New Delhi:
After the 340 rooms of Rashtrapati Bhavan, a four bedroom bungalow in New Delhi will be President Pratibha Patil's temporary residence after she steps down on July 24 before moving into her retirement home in Pune in about a month.
"Bungalow No.2 on Tughlaq Lane has been allotted to Pratibha Patil and she is scheduled to move in on or before July 25," an official of the Central Public Works Department (CPWD) told IANS.
Under the ministry of urban development, the CPWD is responsible for constructing and maintaining the government's residential and office complexes.
Brisk work is on to give final touches to the premises.
Surrounded by trees, the bungalow, which is painted in white, has a lush green lawn.
"It took us barely 15 days to work on the bungalow, which is now absolutely ready. We started the work on July 1 and it has been nicely done up," said another CPWD official, without giving any more details.
According to officials, CPWD received a letter on June 27 asking it to prepare the bungalow for Ms Patil.
"We have made some changes as requested by her. We have carved out a small puja room in a portion of house," the official told IANS.
"We also have added some security features," the official added.
Among Ms Patil's neighbours will be Congress general secretary and Lok Sabha MP Rahul Gandhi.
Planning Commission member secretary Sudha Pillai had previously occupied the bungalow. She vacated it on her retirement earlier this year.
Raigad, a bungalow in Pune, has been selected as Patil's retirement home. Formalities are underway to transfer it to the CPWD for refurbishment. This process is likely to take a month.