Cabinet Sub-Committee meeting to decide tomorrow
Mysore/Mysuru: After many media reports that the iconic Lalitha Mahal Palace Hotel will be handed over to the Taj Group, the issue will come up before the Cabinet Sub-Committee meeting tomorrow where a final decision will be taken to hand over the Hotel to private players.
The luxury hotel is presently being run by State-owned Jungle Lodges and Resorts, a unit of Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC) which took over the property from India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) in 2018.
The Cabinet Sub-Committee meeting will be chaired by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and one of the subjects that will be taken up for discussion is the handing over of the Hotel to private players. Sources said that the State Government is keen to hand over the Hotel to a private agency or a hotel conglomerate which has expertise in managing heritage property.
Confirming this to Star of Mysore this morning, the Managing Director of Jungle Lodges Manoj Kumar said that the CM will take a final call. “Yes, there is a proposal before the Government to hand over the management of Lalitha Mahal Palace Hotel to private players and discussions were on in this regard at Government level for over one year,” he said.
The meeting and discussion under Tourism Minister Anand Singh on the issue are already over and the final call has to be taken by the Cabinet and the Chief Minister. “We will have to await the Cabinet’s decision to proceed with the formalities,” Manoj Kumar said.
However, M. Appanna, the Chairman of the Jungle Lodges and Resorts, said that the issue has not come to his notice. “I am not aware of the issue and I have no idea if the discussion will come up in the Cabinet Sub-Committee meeting,” he told Star of Mysore.
Manoj Kumar clarified that the Jungle Lodges and Resorts Chairman is not a member of the Cabinet Sub-Committee and as such he may not be aware of the issue. “Yes, the Lalitha Mahal is on the agenda and we will wait for the decision,” he added.
He was, however, non-committal about the handing over of the luxury Hotel to the Taj Group. Department of Tourism Director T. Venkatesh told reporters that the Cabinet Sub-Committee will not meet to privatise Lalitha Mahal Hotel. “Only the management will be handed over to a private player for a certain period,” he added.
In January last year, the Taj Group offered to run the luxury hotel at a virtual meeting that was chaired by the then CM B.S. Yediyurappa. The Tata Group was represented by Tata Sons Chairman N. Chandrasekaran and other top executives of the company.
Sources said that if the Government decides to hand over the State-run enterprise to private parties, it has to do so after floating a Request For Proposals (RFP) or global tenders. Once the tenders are called for, the property will be leased out to the highest bidder, sources added.
The Iconic Lalitha Mahal Palace hotel should indeed be handover to the Taj group as they run the Iconic Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai and we can expect the same level of Hospitality for the first time in Mysuru. Why Government should give it to Taj Hotels is because Taj Hotels is part of the TATA group and they are known for their ethics, integrity and work culture which is not seen in many hotels. Also, there will be Meritocracy in Talent selection and somebody cant become General Manager ( as some hotels appoint) because their relative is a big person and has contacts in the power circles in New Delhi.
Also, Taj Group under the Guidance of the Dynamic Leader Mr N.Chandrasekaran and headed by Mr Puneet Chatwal has trimmed costs, sold off loss-making properties abroad and is moving towards an asset-light strategy.
It would be great for Mysuru to bring in the work culture of TATA Group so that other hotels can learn from them and this might be the first Big TATA Company to Start Operations in Mysuru, though Hotel GInger part of its Subsidiary Roots Corporation had set shop a few years back.
If Tata Sons Chairman Mr Chandrasekharan likes Mysuru then all other TATA companies like TCS, TATA Technologies etc might choose Mysuru in the future. He in his second term as Chairman is going to take Tata Group towards its next $100 billion and Mysuru might get a share of that growth strategy.
Hence My Vote is for the Iconic Lalitha Mahal Palace Hotel to be handed over to the Taj Group.
Yes once it is handed over to Taj group of Tatas it will definitely return back to its glory.They are professional and ethical.chances of their group entering Mysore are not ruled out Moreover Chandra being at the helm of Tal group will do wonders.i welcome it