Gautam Adani, India’s richest and most controversial billionaire, is planning a makeover of the Slumdog’s home.
Adani Properties, which won the bid to redevelop Asia’s largest slum last year, has now won approvals for its Rs 20,000 crore master plan to remodel the gritty locale of Danny Boyle’s Oscar-winning movie Slumdog Millionaire.
From the dirt and grime of its twisted bylanes where more than a million people live in extreme privation, Adani hopes to build a spanking new world-class hub, while retaining the culture, diversity, and never-say-die spirit of the famed urban ghetto.
The housing development department of the Maharashtra state government had on July 13 issued a government resolution through which it awarded the 259 hectare Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP) to Adani Properties.
Adani Properties had bagged the prestigious project in November last year through a competitive bidding that saw the participation of DLF and Naman Developers. While the base price for the project was fixed at Rs 1,650 crore, Adani Properties’ winning bid was of Rs 5,069 crore, while DLF had put in Rs 2,025 crore.
The initial condition is that a special purpose vehicle (SPV) will have to be formed in which the winner will bring in Rs 400 crore as equity for an 80 per cent stake, while 20 per cent, or Rs 100 crore, will be the state’s contribution.
The project will consist of two parts — while rehabilitation of the slum dwellers will have to be completed in seven years, the resale part which can be sold in the open market will have to be done in 18 years.
On Thursday, Gautam Adani said the redevelopment will see a new Dharavi of millionaires without the slumdog prefix, while admitting that the design and implementation of the scheme is a challenge monumental in both scale and dimensions.
While a million people will be rehabilitated and resettled, this will not only include residential units but also commercial establishments of various sizes and scales.
Speaking to The Telegraph, Rajendra Korde, from the Dharavi Bachao Aghadi, said their primary demand is that a transparent and clear process should be followed during the redevelopment.
Green hydrogen plant
Adani on Friday proposed to set up a green hydrogen plant in Sri Lanka, where his conglomerate is already developing a container terminal and a 500 MW wind project.
Adani met visiting Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe to discuss ongoing projects and the new venture.
“Great honour to have met President Wickremesinghe to discuss a fascinating set of projects in Sri Lanka, including continued development of Colombo Port West Container Terminal, 500 MW wind project, and extending our renewal energy expertise to produce green hydrogen,” he tweeted.
