Dharavi dreams, and a few nightmares: Businesses worried about viability

Even as many are in a wait-and-watch mode, they have questions about labour availability, access to markets and inputs, and higher costs taking a toll on their business

The recent announcement of Dharavi's redevelopment has been met with mixed reactions. While for many, it represents progress and the promise of improved living conditions, the business community within Dharavi is grappling with uncertainty.

Gopi Maruti, a 53-year-old owner of a two-storey workshop in one of Dharavi's winding lanes, embodies this apprehension. He operates a leather tanning business, an enterprise inherited from generations before him. Central to his operations is a roughly five-feet tall barrel-like machine used for leather tanning. Maruti worries about the high cost of relocating this machine, saying, "If I have to shift this to a new location,