Mumbai’s civic body has advanced a critical step in transforming one of its oldest and most hazardous waste sites into a beacon of sustainable development. The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has received three competitive bids for a ₹2,368 crore bioremediation contract to clear 1.85 crore metric tonnes of legacy waste at the Deonar dumping ground and reclaim 110 hectares of land. This newly reclaimed space is earmarked for constructing housing tenements under the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP), a transformative scheme spearheaded by a public-private partnership.
The project is slated for completion in three years and will be executed through bioremediation, a scientific process that utilises natural elements such as sunlight, air and microorganisms to decompose biodegradable waste. The remaining inert and recyclable materials will then be separated and treated sustainably. The reclaimed land will subsequently be handed over to the SPV Navbharat Mega Developers Pvt Ltd, a joint venture comprising 80% stake by Adani Properties and 20% by the state-run Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA). Despite early interest from over 20 firms during the pre-bid phase, only three entities submitted proposals by the final deadline, which was extended thrice to accommodate bidder queries. Civic officials attributed the limited response to the project’s scale and complexity, as well as strict eligibility criteria. With the tender demanding the clearance of nearly two crore metric tonnes of legacy waste in just three years, only a select few companies possessed the technical know-how and experience to undertake such a vast and sensitive operation.
The legacy waste at Deonar has been a long-standing environmental and health hazard for Mumbai’s eastern suburbs. According to data shared by civic officials, approximately 48% of the existing waste comprises construction debris, 41% is inert waste, while the remaining 10% includes miscellaneous dry waste. The area, marred by decades of unscientific dumping, has been a site of repeated landfill fires and toxic air quality incidents, putting nearby residents at persistent risk. Before targeting Deonar, the BMC had initiated a similar clean-up at the Mulund dumping ground in 2018, which spread over 60 acres and had operated between 1968 and 2018. That effort, though delayed, set a precedent for large-scale legacy waste remediation in the city and created a benchmark for the Deonar initiative. The Mulund experience also laid bare the challenges of dealing with embedded environmental risks and coordinating multiple agencies during waste segregation and disposal.
The Deonar project, however, stands apart in its strategic linkage to a much larger urban renewal agenda. Once cleared and reclaimed, the site will support the resettlement of thousands of residents from the adjacent Dharavi slums. This redevelopment is being billed as one of the largest in Asia, aiming not only to provide upgraded housing but also to introduce integrated infrastructure and inclusive community spaces. Yet, the initiative hasn’t been without its share of criticism. Civic groups and opposition leaders have questioned the financial rationale of spending ₹2,368 crore in public funds for land reclamation that will directly benefit a private redevelopment partnership. They argue that the BMC’s financial burden in enabling this land transition should be publicly debated and better accounted for in urban planning frameworks. Others have called for greater transparency in the bidding and execution processes, warning that past land reclamation efforts have often faltered due to delays, cost overruns and poor waste segregation.
Still, officials maintain that the Deonar bioremediation is a non-negotiable civic responsibility—independent of the DRP. They argue that such legacy waste remediation is mandated by national policies under the Swachh Bharat Mission and essential for reducing methane emissions, improving public health, and freeing up valuable urban land. The timing of the project, they contend, simply aligns with parallel efforts to resolve Mumbai’s acute housing shortage and support in-situ slum rehabilitation in Dharavi. The bioremediation effort also holds significant promise from a sustainability perspective. By deploying a natural waste treatment methodology, the project aims to reduce the carbon footprint compared to conventional waste incineration. Moreover, reclaiming and redeveloping this vast tract of degraded land can help Mumbai address its chronic shortage of buildable space without encroaching upon greenfield or ecologically sensitive zones. In the long term, this model could be replicated across India’s growing cities to tackle urban waste while enabling equitable and inclusive housing expansion.
The winning bidder, to be announced after July 8, will be required to mobilise quickly. Apart from clearing legacy waste, the contractor must implement air quality controls, manage seasonal monsoon risks, and ensure that the surrounding environment is not adversely affected during the operations. Coordination with solid waste departments, housing authorities and environmental regulators will be essential for the project’s success. As Mumbai attempts to clean up its past to build a better future, the Deonar bioremediation project stands as a critical test of urban resilience, technological capability and civic foresight. The stakes are high—not just for the city’s environmental footprint, but for the thousands of families in Dharavi awaiting dignified housing. If executed with accountability, transparency and sustainability at its core, this project could become a blueprint for India’s next-generation cities.
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