The Hindu Business Line : 340 pc rise in ITDC first-half net profit

The State-owned India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) has reported a 340 per cent increase in net profits at Rs 10.65 crore during the first half of this year as compared with a net loss of Rs 4.44 crore recorded during the same period in the previous year.

Addressing a press conference, the ITDC Chairman and Managing Director, Mr Parvez Dewan, said that the hotel division reported a net profit of Rs 7.26 crore up from Rs 44 lakh reported during the same period in the previous year, was one of the major contributors to the financial improvement.

"The average room rate has not declined for a single hotel. However, the hotels in Jaipur and Jammu are the only properties that are showing a loss at the moment," Mr Dewan added.

The corporation's duty-free division also reported a profit during the first six months of the current year as compared with the same period the previous year. "This is not a mean achievement as private players are also in this business now," said Mr Dewan.

Meanwhile, the corporation is taking a number of steps to further facilitate the stay of a visitor. "We have now adopted an all-India policy to have high-class wood in all our five-star hotels except where we have woollen or heritage carpets. Besides, whole grain bread would be available in all our hotels from Kashmir to Kanyakumari soon and are making changes in rooms at a fraction of a cost without sacrificing on basic needs of a traveller," said Mr Dewan.