Dharavi, Asia's Largest Slum

[chitrangda]

Dharavi, Asia's Largest Slum.

what is the frist thing that comes to your mind when you read some thing like this?

[Phi for All]

I thought Orangi in Pakistan was bigger.

[chitrangda]

I thought Orangi in Pakistan was bigger.

 

no dharavi is still the biggest Orangi is Asia's largest squatter settlement.recently i visited dharvi n really got suprised!

[Phi for All]

Well, it was the first thing that came to mind when I read your opening post.

 

India and Pakistan have a great disparity in education and population. Those who have been to school get jobs that help them gain more status and knowledge, better living conditions and access to consumer goods. Those who have not been to school have very little chance for advancement.

 

It's the same in most countries, but you have a larger population than most and a greater disparity between those who get an education and those who don't. Slums like Dharavi happen when those who can't get jobs in a big city like Mumbai can't afford to live there but can't pass up the opportunities in a big city like Mumbai.

 

Unfortunately, the people who inhabit Dharavi will probably be pushed out as Mumbai grows. They also will not have the power to profit from the prime real estate they'll be vacating.

[pioneer]

These cultures not only have the poor, but a class distinction below the poor. This is part of a social approach using relative reference. If a millionaire hangs with billionaires he may feel a social inadequacy, i.e, little dog, even though it is blessed. But if the millionaire hangs with the middle class he is the big dog and can stride more lively. By having a class below poor, we lower the floor and using relative reference it makes the poor feel better. If you just merely got rid of the fourth class, leaving the poor the same, now they are at the bottom and wouldn't be as content. It would affect their sense of pride causing social unrest.

 

If someone from the second class is feeling depressed. They can walk among the poor class to realize their blessings. One can get feedback as the poor people sort of looking at you with more respect. If that doesn't work then you walk among the fourth class. Then you get you mojo back as they beg to the wealthy man. You are now ready to get back in the rat race. It reminds me of a Rodney Dangerfield joke, if you are overweight and wish to be thin, hang with fat people. It is all relative state of mind.

 

It is not as simple as getting rid of the fourth class even if you could. The result would be an upward migration to restore the relative class floor. The first class doesn't want too many new members because it there is only so much pie. Maybe they need to add a fifth class such as lepers to boost the fourth class morale.

[dethfire]

Can't be worse than Detroit, lol

[Phi for All]

Can't be worse than Detroit, lol

Imagine the entire population of Detroit (just under a million). They all live in about 130 square miles. Now imagine that they're all at the poverty level (not the US poverty level; Asia's poverty level), no education, not much hope, very little resources. Now scrunch them all down into one square mile.

 

One. Square. Mile.

 

That square mile of property is worth billions to developers in Mumbai, if they could just get a million people to move to... wherever, someplace else I guess.

[chitrangda]

If you have the patience to look closer, you will find here one of the most inspiring economic models in Asia. Dharavi may be one of the world's largest slums, but it is by far its most prosperous -- a thriving business centre propelled by thousands of micro-entrepreneurs who have created an invaluable industry -- turning around the discarded waste of Mumbai's 19 million citizens. A new estimate by economists of the output of the slum is as impressive as it seems improbable: £700m a year!

[thewisecrab]

^^

Agree with you 100%

Fact is though Dharavi is the largest slum in Asia, you will be surprised to know that

maximum no. of people there are self employed and make a decent living..

Some people believe that these residents are independant and are self sufficient in everything required to live a normal life, only their residences are a matter of misfortune

besides property rates are pretty high in mumbai: since these people cant afford new homes,(Even though they have good incomes) they are pretty much left live in Dharavi

 

PS: largest slum in the world is in Mexico City, North America (Source: Wikipedia)

 

OT:My first Post

[Phi for All]

If you have the patience to look closer, you will find here one of the most inspiring economic models in Asia. Dharavi may be one of the world's largest slums, but it is by far its most prosperous -- a thriving business centre propelled by thousands of micro-entrepreneurs who have created an invaluable industry -- turning around the discarded waste of Mumbai's 19 million citizens. A new estimate by economists of the output of the slum is as impressive as it seems improbable: £700m a year!

I 'm glad to hear I was wrong about their resources. The human spirit is an indomitable thing indeed.

 

I still worry about whether or not the services they provide are invaluable; urban development doesn't always look beyond the value of the real estate.

[chitrangda]

But the future of the slum is uncertain. The government has provisionally approved a plan called 'Vision Mumbai' -- to create a world-class city by 2013. But internationally renowned architect Charles Correa, who has worked in the city for 50 years, says: 'There's very little vision with this plan. They're more like hallucinations.' Demolition work has begun and police are forcing out inhabitants, leaving thousands homeless. Author and architect Neera Adarkar is among hundreds of activists who see Vision Mumbai as impractical and inhumane because it ignores both the industry and hope of the slum.