Tucked away in Mumbai’s least developed ward, the slums of Shivaji Nagar might be one Mumbai’s best-kept secrets. With 78% of the populatio...
Tucked away in Mumbai’s least developed ward, the slums of Shivaji Nagar might be one Mumbai’s best-kept secrets. With 78% of the population living in slums and an average life expectancy of 38, this municipal ward has a Human Development Index of 0.05. A landfill serves as its backdrop, where Mumbai dumps 4,500 metric tonnes of its garbage daily.
Walking through the narrow lanes of Shivaji Nagar one sidesteps stagnant pools from overflowing sewers, avoiding children playing on the road as motorcycles and auto rickshaws whiz by, crosses playgrounds with hardly space for even a game of marbles, and notices the tiny schools and “classes” dispersed through the chawls. Looking around, it seems there are children everywhere, walking to or from school and tuition classes, playing by the roadside, or huddling together glued to a mobile phone screen.
The fact that the population of Shivaji Nagar consists mostly of young people means that it is the youth of the community who must bear the brunt of the all-pervasive problems here. Only a fraction (23%) is enrolled in institutions of higher education and they face an atmosphere rife with economic hardship, gender violence, juvenile crime, and substance abuse.
Anoop Parik spent eight years as an...
