Pay more for window to Lord

Money isn’t divine but it can buy a flat overlooking the Lord.

Realtors have been swamped with offers from potential buyers willing to fork out up to 25 per cent more than market rates for flats facing Siddhivinayak temple.

Such is the fervour among the devotees of Ganesh, the presiding deity, that real estate agents in the central Mumbai suburb of Prabhadevi, where the well-known shrine is located, seem to be laughing their way to the bank.

The readiness to pay more includes those buying apartments or taking them on rent. All they insist on is that the flats should offer a view of the three-storeyed temple.

here is another, and no less compelling, reason: the Bachchans come to the shrine, often in the wee hours. Soap queen Ekta Kapoor is a frequent visitor, before a new “K” serial.

Staying near the Lord saves time, too. “There is no time to visit the temple. We look out of the window and fold our hands,” said the owner of one such recently purchased flat.

Brakes on fuel-crunch fears

Bangalore’s fuel shortage isn’t a supply problem but the result of abnormally high demand, a top oil official said recently.

According to Indian Oil’s general manager (Karnataka), B. Ashok, the demand went up 30 per cent in the entire state in June and 32 per cent in Bangalore.

The seemingly insatiable hunger for fuel has been compounded by the power cuts the state has seen in recent weeks.

Giving an example, Ashok said diesel supply to the city was 9,500 kilolitres between July 23 and 27, a spurt of 80 per cent over the volume in the same period of last year. Supply to the state as a whole had been raised 45 per cent. By reeling off the figures, he appeared to be countering claims the oil companies weren’t bringing enough fuel.  (PTI)

Trouble rains on civic body

The recent downpour in Andhra has landed the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation neck-deep in trouble.

In one spell, when it rained 32 hours non-stop, the civic authorities woke up to streets turning into canals and colonies into lakes. Worse, they have struggled to confront the perils posed by the 350 dilapidated buildings that could have collapsed any time because of the rain.

Eerie parallels were drawn with Mumbai, where residents of a building declared “unsafe” died after a cave-in triggered by incessant rain.

Like in Mumbai, officials said the inmates of many shaky buildings in Hyderabad have refused to leave. In some instances, police help was sought to evict the occupants.

“Our engineers are moving from one place to another to find out the vulnerable buildings,” GHMC additional commissioner Dhanunjaya Reddy said.

The state rights panel had asked the civic body to demolish all such buildings and Reddy said the civic body was ready to shift the residents to relief camps.

Blaze battle

Delhi’s blaze-busters are poised for a technology boost.

Chief minister Sheila Dikshit has said all fire stations will be modernised with high-tech gadgets in the run-up to the 2010 Commonwealth Games. “The government will set up a fire station in each Assembly constituency. Seven will be opened this month,” Dikshit said after inaugurating two stations in west Delhi recently.

Land for 26 stations has been identified and 15 are being built. More stations are needed because of several new colonies. (PTI)

This Monday, Bodhi Art Gallery is organising an “Everywhere is War” exhibition, which will feature the works of a galaxy of artists. The venue is at 28K Dubash Marg in Colaba's Kala Ghoda. Time: 11am to 7pm. You can call 66100124 and 66100125 for more information.