UNITED NATIONS, Oct 13: A plenary session of the UN General Assembly had to be moved to another chamber on Thursday after heavy rains currently lashing New York caused leaks in the roof of the assembly hall, a UN spokeswoman said.

“The plenary had to be moved to the Trusteeship council chamber because of leaks in the Assembly hall,” spokeswoman Pragati Pascale said.

“Perhaps nature is sending us a message about the (UN) Capital Master Plan,” she quoted General Assembly president, Sweden’s Jan Eliasson, as saying, referring to the planned renovation project of the 53-year-old UN headquarters site.

The roof of the assembly hall had already been repaired at a cost of 600,000 dollars a few months ago.

The aging UN complex on Manhattan island along the East river, which comprises seven buildings erected between 1949 and 1952, requires extensive renovation scheduled to begin in 2007.

In January, the General Assembly approved a major five-year renovation project at an initial cost of 1.049 billion dollars.

But the scheme is running behind schedule and its projected cost has now shot up to 1.5 billion dollars as the UN is having trouble securing a low-interest loan to finance the work.

The world body is meanwhile looking for cheap temporary space for its staff while the complex, which is riddled with hazardous asbestos, is upgraded and fitted with state-of-the-art fire prevention and security systems.—AFP