Back in November the jewelry shop on the ground floor of our building was closed for refurbishment. After seven days we were surprised that despite 4 men working eight hour days, nothing much seemed to have happened. Like many Indian shops, it is basically a garage space, no windows, no doors, nothing but a concrete 10x10x10ft cube. What, we wondered, was taking so long?
Talking with the owner we gathered that he was expecting the work to be finished for the Christmas rush. New electrics, fitted cabinets, fancy wall coverings, a new roller shutter and a metal fascia to disguise the same were the order of the day. OK, so if everything has to be constructed on site in either cramped conditions or out on the street, it will take some time.
Three weeks later, in conversation with the owner, we gathered that he would be re-opening on 4th January. Without trying to be superior, we pointed out that in the UK, to avoid prolonged closure and resultant loss of business, most of the work would have been done off-site, a team would have arrived with all the stuff in van and they would have completed in a couple of days. He shook his head sadly and said ‘Not possible in India, nothing would fit and all the new stuff would have to be re-worked. This is the only way’.
It’s now 40 days from the start and counting. The four men have been working eleven hour days for the last week, including Sunday and the job still seems far from completion. Maybe they are constructing an underground tunnel to the owner’s house so that he can avoid the increasingly difficult Margao traffic. We can’t believe this is a simple refurbishment job.
10x10x10
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