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Over an extended period, intimidating communications persisted. At first, supposedly from a former police officer and an ex-military commander, later from the police themselves. Finally, a local artisan claims he was ordered to the local precinct and told clearly: remain silent or experience severe repercussions.

The leather artisan is one of many opposing a high-value initiative where Dharavi – an iconic Mumbai neighborhood – faces demolished and transformed by a corporate giant.

"The distinctive community of this area is like nowhere else in the world," says the resident. "But they want to dismantle our social fabric and stop us speaking out."

Contrasting Realities

The narrow alleys of this community present a dramatic difference to the soaring skyscrapers and luxury apartments that overshadow the settlement. Dwellings are built haphazardly and frequently lacking adequate facilities, small-scale operations produce dangerous fumes and the environment is permeated by the suffocating smell of uncovered waste channels.

For certain residents, the prospect of a renewed Dharavi into a glistening neighborhood of high-end towers, neat parks, contemporary malls and homes with two toilets is an optimistic future achieved.

"We lack sufficient health services, paved pathways or sewage systems and there's nowhere for youth to recreate," says a tea vendor, in his fifties, who migrated from his home state in that period. "The sole solution is to clear the area and build us new homes."

Local Protest

Yet certain residents, including this protester, are opposing the plan.

None deny that the slum, historically ignored as an illegal encroachment, is in stark need financial support and improvement. Yet they are concerned that this project – without resident participation – could potentially turn valuable urban land into a luxury development, forcing out the marginalized, immigrant populations who have been there since generations ago.

It was these excluded, relocated individuals who developed the vacant wetlands into a widely studied marvel of self-reliance and business activity, whose economic value is estimated at between $1m and $2m annually, making it a major unregulated sectors.

Displacement Concerns

Among approximately 1 million inhabitants living in the packed 220-hectare area, less than 50% will be eligible for alternative accommodation in the project, which is projected to take a significant period to finish. Additional residents will be relocated to undeveloped zones and saline fields on the far outskirts of the metropolis, threatening to divide a historic neighborhood. Some will be denied housing at all.

People eligible to continue living in the area will be allocated units in high-rise buildings, a substantial change from the evolved, shared lifestyle of residing and operating that has supported this area for many years.

Industries from garment work to pottery and waste processing are projected to decrease in quantity and be relocated to a specific "industrial sector" far from residential areas.

Livelihood Crisis

For residents like the leather artisan, a craftsman and long-time inhabitant to live in this community, the project presents an existential threat. His makeshift, multi-level workshop creates apparel – sharp blazers, luxury coats, decorated jackets – sold in high-end shops in the city's affluent areas and abroad.

Household members dwells in the rooms underneath and laborers and garment workers – workers from different regions – reside in the same building, enabling him to sustain operations. Outside Dharavi's enclave, Mumbai rents are typically tenfold more expensive for a single room.

Harassment and Intimidation

Within the administrative buildings nearby, an illustrated mock-up of the transformation initiative shows a contrasting outlook. Slickly dressed residents mill about on bicycles and e-vehicles, acquiring international baked goods and croissants and having coffee on an outdoor area near a coffee shop and treat station. It is a world away from the inexpensive idli sambar first meal and low-cost tea that sustains Dharavi's community.

"This is not progress for our community," states the protester. "This constitutes a massive land development that will make it unaffordable for our community to continue."

There is also distrust of the development company. Managed by a powerful tycoon – among the country's wealthiest and a close ally of the national leader – the conglomerate has faced accusations of favoritism and ethical concerns, which it disputes.

Even as administrative bodies describes it as a joint project, the business group paid $950m for its 80% stake. A lawsuit stating that the project was questionably assigned to the developer is being considered in the top court.

Continued Intimidation

After they started to actively protest the project, local opponents claim they have been experienced an extended period of pressure and threats – comprising phone calls, explicit warnings and implications that speaking against the initiative was comparable with anti-national sentiment – by people they allege represent the business conglomerate.

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