As Mumbai became the Covid-19 hotspot, it was believed that Dharavi would remain its epicenter for a long time. And things would not return to normal anytime soon. But it did not happen. After successfully flattening the Covid curve here, the owners of the factory in Asia’s biggest slum have now decided to restart their work in Dharavi with the help of a few remaining migrant labourers.
Though the migrant workers have not returned, Dharavi is reverberating again with the help of the few remaining workers. All the work here was completely stalled during the lockdown. Now, The Daily Guardian’s exclusive ground report has found that factories have again started working, albeit slowly, in this area.
Raincoat was made in Kamaruddin’s factory before lockdown but corona spoiled the game. All the workers of this factory went back to their respective states. Somehow, they managed to stop 10% of their workers and some local women. Now, they have started their factories again. Raincoat is not in demand anymore, so they have started making PPE kits.
According to government data, more than eight lakh workers have migrated from Dharavi alone.
When The Daily Guardian reached the factory of Feroz who used to do computer design on clothes in Dharavi, we saw that all their workers had migrated from here. Both Feroz and his son, the owner of the factory, got involved in the work. Even though the speed of work was not like before but earlier orders were settled so that the burden could be reduced to a bit.