India, June 23 -- Around 40-50 families living in a decades-old railway staff colony in Matunga West were in for a rude shock on June 11, when they received notices asking them to vacate their buildings by June 26.

The quaint, seven-acre colony, surrounded by a canopy of nearly 800 trees, will soon be dotted with cement and concrete. The colony's 22 residential buildings, home to around 225 families, are set to make way for multi-storey buildings as part of the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP), the Adani Group-led overhaul of one of Asia's largest slums. The redevelopment is already underway. Around eight to 10 buildings in the colony have been demolished, while four high-rise towers are currently under construction.

However, while m...