Risking Lives In Crumbling Houses

One of the world's costliest real estate markets is Worli, south central Mumbai.

Worli has many luxury towers and villas, but amidst those opulent structures, there are few deteriorating buildings, which stand as a symbol of the sacrifices made by Mumbaikars to secure a home in prestigious area.

The crumbling structure of the Worli dairy quarters buildings, which house more than 600 people, has been categorised by local authorities as grade 1 dilapidated buildings and could collapse during the city's monsoon season.

The building faces the sea, making the structure very vulnerable during Mumbai's difficult monsoon and the walls and doors of many units are waterlogged and mouldy.

"It's not possible for me, or any middle class family, to purchase a new home in Mumbai," says resident Sumit Shinde.

IMAGE: Residents stand in the corridors outside their homes at the Worli dairy quarters building in Mumbai.
"It's dangerous, especially with parents and children," says resident Sumit Shinde. All Photographs: Francis Mascarenhas/Reuters

IMAGE: Rahul Makwana leans on improvised railings made out of bamboo sticks and plastic sheets on the corridor outside his home at the Worli dairy quarters building.
"I was the only one living on the 4th floor in this wing of the building," says Makwana. "The government had asked me to move out because they plan to demolish the entire floor because the pillars of the building can't take the weight anymore."

IMAGE: Mayank, Rahul Makwana's nephew, helps his family move from the fourth to the first floor after receiving notice of the building pillars weakening. The building faces the sea, making the structure very vulnerable during the monsoon.

IMAGE: Residents sit on the corridors outside their homes at the Worli dairy quarters. Inside this crumbling structure, children play outside their units along corridors with rusted, broken railings held together with rags. "It's dangerous, especially with parents and children," added resident Sumit Shinde. "But it's not possible for me, or any middle class family, to purchase a new home in Mumbai. It's very expensive."

IMAGE: Rahul Makwana and his nephew Mayank carry their belongings as they move from the fourth to the first floor.

IMAGE: Arun Solanki stands outside his home at the Worli dairy quarters building.Depending on their unit's size, residents pay between Rs 8,000 and Rs 13,000 rupees a month in rent to the state government, which has already declared the block unsafe for habitation and asked occupants to leave.
"The government cuts rent from our salary every month. We are not living here for free, hence they need to repair the building," says Solanki.

IMAGE: Children play in the corridor at the Worli dairy quarters building.

IMAGE: Arun Solanki's wife cooks below a plastic sheet collecting leaking water, in her kitchen.

IMAGE: Children play football outside the building.

IMAGE: Dogs sleep on the floor outside the Worli dairy quarters.

IMAGE: A resident sits on a staircase at the Worli dairy quarters building.
Some residents work for the Worli Dairy and the government has offered to move them to the far off suburbs in Mumbai, which would mean a very long commute to work.
"The location of this building is great, it's very convenient for me to go to work," says resident Aiwale.
"Affordable housing is impossible to find in a city like Mumbai."