Despite having enough profit potential, these areas lag behind as only small builders take up projects which again move at snail’s pace.
While most of the city has seen fast paced redevelopment in the recent years, several Muslim-dominated areas have failed to attract interest from builders despite their lucrative potential.
Space crunch
When Talib Bazmi got married, he did not move out of his parents’ house in Dongri. Six years and two children later, the BPO employee still shares the cramped family home with four other adults. “With property prices touching the sky, I may not be able to buy a house of my own anytime soon,” he said.
The Bazmis are not alone in their reluctance to move out of their close-knit mohalla. Muslim areas all over South Mumbai are choc-a-bloc with families sharing cramped quarters. While most of them insist that they are living in their present localities because of the sheer convenience of a social network and a hassle-free commute, there are others who would like to move away.
A ray of hope?
For families struggling to cope with space constraints in Muslim ghettos, the idea of redevelopment comes as a ray of hope. However, the painfully slow process in these areas is in contrast to the fast paced redevelopment activity in other parts of the city.
Presently, Lodha, Kalpataru, India Bulls and Hiranandani Developers have been undertaking projects in the luxury and super luxury segments. However, the same builders are dragging their feet in Muslim localities despite their proximity to South Mumbai and its business districts.
“The only people keen on redeveloping our chawl are small-time builders who don’t have much credibility. Interestingly, all of them are Muslim and not a single non-Muslim builder has approached us so far,” said retired schoolteacher Naseem Mukhtar who lives at Nishanpada in Dongri.
The roadblocks
Developers insist that builders are not undertaking housing projects in Muslim-dominated areas because of illegal construction, small-sized of plots, non availability of open spaces and lack of basic infrastructure. “In these localities, there are very few high income prospective buyers and affluent non-Muslims are reluctant to buy houses in Muslim ghettos,” said a prominent builder on the condition of anonymity.
Other side of the coin
Sunil Mantri, president of MCHI, has maintained that developers are driven by profits and not religious bias. “If the project is profitable, it does not matter if it is a Muslim area or a Hindu area,” he said. But Tabrez Sheikh Rubberwala, director of Rubberwala Developers, disagrees that only Muslim developers were carrying out projects in Muslim areas. “There are a few small non-Muslim developers in Mazgaon and Dongri,” he said.
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