On July 25, President Pratibha Patil will move from the 340-room Rashtrapati Bhavan, which she now calls ‘home,’ to a modest, three-bedroom accommodation boasting of no distinguished feature or noteworthy history.
The President will spend time in a Type VIII Bungalow on Tughlak Road here till her post-retirement home in Pune gets a makeover befitting a former head of state.The unpretentious accommodation has been chosen because there are no other bungalows available.
The President had wished to spend time in Pune after demitting office. A property identified there became the subject of a controversy after an organisation of ex-servicemen alleged that two British-era buildings would be knocked down to accommodate the building.
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Upset at the allegations, the President, who is also the supreme commander of the Defence forces, refused to move into the property that stands on the land owned by the Defence Ministry.
A new house was subsequently identified, but it required a lot of renovation. With the authorities unable to ready the place before July 25, the Urban Development Ministry zeroed in on a vacant bungalow. “The bungalow on Tughlak Lane is in good condition, though it is very small. It has three bedrooms, a small office and quarters for house help,” said a senior official of the Ministry.