Indian government looks to privatize state-run hotels

In India, Union tourism ministry is planning to make eight of the 16 hotels run by India Tourism Development Corporation private, including the Patliputra Ashoka in Patna. The Times of India is reporting that efforts to privatize this property could lead to renewed conflict between the ministry and the state government as Patliputra Ashoka is one of the ITDC hotels turning a profit.

An ITDC official told Times of India that a proposal will be sent to the Union cabinet and that the ministry will determine the best way to disinvest the properties. The privatization could happen through a joint venture or by giving the management to private players on a lease.

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ITDC is a public sector unit under the Union tourism ministry. Three of its 16 hotels are in Delhi and the rest in Jammu, Ranchi, Bhubaneswar, Puri, Patna, Bhopal, Bharatpur, Jaipur, Guwahati, Pondicherry, Mysore and Itanagar.