Indian billionaire Gautam Adani outlined his plans to transform Dharavi, the largest slum in the country, into a modern city centre on Thursday. This enormous undertaking would require finding new homes for more than one million individuals.
Dharavi, which has been described as the biggest slum in Asia, is a crowded neighbourhood in the heart of India’s financial capital where thousands of impoverished families live in tight quarters. Many locals lack access to running water and clean bathrooms.
Adani stated that he plans to retain and support the neighbourhood’s micro-enterprises and small businesses in addition to turning Dharavi into a contemporary city centre.
Adani’s $619 million plan to renovate the 625-acre (253-hectare) region received state approval last Monday from Maharashtra, and officials have branded it “the world’s largest urban renewal scheme.”
He also claims that the redevelopment will make gas, water, drainage, healthcare, and other valuables available to the public.
The ports-to-energy giant Adani Group, which already provides electricity in Mumbai through its publicly traded arm Adani Transmission, has taken on this megaproject as its most recent undertaking.
The billionaire’s business has lately been under attention after American short-seller Hindenburg Research charged it with utilizing dishonest business practices, resulting in a $150 billion decline in the value of the group’s key stocks. Adani denied any wrongdoing and since he reassured investors and paid off debt, the stocks have increased by about $50 billion.
As it meets the housing and rehabilitating needs of both qualified and ineligible people, the project, according to Adani, would aim for full and holistic regrowth.
Adani continued in the letter by committing on his own behalf that the qualified Dharavi people will only relocate to their new houses. They will not only watch as their homes are built in front of them; they will also have a voice in how it is built. Adani will give them access to a top-notch hospital, a top-notch school, and everything else their dwellings currently lack, including gas, water, power, sewage and drainage, healthcare and recreational facilities, and open spaces. The agonizing feeling of inadequacy will be forgotten, like a faded memory. A new Dharavi that vibrates with pride will take its place, he promised.