Ahmedabad: 

Clear cut funda: Karsan gets a shave and a haircut on his hospital bed to look presentable for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh yesterday. pic/nimesh dave

Karsan's hair was partially burnt in the serial blasts that rocked the city on Saturday. Yesterday, he received a haircut and a shave on his hospital bed. A few snips later Karsan looked a tidy man.

The Civil Hospital authorities were on a cleaning spree since yesterday morning. Karsan, who was admitted on Saturday, was curious about the change in the behaviour of the hospital staff. Suddenly, all of them were seen in uniform. They cleaned the hospital and its vicinity.

Karsan inquired about what was going on. When someone told him that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress chief Sonia Gandhi were visiting the hospital, he insisted on getting a shave and a haircut.

Neat and tidy

"Ever since he was told that the prime minister is visiting, he kept insisting on getting a haircut and a shave. So we brought a barber to make him look tidy. He wanted to look presentable before the prime minister," one of Karsan's relatives told MiD DAY.

The lift in the hospital was painted at the eleventh hour, as the prime minister was to use it to visit the patients in the B-4 ward on the first floor.

The rather glum atmosphere since Saturday suddenly lit up.

How cool

"It will be good, if the prime minister or other leaders visit this hospital. Before BJP leader L K Advani's visit on Sunday, an air-conditioner was placed in the ward. With the visit of the prime minister, the entire ward had been cleaned up. We hope the prime minister visits every day," a patient said.