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Our Bureau

Chennai, Sept. 24

Tamil Nadu hoteliers seek land at concessional rate from the State Government for budget hotels as land prices are so high that it has become unviable for companies to venture into the segment.

However, as the State has become a favourite destination for IT, ITES, automobile and telecom majors to set up their facilities, the demand for rooms in this category is soaring.

At a press conference here, the President of the South India Hotels and Restaurants Association (SIHRA), Mr M.P. Purushothaman, said the association had also renewed its demand for flexible bar timings to cater to guests arriving late in the night, 50 per cent increase in floor space index (FSI) to add more rooms, power tariff that is applicable to industries (hotels now pay at a higher commercial tariff).

He also wanted luxury tax to be levied on the actual price charged, rather than the published tariff. “If these demands are met, room rates will come down substantially,” he pointed out.

The present occupancy level in Chennai across categories is over 80 per cent. There are about 133 new hotels coming up in the South. Kerala is topping the list with 61 projects followed by Karnataka with 30, Tamil Nadu 18, Andhra Pradesh 20 and Puducherry four hotels, said Mr R. Rangachari, Secretary General of the association.

The SIHRA also announced new vice-presidents — Mr Shankar Menon of Empee Hotels, Mr K. Syama Raju of Hotel Maurya, Bangalore, and Mr Suresh M. Pillai of Horizon, Thiruvananthapuram, and Mr Veer Vijay Singh of GVK Hotels, Hyderabad. Besides, Mr Rangachari, who served the association for over a decade as its Secretary General, is also retiring from September 30, and will be replaced by Mr G. Venkataraman, who retired as Deputy Director General from the Central Tourism Ministry.

More Stories on : Hotels | Real Estate & Construction | Industry Associations | Tamil Nadu

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