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Endless staircases descend from Dharavi’s crowded streets into hidden factories, where children as young as seven are sent by their families to work in poorly ventilated and unhygienic sweatshops. Daily wages for twelve hours of work are as low as twelve cents, and many of these children are beaten by factory owners and forced to subsist on one serving of rice a day. Diseases such as scabies, leprosy, intestinal worms, and anemia are commonplace among this population.

Drug use is also a major problem in Dharavi and other Bombay slums. According to the National Addiction Resource Center in India, substance abuse has drastically increased in the preceding ten years. Heroin, alcohol, and cannabis are the most widespread, though addicts are increasingly turning to other opiates, cough syrups, and inhalants. Needle-sharing has lead to increase in HIV and other infections. In a recent survey, more than half of drug users in Dharavi acknowledged a need for treatment, but have not sought help because of lack of adequate facilities.

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