Number Crunching

Scent of money!

There was a distinct buzz of urgency in the air at the Garden today. Boring as this may sound, big denomination currency notes changed hands, receipts demanded, names tallied, numbers juggled, totals checked and rechecked… The Club suddenly wore the look of a chaotic open-air bourse, except that there were no securities or commodity being transacted. It was simply the promise of a trip to Kerala next month that had generated so much excitement.
But then, Shekhawat has a deadline to keep. By January 10, he must finalise the members of his contingent so that an advance may be paid to the tour operator for booking hotel accommodation in Kerala. Till date, 31 out of 44 members who had enlisted themselves have paid up full. A big question mark hangs over the Gupta couple, Razia Khan, Nafisa Sayyad and Mr and Mrs Harbans Singh. A few others have made part payment only. Shekhawat announced today that he would have to cancel the bookings of all those who fail to make full payment by January 10 and no further reminders or phone calls would be made by him.
Some clarity on the full complement of the troupe would emerge in the next couple of days.