The Ashok Hotel Likely To Be Run By ITC,IHCL

ITC Ltd., Indian Hotels Co. Ltd. (IHCL), and DS Group have expressed interest in competing to build and operate the 550-room The Ashok hotel in the center of the capital city, which is owned and operated by the government-run India Tourism Development Corp (ITDC). 

Even though two of them, ITC Ltd and IHCL, already have a significant presence in the city, the hotel operators are eager to manage the iconic property in New Delhi, according to the hospitality consultants, one of whom serves as an advisor to one of these businesses. The first Indian Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, oversaw the construction of the five-star hotel in Chanakyapuri on 25 acres of parkland in 1956. One of Delhi's largest pillar-free convention halls may be found at the first such hotel constructed in Independent India. Fidel Castro, Yasser Arafat, and Margaret Thatcher were among the world leaders who later stayed at the hotel, but it has now fallen into disrepair and lost a lot of its former luster. 

According to K.B. Kachru, chairman emeritus and principal advisor for South Asia for the Radisson Hotel Group as well as vice-president of the Hotel Association of India, "The Ashok is like a monument for the city and the country in some ways." Former ITDC executive Kachru said the site presents a wonderful opportunity for hotel operators, so it seems sense that they would be interested. But he said that the hotel will need to be updated. 

According to Kachru, the 66-year-old hotel was India's first attempt at hospitality and had the chance to host 109 presidents and heads of state. Following a thorough proposal on the monetization of the hotel that transaction advisor Feedback Infra submitted to the Department of Investment and Public Asset Management (DIPAM) in July 2020, its operator, ITDC, announced to stock exchanges on Wednesday that it now had clearance to proceed with the plan, sending its stock soaring 10%. 

The proposal for monetization calls for operating, maintaining, and developing three pieces of land on the site. Apart from the Samrat Hotel, the Ashok will be leased for 60 years while the other two land parcels in the complex would be for 99 years.