Finally,govt finds a house for President Patil in Pune

Patil,however,is expected to move temporarily to a government bungalow in Delhi next month till the time the Pune house is ready.

After a controversy over a disputed defence ministry house in Pune which she had earlier sought but was forced to give up,outgoing President Pratibha Patils search for a post-retirement residential address has finally ended.

President Patil will now move to a government bungalow in the Pashan area of Pune,the house being the designated residence of the police wireless chief of Pune. Patil has given her approval for the house after considering a few other options in other localities of Pune,sources said,adding that the state government has already set in motion the process to renovate and allocate the house to Patil after she retires.

The Urban Development ministry here is the nodal agency coordinating the matter,sources said,but added that the house,owned by the Maharashtra government,would not be transferred to the Centre but given on rent.

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Built in a one-acre plot,the house has a built-in area of 2,500 square feet and is well within the prescribed norms that a former President is entitled to. Patil,however,is expected to move temporarily to a government bungalow in Delhi next month till the time the Pune house is ready.

Most retiring presidents have sought post-retirement houses in the national Capital or returned to their respective home states where they have stayed in their ancestral homes.

Patil,however,became an exception when she requested the government to construct a post-retirement house for her in Pune.

She,however,had to forgo the proposed accommodation earmarked for her on a five-acre plot after it got embroiled in a controversy.