Family
November 15, 2007
“My great grandfather Bhagwan Poona came here from a village in Gujarat in 1918. Since then we have been here. This is our fourth generation in Dharavi and we know no other place. But for the past one year or so we are hearing rumours of redevelopment by private developers. Government says it will give us free 225-sq ft flats but do you think potters can work out of such small flats? At present, we live in a 500-sq ft double-storey house in which upper floors are used to dry pots,” says Arvind B Wadel, a potter in Dharavi’s kumbharwada. Pottery is a family business. Wadel’s wife and two daughters help him make pots.
Wadel’s is one of the 2,000 families in Dharavi’s kumbharwadas—and most of them echo his predicament.
some more images here
November 16, 2007 at 11:55 am
telling…make it provocative…otherwise nobody listens
November 19, 2007 at 5:31 am
@astralwicks
wondering if provocative words help anybody listen…
i’ve my doubts…
November 19, 2007 at 5:35 am
dear gudus
wanted to know if these people are planning to put a fight against the govt. for snatching away what is rightfully theirs… are they not retaliating at all?
November 19, 2007 at 6:04 am
Hi V
Yes, they plan to fight. Till death, they say. For now the government plan is on paper, people come, ask them questions, go away. Biometric testing is underway too, where retinal scan will be collected, to gather data on the number of people living there. Have you heard of retinal scans being done on residents of Lokhandwala, or Bandra, or wherever, other than Dharavi. DTE has done a cover story this issue, for which I had travelled there. You must read it. Will send you a copy.
G
November 19, 2007 at 7:33 am
yes there is a report today in the times…they have been heard, i am sure to be unheard, but jokes apart, there is some serious fight in the future. the sra building is supposendly coming over a garbage dump, the potters area where they will mix, mold and dry their clay is to be decided and hopefully we will have a uniform civil code in the future