Dharavi Project Moves Ahead: 94K Tenants gets IDs & 70K Homes Surveyed

The Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) Navbharat Mega Developers Private Limited (NMDPL), which is led by the Adani Group and was established in collaboration with the Maharashtra government, said that more than 94,500 tenants had been given unique identification numbers as part of the Dharavi redevelopment project survey. Furthermore, household surveys have been conducted for almost 70,000 tenements, and over one lakh structures have been physically mapped.

In order to allay the worries and uncertainty of the people of Dharavi, NMDPL denied media reports that claimed ground-floor residents were being forced to sign affidavits that would disqualify them from the rebuilding project.

"Affidavits are being gathered strictly in compliance with the government resolution (GR) of October 4, 2024," the company explained. These are intended to prove upper-floor inhabitants' eligibility for rehabilitation outside of Dharavi.

The GR states that residents of upper floors are required to provide at least one of a number of documents attesting to their occupancy. A power bill, a documented sale or rental agreement, an Aadhaar card, a ration card, a passport with the floor number on it, or an affidavit attested by a qualified ground-floor resident are among the acceptable documents.

Although affidavits are one of the accepted documents, NMDPL stressed that since many upper-floor tenants do not have official ownership records, affidavits are a useful and acceptable substitute under the GR.

NMDPL acknowledged that individuals who are considered ineligible will be given the opportunity to live in 300-square-foot dwellings outside of Dharavi but within the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) at a modest cost as part of the rehabilitation process.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis recently announced in the state assembly that these residents would be required to pay for their units over a 12-year period, after which legal ownership would be transferred. NMDPL said in a statement that residents will also have the option of making a lump-sum payment at any point within the 12 years to secure earlier ownership.

Dharavi Redevelopment Project Pvt Ltd (DRPPL), now known as Navbharat Mega Developers Private Limited (NMDPL), is a joint venture between the Government of Maharashtra and the Adani Group. It is also known as ‘the largest urban rejuvenation projects in the world’ and ‘the first step towards making Mumbai slum-free.’