MUMBAI: Maharashtra chief minister Uddhav Thackeray may not move to the CM’s official bungalow ‘Varsha’ at Malabar Hill, but may choose to stay on in his own home ‘Matoshree’ in Bandra-18 km away from the seat of power.
The 12,000 sq ft official bungalow has a complex with the office for the CM, a waiting hall and a meeting area, besides a pantry to cater to visitors and other amenities.
Sources close to Thackeray said the chief minister has decided to use the official bungalow for his meetings with bureaucrats and political leaders only.
The CM in fact recently hosted British billionaire Richard Branson and promoter of Virgin Group that plans to develop the high-speed Mumbai-Pune hyperloop at his own residence, besides cricket icons Sunil M Gavaskar and SR Tendulkar.
It is at Matoshree that he has been meeting foreign delegations too.
Insiders said, the decision to stay at his own residence has reinforced the status of Matoshree as the ‘power centre’ of Maharashtra and the commute to the secretariat does not take over 20 minutes for the CM’s cavalcade through the Bandra-Worli sea-link.
Meanwhile, Varsha- the official bungalow- is undergoing extensive renovation and would be ready by next week to be put to use for official purposes.
“The CM office has asked us to remove all inauspicious things and make it ready for purification,” said sources, requesting anonymity.
BJP spokesperson Bhalchandra Shirsat said that the dignity of each and every office of the government should be maintained, including that of Varsha.