet area stipulated was 180 sq ft, which is smaller than a one-car garage. However, over the years, the government has revised the carpet area to provide better permanent alternative accommodation to slum dwellers.
In 2018, the Maharashtra government started giving houses measuring 315-322 sq ft under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scheme. The Dharavi Redevelopment Project Pvt Ltd (DRPPL) proposes to almost double the minimum carpet area to 350 sqft.
Developers operating in the SRA space said they have started getting demands from slum residents to increase home sizes to 350 sqft—to be at par with Dharavi. However, bigger homes do not necessarily mean better or even livable homes. Among the 1,697 SRA schemes in Mumbai, some are success stories, while others end up being vertical slums with a myriad of problems.
The government has decided that apart from private players, government agencies will also partake in the mission to make Mumbai slum-free. In a joint venture with the SRA, state agencies such as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), and others will redevelop 228 slum pockets across MMR.
Will there be further revisions in the size of homes given to slum dwellers? It is very likely, said a developer who requested anonymity. Vote bank politics can further push the envelope, while the law-abiding and taxpaying citizen buying a home continues to adjust their families in a shrinking space.
However, there's more to it than vote bank politics. There also has to be a balance of multiple factors, such as the economics, planning, and the humane side of rehabilitation, said retired bureaucrat UPS Madan. Any family should ideally have at least a bedroom and a common area. Even the aspirations of the people need to be factored in.
That said, Madan believes there must be a limit for the size of homes, adding that politics should not come into the picture. Another methodology that can be looked at is contributory form to provide bigger homes, one of which could be paying to get a bigger home in the housing project.
The Adani Group has offered bigger homes than what is mandatory to ensure there isn't resistance to the project, said Rajiv Agrawal, co-founder of Saarathi Realtors and former chief operating officer at Omkar Realtors and Developers. The fundamental premise of the project is housing for all in humane conditions.
Around 4 km east of Dharavi, in Wadala's Bhakti Park area, an unfurnished 1BHK apartment with a 340 sqft carpet area is currently going for anywhere between ₹1.15 crore to ₹1.30 crore in the open market, depending on which floor the flat is on, according to a local real estate agent. For a 500 sqft flat, the size that Dharavi residents have also been demanding, a home buyer in Mumbai has to pay more than ₹1.5 crore, with home loans spread over 20-25 years.
The project will generate a revenue of ₹20,000 crore. Calculations and estimates show that the project will generate a revenue of ₹20,000 crore.
As years passed by, the governments took a policy decision to revise the carpet area to provide better permanent alternative accommodation to the slum dwellers, said Rama Mitkar, deputy chief engineer of the SRA.
SVR Srinivas, chief executive of DRPPL, said the fundamental premise of the project is housing for all in humane conditions. Everyone who is eligible will get a good quality, spacious home in Dharavi.
The Navjeevan SRA in Malad East made news on September 5 with the death of four labourers during the construction of one of the four buildings. Vishnu Suvare, a resident of the SRA project, claimed that while the first meeting with the developer took place 18 years ago, construction commenced in 2014 and about 400 of the more than 700 families were handed over their tenements only in 2022.
Within a year of us moving in, we have been adjusting ourselves to residing in a home that has perennial leakage. Our complaints are falling on deaf ears, said Vishnu Chaurasia, another Navjeevan SRA resident.
One of the success stories is the 42-storey Dhobi Ghat SRA project in south Mumbai's Mahalaxmi area, where four such buildings comprise the rehabilitation component. Several of the nearly 16,000 residents have an unobstructed view of Mahalaxmi Racecourse, the Mumbai Coastal Road, and the Arabian Sea.
The Maharashtra government decided that apart from private players, government agencies would also partake in the mission to make Mumbai slum-free. In a joint venture with the SRA, state agencies such as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), and others will redevelop 228 slum pockets across MMR.
We will get additional housing stock of approximately 5,000 homes under this scheme, said an MMRDA official. This redevelopment project will generate 75 lakh sqft built-up area for commercial sale and is estimated to fetch ₹10,000 crore from developing the space.
The number of projects undertaken by these agencies are as follows MMRDA (5), BMC (77), Mhada (24), MSRDC (46), CIDCO (6), Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (57), Mahatma Phule Renewable Energy & Infrastructure Technology (57), and Maharashtra Housing Development Corporation (1).
MMRDA has launched among the first such redevelopment schemes that will free up open land that has been encroached upon for decades. On September 3, chief minister Eknath Shinde, in an official ceremony, handed over rental cheques to the residents of Kamraj Nagar and Mata Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar in Ghatkopar to mark the commencement of the MMRDA's slum redevelopment project.
Under this project, spread over 33.15 acres, 16,575 slum dwellers will be allotted 300-sqft houses.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the minimum carpet area stipulated by the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) in 1995?
180 sq ft
What is the revised carpet area under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana scheme in 2018?
315-322 sq ft
What is the proposed carpet area under the Dharavi Redevelopment Project Pvt Ltd (DRPPL)?
350 sqft
How many slum pockets will be redeveloped by government agencies across MMR?
228
What is the estimated revenue generated by the Dharavi Redevelopment Project?
₹20,000 crore
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