Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], March 18 (ANI): The survey for the Dharavi Redevelopment Project began in Kamla Raman Nagar, Maharashtra, on Monday.

SVR Srinivas, CEO of the Dharavi Redevelopment Project, said that the project is a very important one, and today we have begun the survey.

"In the survey, we are giving a unique ID number. We are numbering today; after five to six days, another team will come; they will store the data digitally on tablets. We are thinking of completing surveys in eight months. We are doing an upper structure survey as well, giving them numbers and we are considering them also," the CEO of the Dharavi Redevelopment Project said.

He further urged the residents to provide the details to the team of the Project.

"I want to request that the residents give the details when the team arrives at there doorsteps. After the survey, we will be able to decide how many people live here. It's a big step for Dharavi redevelopment, and I believe there is a good response from people here," he added.

One of the locals from the Kamla Raman Nagar area said that the redevelopment project will provide the people of the area with larger rooms and nicer houses, adding that they are very happy.

"The locals of the Kamla Raman Nagar area expressed their happiness and said that we would get a larger space. All the documentation has been done and we have submitted the documents. We have all our documents from the 90s and 20s. Currently, we are facing problems due to the small rooms," another local resident told ANI.

This data will be used by the state government to determine rehabilitation eligibility criteria under the proposed redevelopment project.

Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRPPL), a joint venture between the Adani Group and the Government of Maharashtra, announced that eligible residential tenements in Dharavi will get flats with independent kitchens and toilets measuring a minimum 350 square feet (sq ft), which is a whopping 17 per cent more and the highest among slum redevelopment projects in Mumbai.

Earlier, dwellers of informal settlements in Maharashtra were given houses measuring 269 sq ft. Since 2018, the state government has started giving them homes measuring between 315 sq ft and 322 sq ft, in line with the minimum area mandated under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana for houses for the urban poor.

"The new flats will be dream homes for all Dharavikars and will upgrade their living conditions. Every home will reflect the spirit of a Dharavikar, whose aspirations have always mirrored those of a common Mumbaikar. We, at DRPPL, are committed to fulfilling these dreams and aspirations while keeping the very soul of Dharavi intact," said a DRPPL spokesperson in a press release.

Eligible residential tenements are those that were in existence before January 1, 2000. Each flat will have a separate kitchen and an in-built independent toilet, and will be well-lit, ventilated, and hygienic, besides being secure.

They will also have community halls, recreational areas, public gardens, dispensaries and daycare centres for children.

Ineligible residential tenements in Dharavi would be given accommodation under the proposed affordable rental housing policy, as per the Government of Maharashtra's defined norms. For this, development similar to Dharavi would be undertaken in the several Navi Dharavis being planned, considering the large requirement of dwelling units, the release added.

"DRPPL has taken up the challenge of transforming Dharavi and values support from all stakeholders for the much-awaited transformational project, which will set new benchmarks in slum rehabilitation and urban rejuvenation for the rest of the world to follow. All the above will be benchmarked with best practices being followed in Singapore and other advanced nations for similar habitats," it added. (ANI)