It's wasn't such a pleasant news for builders and politicians, though. A builder, who refused to be named, said: ``Lakhs of rupees that had changed hands are being returned due to fear that commitments made will be difficult to keep now. The money market is thus very tight as cash has stopped rolling.''

Chandrashekhar, as he demonstrated in Thane, is merciless in dealing with unauthorised constructions. In Thane he had razed several hotels and bars owned by TMC corporators. But then, he is also known for his diplomacy. Stories about how he convinced people to shift out before he brought their houses down have passed into folklore. He is also known for his passion for environmental conservation.

Expectations in Ulhasnagar too are high.``You wait and watch,'' Preetinder Kaur Sohal, a resident of Camp No 1 said, ``All the corrupt officials and politicians will not know where to hide now. We burst crackers when we heard he is being sent here.'' To an outsider the celebrations may look like an over-reaction, but in Chandrashekhar people see a man who's going ``work for them.'' And that in a town where corruption is endemic, is something to celebrate. The last UMC commissioner, Capt. S H Shool, was transferred in April following allegation of corruption. Though some corporators in the UMC have welcomed the move to bring in ``an able administrator like Chandrashekhar,'' they are obviously in a minority. A group of corporators has already written to Chief Minister Manohar Joshi seeking his intervention in stopping Chandrashekhar from taking over the charge. ``This will affect the ongoing works in Thane district,'' the letter says. The announcement of Chandrashekhar's appointment too was not without its share of drama. Earlier on Friday, theKalyan Dombivli Municipal Commissioner Madhukar Kokate was asked to take the additional charge. However, when he reached the office on Saturday, the Urban Development Secretary called to break the news that Chandrashekhar was being offered the charge instead. When contacted, the TMC Commissioner maintained that he'll follow the government's orders. ``It is not for me to say anything in the matter,'' he told Express Newsline.