For about 60 per cent of the 18,000 employees of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), the urge to cheer India as it took on arch rivals Pakistan in the semifinal yesterday, took greater precedence than all warnings against mass leave
For about 60 per cent of the 18,000 employees of the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), the urge to cheer India as it took on arch rivals Pakistan in the semifinal yesterday, took greater precedence than all warnings against mass leave. 
Cricket enthusiasts huddle outside shop windows to catch the high-octane
action on the big screens
All the departments in the PMC building in Shivajinagar wore a deserted look as almost 60 per cent of its employees had called in sick or taken casual leave to catch the high-octane cricket match on television.
The notices warning employees to not take leave, thus hampering services, apparently fell on deaf ears. And the Deputy Commissioner of PMC Kundalik Karkar made no bones about his displeasure. 
Children paint their faces in tricolour in support of the Men in Blue
"By tomorrow, I am getting the detailed report from all department heads and then we can decide if and how to take action or not," he said. Of the 18,000 staff of the PMC, about 10,000 are class IV employees. At least 8,000 work in the main building, and others are scattered in the 14 ward offices in the city.u00a0
Visitors to government offices in the city were met with empty desks as
most employees chose to give work a miss to watch the match at home
Karkar said the employees were not given casual or sick leave and had only telephonically conveyed their leave of absence to the departmental heads. "The current biometric system, we use, can give us the exact figure about the number of absentees and how many took half day after the lunch break," he said.u00a0 
The usually crowded Karve Road looked desolate as most people with
vehicles stayed indoors and those who did venture out got a free rein
Naresh Zurmure, additional commissioner, said, "We were expecting this today. Fortunately, most visitors come to the main building and very few came in after 2.30 pm." Prashant Waghmare, the city engineer, said the staff in charge of issuing licenses for building construction did not turn up. "All the 235 architects looking after the designing job had gone to see the cricket match. But, my staff in the office were present in sizable number," he claimed.u00a0
Dr Roopchand Pardeshi, head of PMC Health Services, said his medical and paramedical staff were present in all the municipal hospitals. "Today the workload was less in the hospitals owing to the cricket match," he said.
While the PMC looked spooked, the Regional Transport Office (RTO) seemed to be "highly diligent in its work", in the words of Regional Transport Officer Chandrakant Kharatmal. Only four people reported absent in the RTO rosters, with one of them on sick leave. RTO officers said they were few visitors after 2 pm. On catching the match, Kharatmal said he and his officers were intermittently listening to the commentary.
It was all beer and skittles
Youngsters thronging night clubs, lounges and hangout joints, cheered every wicket with whistles, claps and firecrackers.u00a0 Sales took a nosedive towards the evening and shops preferred to down shutters early. Some of the busiest roads in the city wore a deserted look. During half time, the traffic was chaotic when everyone was rushing to get back home.Some of the hangout joints were packed to the brim, with hardly any breathing space. Khodu Irani, owner of High Spirits in Koregaon Park said: "We have got a packed house." Sachin Joshi, owner of Metro Mix at Kothrud, said: "Considering it's a Wednesday we have not got any customer. We do not serve alcohol and therefore people have preferred to stay at home and watch."
Mayor Mohansingh Rajpal celebrates with beer
Mayor Mohansingh Rajpal, who was enjoying the match with beer and food at his residence, said: "I will be coming to office when India crosses 300 runs." The Mayor's office in the PMC building was packed with employees and political activists, who were following the match on television. Similarly, the chambers of Standing Committee Chairman Ganesh Bidkar and Deputy Mayor Prasanna Jagtap were also crowded.
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