An offer of partnership or a promise of conflict

An open letter by Jockin Arputham, National Slum Dwellers Federation, INDIA.
The homes and livelihoods of a million slum dwellers are threatened by development plans in Mumbai. These include the current development plans for Dharavi, Asia’s largest slum, and for Mumbai’s international airport (around which close to half a million people live in informal settlements). But these slum dwellers do not oppose redevelopment. Everyone in Dharavi wants improvements. They have invested in improvements which they could afford and manage and they have high expectations that the state should also make similar investments. Those who live closest to the airport runways recognize that they will have to move. But they want to be consulted and involved in the design and implementation of the redevelopment and resettlement plans. The airport settlements have around 100,000 households and thousands of local businesses.