Picture of Writers' Building in Kolkata which houses state administration offices
First, she had Kolkata painted in her favourite colours, blue and white. Now, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee wants to renovate her whole office - the sprawling 237-year-old Writers' Building. The renovation could cost the government upto Rs 200 crore.
The seat of the West Bengal government since Independence, the Writers Buildings, Ms Banerjee says, is unsafe not just for her but also for some 6,000 government employees who have to work in tiny offices where it is difficult to fit in a table or a computer. And the electrical wiring is a dangerous mess.
"This has become a tinderbox. We have reports from fire and disaster and security department that this is a tinderbox. We can't break one room at a time. So, we are looking for a place to shift temporarily," the Chief Minister said.
So, on October 1, all of them will move to an unused 13-storey building in Howrah, which was once meant to be a garment business park. But there are problems. The Writers' Building has a 5.5 lakh square feet area; this one, just two.
The Opposition in general does not have a problem with the renovation activity, but questions the shutting down of the building for unprecedented three-six months.
"We are not saying don't shift offices out. But do it step by step. Renovate empty offices. To shift everyone is completely impractical and disruptive," says CPM leader Surya Kanta Mishra. The whole exercise, the Opposition feels, will be chaotic.
There is more. Ms Banerjee wants all government offices under one roof at the Dumurjola stadium complex, also in Howrah. Confused, the Opposition has demanded a white paper. And then there are those who are worried: will the Chief Minister stop at fixing fire and security problems at Writers' or does she also have a new colour scheme in mind for it?