Thaindian News

Mumbai, May 7 (IANS) For the first time in the state, class IV employees of Raj Bhavan in Mumbai will move into a swanky 14-storied tower with modern amenities and a breathtaking view of the Arabian Sea.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan will inaugurate the newly constructed building for the governor’s staff in Raj Bhavan at Malabar Hill here Tuesday, an official said.

The first wing of the building with 68 flats is ready and the second wing with another 68 flats will be constructed by 2012-end.

Each one-bedroom-hall-kitchen flat has an area of 350 sq. ft. and offers a magnificent view of the Marine Drive and the ‘Queen’s Necklace” in south Mumbai.

In contrast to the pomp and glitter of Raj Bhavan, the official residence of the governor, the class IV employees and their families had been living in cramped 100 square feet rooms in dilapidated chawls with common toilets.

It was in July 2004 that the then governor, Mohammed Fazal, directed that Raj Bhavan employees be provided with decent accommodation with attached bathrooms.

The then chief minister Sushilkumar Shinde and the then governor laid the foundation stone for the building, which is now ready.

Next Tuesday, Chavan will also throw open the new Garage Building of Raj Bhavan. Until now, the governor’s cars were parked in a make-shift garage that was a horses’ stable during the British rule.

The garage building will also house the new Archives Cell of Raj Bhavan, the official said.

The governor’s office is in the process of preserving and digitising old documents of historic importance pertaining to the governors since 1935.

Once the process is complete, the Archives Cell will be opened for researchers and the public.