For 40-year-old Dharamdas Kadam, cleaning the streets has been a ritual for over two decades. For the first time now, he will have to adjust to the colour of night. ``The graveyard shift, from 11 pm to 5 am, has upset my body clock. It felt awfully strange when I reported for work at Nagar Chowk (opposite CST station) at 11 pm today. But I guess I'll get used to it,'' he shrugs.

His co-worker Vilasrao Pawar (42) was not so complacent. Nocturnal prowlers had made life miserable for him on Sunday. ``On the first night itself I ran into apack of strays near Metro cinema. At around 1.30 am, I found myself alone on the road. I guess the canines must have sensed my fright when I spotted them. So, when they began to chase me, I made straight for the police headquarters at Crawford Market,'' grins Pawar.

Reflecting on his changed schedule, Pawar remarks: ``The roads look longer at night as there is almost no traffic and no parked vehicles; that makes our work easier. But what do we do about pavement-dwellers? So far, I have had two tiffs with street-dwellers, who I couldn't help but awaken.''

`A' Ward Officer, Rajendra Vale, admits that the dog menace will keep the civic staff on their toes. But, he says, our final aim is to keep the city spick and span.''

Of the 252 beats in `A' ward, the night-cleanliness drive has begun in 64; gradually an increasing number of roads will be included. ``At present we are not touching the Gateway of India, Churchgate, and some residential areas. It takes about four hours for two workers to clean one stretchof road/beat (4,000 sq ft). So we are still studying the situation,'' Vale says.

In each of Mumbai's 24 wards, the workers have initially been assigned only 10 per cent of the roads. ``In `B' ward we have assigned 30 workers for 18 beats covering Mohammed Ali Road, Ebrahim Rahimtulla Marg, JJ Hospital, and Masjid and Sandhurst Road stations. The night shift has not really caused any problems here,'' remarks Ward Officer Dr K N Kshirsagar.

It is 3 am at KEM Hospital in F-South ward and the sweepers here are already done. ``I feel very awkward doing this; it's as if I am the only one alive in the city as even the bar girls and dogs have gone to sleep by now. It's really strange,'' says S Pandurang, resting his tired heels on the pavement. As his Ward Officer, S S Naik, says: ``When I was a child I used to see the streets being cleaned at night. Once the scheme is streamlined, it is sure to work.''

When dawn breaks, the brooms are back in the closet and the sun readies to bathe the tidy streets. Till theteeming pedestrians and vendors take over in a few hours, that is.