Maharashtra authorities have approved the relocation of nearly one lakh Dharavi residents to a parcel of land situated within the Deonar landfill  one of Mumbai’s oldest and most hazardous waste dumping grounds.
This relocation is part of the Dharavi Redevelopment Project, an ambitious initiative led by a public-private partnership between the state government and a major infrastructure conglomerate. The proposed relocation site currently holds around 80 lakh metric tonnes of solid waste and remains an active landfill. The site emits high volumes of methane gas and leachate, substances known to pose severe risks to both human health and the environment. Methane is a potent greenhouse gas, and the leachate often carrying heavy metals and toxic chemicals—has the potential to contaminate water sources and degrade soil quality.
Experts in environmental planning have flagged the move as highly questionable. According to national environmental guidelines, residential developments must maintain a safe distance from active landfills due to their emission levels and the long-term hazards they pose. In this case, those standards appear to have been bypassed or overlooked. Despite these warnings, the government has justified the decision by citing the growing scarcity of land within the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Officials involved in the project stated that securing contiguous parcels of land large enough to accommodate mass rehabilitation within city limits remains a formidable challenge. The total land required for the Dharavi project is estimated to be 200–300 acres, and the Deonar site is one of the few areas meeting this criterion.
The redevelopment plan aims to transform approximately 296 acres of Dharavi into a modern urban enclave, with improved housing, infrastructure, and public utilities. Residents have been divided into two categories: those eligible for free in-situ housing and those deemed ineligible based on their tenure status. While around 1.5 lakh residents will be relocated within Dharavi itself, between 50,000 to 1 lakh residents who do not meet eligibility criteria are slated to be relocated outside — with Deonar earmarked for a significant portion of this group. This decision, however, has attracted strong criticism from public health advocates and civil society organisations. Many have questioned the moral and legal grounds of relocating vulnerable urban populations to a landfill site known for its frequent fires, toxic emissions, and dismal health indices. The area surrounding Deonar already records some of the city’s lowest life expectancies and highest rates of respiratory illness.
Adding further complexity, the development rights for the Dharavi project are held by a Special Purpose Vehicle in which a private entity holds an 80% stake, with the remaining 20% owned by the state’s housing authority. While the government asserts that site selection was the responsibility of the project entity, critics argue that public oversight was insufficient, and due diligence on environmental impacts appears lacking. Officials from the housing department have confirmed that the proposal to use the Deonar site was submitted by the project leadership and later cleared by the department. However, responsibility for ensuring adherence to environmental norms remains diffuse, with multiple agencies involved but no single body taking full accountability for the implications of the relocation.
Moreover, the rehabilitation timeline is ambitious. Construction is expected to begin in late 2025, with a seven-year window for completion. However, experts warn that clearing the Deonar landfill to make it suitable for residential use could take six to seven years on its own and require upwards of ₹1,000 crore. Previous attempts to reclaim similar landfill areas elsewhere in the city have been fraught with delays, escalating costs, and limited success. With mounting concerns over health, safety, and transparency, many are calling for a re-evaluation of the relocation strategy.
As Mumbai grapples with its dual crises of urban density and limited land, the Dharavi redevelopment plan stands at the intersection of growth, governance, and ethics. Whether the city can balance ambition with sustainability — and equity with expedience — remains to be seen.
Dharavi Redevelopment Faces Scrutiny Over Deonar Landfill Relocation
